Clearing blocked bath waste

Hugbubble

Hi

My bath tub (which has an over shower bath) is clearing very slowly- I end up standing in an inch or 2 of water when I have a shower.

I know what it is- it is hair, which I seem to lose a lot of when I shampoo.

Do the sink unblocker chemical preparations work on breaking down hair, or are they just for when a kitchen sink (for example) is blocked with grease/ fat?

Also, assuming it does work on hair, will they damage the plughole (I know it's quite a harsh chemical solution- sodium hydroxide)? It's quite a new bathroom, with a pop up waste, so i don't want any treatment to damage the fittings!

Thanks for any help.

Ebe_Scrooge

The easiest / most efficient / cheapest approach is to remove the trap from beneath the bath and give it a good clean. You will probably need to remove the side panel first, but this should be easy enough. If for any reason you can't get to the trap, straighten out an old wire coathanger, make a small hook on the end and use it to twiddle out the hair from the plughole. Just be a little bit careful not to puncture / disturb the pipework and joints.

If all else fails, caustic soda is cheap and effective, but do be careful when using it, as it's powerful stuff. Don't bother with expensive branded copies, just get some plain caustic soda from a hardware shop.

But if you can get to the trap and clean it out manually, this will be far more effective ( and free ! )

ormus

try the traditional plunger first.
otherwise look underneath the bath and there should be a trap that you can remove and clean out.
some have a plastic access cap that you just unscrew. then use a bit o wire to clear it out.

ormus

similar to this one.

Hugbubble

Ebe_Scrooge wrote: »

But if you can get to the trap and clean it out manually, this will be far more effective ( and free ! )

It's tiled in so not an option.

Just to confirm- caustic soda (branded or unbranded!) will not damage the chrome plughole?

brig001

I got two lengths of stiff electrical cable and twisted them together to make something like a spaghetti fork. Poke it down carefully, twist to grab hold of the clump of hair then remove. Works a treat, but watch you don't damage any pop-up wastes etc.
HTH, Brian.

ormus

Hugbubble wrote: »

It's tiled in so not an option.

Just to confirm- caustic soda (branded or unbranded!) will not damage the chrome plughole?

the bath panels are tiled?

Hugbubble

ormus wrote: »

the bath panels are tiled?

Yes, it is tiled in

ormus

so you need to destroy half the bathroom if theres a maintenance problem?

Hugbubble

ormus wrote: »

so you need to destroy half the bathroom if theres a maintenance problem?

I would hope it doesn't come to that

Can anyone confirm that drain unblocker does not damage chrome?

Thanks for all the advice about using a knitting needle or similar to fish out the hair ball. I'll give it a go but not sure if it'll work because my (long) hair is knotted around the plug part (I've tried pulling it off from around there with my fingers and tweezers, but its stuck firm)

Ebe_Scrooge

Hugbubble wrote: »

Can anyone confirm that drain unblocker does not damage chrome?
/QUOTE]

I've used it on my chrome plugs with no problem. However, I have always taken out the "pop-up-thingy" before pouring it down, and made sure to rinse it off the chrome immediately. I'm almost certain it would stain the chrome if it's left in contact for more than a few seconds. But rinse it off straight away and I've never had any problems.