What product do people find works best to clean out waste water pipes from sinks and shower? Thanks.
Pipe cleaner products
- Thread starter Andy Norfolk
- Start date
Sounds daft but I generally just pour a bottle of cheap supermarket cola down and leave it overnight.
Puriclean or Milton . Don’t leave any of the cleaning products more than say 15 minutes in the hot water tank . They corrode stainless steel. And rinse thoroughly with clean water. Also check the tap end filter mesh. They can clog up.
A decent "dollop" of cheap bleach into each plug 'ole last thing on occasional nights that's then flushed through with water the next morning has worked for me for the last 20 years. Don't forget that anything you put down the plus hole will only remain in the "P" trap until the next drop of water flushes it out. It then transits the pipework to the wastehog or drain it doesn't remain in it, so whatever you do put down the sink etc spends very little time actually in the pipework.
Every so often I fill the sink with hot water to the brim and then remove the plug. My theory being that the sudden "rush" of a decent volume of water, clears out the inevitable bits of detritus that must collect with the waste pipes convolution. That's then followed by a kettle full of boiling water. A wire "strainer" within the sink is good at keeping a lot of crud from going down the drain in the first place.
I also add some bleach into the waste hog after each emptying, that stops any nasty niffs developing.
Bleach is vastly cheaper than any proprietary "cleaners" you can buy.
Every so often I fill the sink with hot water to the brim and then remove the plug. My theory being that the sudden "rush" of a decent volume of water, clears out the inevitable bits of detritus that must collect with the waste pipes convolution. That's then followed by a kettle full of boiling water. A wire "strainer" within the sink is good at keeping a lot of crud from going down the drain in the first place.
I also add some bleach into the waste hog after each emptying, that stops any nasty niffs developing.
Bleach is vastly cheaper than any proprietary "cleaners" you can buy.
Do Not pour boiling water down the plug holes…..it can expand the waste pipes and they can then slip off their spigots unbeknownst to you. Don’t ask me how I know 🫣
Every so often, put a hose pipe over each plug hole and make a seal with a rag. Get another person to turn it on and this will force out a lot of muck. Unlikely, but it may also push joints off, but they can easily be punched back on.
John
John
We generally use Puriclean for the waste pipes. I block up the outlets to trap the solution and leave for as long as possible. Seems to clear out the bits and pieces. We were advised never to pour boiling water down the waste pipes as that may cause them to come apart.
Personally, I use caustic soda/drain cleaner. Just don't leave in the pipes too long.
Some domestic drain cleaners are either thixotropic, some form of gel and or foaming based, these are intended to linger throughout the pipework, doing their thing till flushed away.
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Most modern domestic drain pipes are plastic so shouldn't be an issue.
The Drain Cleaner version is safe in plastic pipes. You'll be hard pressed to find metal drain pipes in houses. I've used the Caustic Soda version for years in my caravan without issue. Block the outlet, pour down drains, leave 30 mins then rinse - easy.
i think you are out of touch, copper wastes were starting to disappear I would think in the 1970s, and I further expect most homes of pre then have had a kitchen revamp or a few since then.
Our Hymer is factory built with what appears is pretty much domestic solvent welded ABS piping. Plus its all designed with a "fall", not the drooping between supports I have seen on another van, designed to sediment up.
I am racking my brain to think of a house we’ve had that had metal drain pipes. Our first house bought in 1974 had plastic which had evidently been installed to replaced earlier mid 1930s plumbing.
I was referring to drain pipes and not supply pipes. Our kitchen and bathroom outside drain down pipes are of a metal material. Our home was probably built in the fifties or sixties.
But have you not got plastic waste pipes connecting the big down pipe in your home?
Plastic just as is almost certainly what your van would use, albeit possibly a chemically different type of plastic.
I very much doubt the use of any domestic market propriety waste pipe cleaning chemical will put your van's pipework at risk.
The only thing that I would add is, Caustic Soda does not do rubber any favours. Most rubber can tolerate it but rinse thoroughly when finished.
As I've already said, I have been using Caustic Soda for more years than I can remember and I have never had any issues.
As I've already said, I have been using Caustic Soda for more years than I can remember and I have never had any issues.
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