Quick/easy way to unblock a sink/plughole?

blizeH

Hi all,

We've got a couple of those oval basins and frankly the plugholes in them are pretty damn terrible, in particular the one in the ensuite where we brush our teeth is constantly getting gunked up.

We put bleach down there daily at the moment but the build up is still there, and we tried the Mr Muscle drain unblocker which kinda worked but was very expensive and it was blocked right up again very shortly after.

I'm just wondering if there's any easy/quick way of unblocking this on a regular basis? For what it's worth it seems to be mostly a build up of toothpaste and gunk in the actual plughole (gross I know, sorry)!

Thanks

sunshinetours

Traditional plunger should help or one of those vacuum type ones where you shoot water down the pipes and pressure moves eveything. Usually give our shower one with hidden pipe worjk a good plunge each month to keep things free moving

Is it stuff getting caught in actual plug hole mechanism itself or is it blocking in the pipe and u bend? If latter then undo the u bend and give it all a good wash out and see what is there

blizeH

Many thanks, plunger is probably worth a go then!

It's almost exclusively gunk (toothpaste?) on the plug hole itself that's causing issues. Like I said it's one of those oval basins and the plug hole in it is awful, small, and seemingly not designed well at all for good draining

System

I use a bottle brush for everything before the U bend

tigeress289

Good old fashioned plunger, but decent quality. Avoid £1 shop ones. Hot soapy water(fairy) filled to overflow. Block overflow and plunge really well. You should see some real gunk coming back. Be sure to make sure the overflow is sealed whilst doing this. Repeat a couple of times and you should see results.
I am not going to advise chemical as these are excellent but dangerous if not used right. Good Luck

iamcornholio

Caustic Soda

tigeress289

I would stay clear of caustic soda as not that good.

blizeH

Thank you all very much for your suggestions guys

savemoney

soda crystals is cheap around 90p and will do a few plug holes. It wont remove hair just gunk

Around the home In the bathroom Soda Crystals

Drains: Because Soda Crystals dissolve grease, they're great for unblocking sinks, drains, wastepipes and waste disposal units. Use a strong solution to flush ...
www.dri-pak.co.uk/downloads/soda_leaflet.pdf - Cached - Similar


Baths, basins and
showers:

Use Liquid Soda Crystals to freshen up sanitaryware. It cuts
through grease and limescale. Do not use Soda Crystals on lacquered taps
and fittings.

Toilets: Flush some Soda
Crystals down the bowl to clean and freshen, and to help
prevent blockages. Use them to clean toilet brushes too.

27col

No good complaining about the size of the basin waste. All basin wastes are the same size.
Why don't you do the job properly and take the plastic trap off. They are only done up hand tight usually. With the waste removed you easily clear the gunge out of it and also the pipe nearest to the waste trap.
You have already tried to clear it using noxious chemicals and you have seen that they do not work for any length of time. It's time to put on the marigolds.

blizeH

Thanks, but like I said the build up is on the actual plug hole itself rather than in the waste, and yes, it is designed different to usual plugholes I find. My boss has just fitted a similar oval basin and said he has the same problem