Keeping Your Plumbing Flowing Smoothly

If you deal with plumbing clogs on a regular basis, you might find yourself struggling with bent wire hangers, chemical drain cleaner, and unfamiliar pipes. Unfortunately, unless you are a trained professional, all of your efforts might be in vain. Most people don't realize it, but it is possible to damage your plumbing by making a few missteps. If you use the wrong chemicals or you push a little too hard, you might end up dealing with damaged pipes or your clogging problem could get worse. Fortunately, you might be able to use this blog to help you to keep your plumbing flowing smoothly.

A Bad Smell Coming From Your Bathroom Drain? 2 Problems That Can Cause This And How To Take Care Of It

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If you smell a bad smell coming from your bathroom drain, there are many things that can cause this to happen. Fortunately, the cause is not difficult to determine, especially if you hire a professional plumber like those with Calhoun Plumbing to help you. Below are two things you may find that is the cause and what can be done to get the drain smelling fresh again.

Buildup of Biofilm

The pipes in your bathroom may be coated with biofilm. This can build up from things like dead skin cells when someone shaves their face or washes their hands, a buildup of hand soap, and more. Once this happens, bacteria will start to grow, and the drain will start smelling much like rotten eggs.

Remove the stopper in the bathroom drain and inspect it. If you see a lot of black gunk that is slimy and smelly on the stopper, then your pipes are likely coated in the biofilm. Further investigate sticking an old toothbrush down the drain. Wipe the sides of the pipes and the toothbrush bristles will be covered in biofilm.

If you do not take care of this problem, the biofilm will continue to grow, and your entire plumbing system will become coated with it.

Problem with P-Trap

Look under the bathroom sink and inspect the P-trap. This is the curved part of the plumbing pipe. This part of the pipe is important because this is where everything gets trapped that goes down your sink drain. For example, if you drop a ring or something else small down the drain it will likely be caught in the P-trap.

Over time the P-trap can become full of gunk which will cause bad smells to come out of the drain. Fortunately, you can take care of this problem on your own. First, turn off the water for your bathroom and remove the P-trap. Take the trap to your kitchen sink and rinse it out. If a lot of debris comes out of the P-trap then this is what is causing the bad smell. Clean the trap with warm, soapy water and then rinse well. Reconnect it to the pipes under the bathroom sink.

If you still smell a bad smell coming from your bathroom drain, it is time to contact a plumber to professionally clean your drain. They can clean far into the pipes to get everything out. The plumber can also determine what is causing the bad smell. They can do this by using a long flexible tube that has a camera connected to the end of the tube. The plumber pushes the tube down the drain to allow them to inspect the drains closely. The plumber has a display, so they can see what the camera sees.

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21 July 2018