"Mr. plumber, do you think Drano works?"
Plumber: "Did it ever work?"
And so ends another exciting episode of "Conversation with the Plumber."
"Mr. plumber, do you think Drano works?"
Plumber: "Did it ever work?"
And so ends another exciting episode of "Conversation with the Plumber."
Drano actually CAN work if the clog is mostly just grease, but it can and does damage metal pipes too. (because it's acidic). I have not known Drano to work on hair clogs.
There are other drain cleaners which are nothing but bleach. You're paying a large price per ounce for the same thing you buy cheaply in gallons for your laundry use.
Always check the ingredients listed on the bottle.
Grease clogs are better removed with boiling water mixed with Dawn dish detergent. (Degreaser) But you have to do this when the water still goes down the drain (slowly). If it's completely plugged, you need a snake or pipes taken apart.
Q: Why is this so expensive! I need a reason! A: Butt, butt!
Q: What kind of answer is that? A: Just a crack or two.
- . Christopher A. Young learn more about Jesus .
The crystal drano I've seen in the past has been sodium hydroxide. (which is not acidic). The hydroxide turns grease into soap. It does react with some metals (like the metal particles in the supplied mixture).
Hydrochloric acid can help with calcium or lime scale problems. And can react with metals.
Some drain cleaners use sulfuric acid, which I try to avoid.
The one kitchen drain I cleared for a customer, used about 15 or so feet of drain snake, that took a while. When that punched through, I reconncted the Fernco and poured in some sodium hydroxide crystals, and ran hot water. Seemed to work.
- . Christopher A. Young learn more about Jesus .
Not acidic, Drano is a Base
and should not harm pipes.
I use one of the lower priced equivalents and it usually does a decent job. In the 35 years I've been in this house I've only had to call a plumber on two occasions to snake out a very bad clog.
Never tried it but I think the hot water and dish detergent may not be a bad idea for something like a clogged toilet
My guess is that the idea was that the aluminum shavings "danced around" as the chemical reaction occurred and "scoured" the walls of the pipe or whatever.
And perhaps also that the lye ate up the aluminum preferentially and did not attack the zinc in any brass fittings.
Perce
But Drano was obliged (by environmental laws) to change its formula 20 or 30 years ago (says my chum, now retired, who worked there half his life) and the new mixture seemed less effective than the old. This may be why we now see it less often on the shelf.
IIRC, Drano was lye with aluminum shavings in it...which caused a reaction when water was added. You can still buy lye:
I've seen sulfuric acid cleaners but apparently Drano is and has always been based on sodium hydroxide:
That's the stuff I remember. Which as far as I know, was an acid (the lye). I have not used any of those chemicals in years. If I cant do the job with a plunger, snake, or boiling water/Dawn. I take pipes apart. Most clogs are in the traps under sinks/tubs. But not always.
PVC pipe is less likely to clog than the older steel pipes. (smoother surface, so crud dont stick to the sides of the pipe as easily).
Lye is sodium hydroxide, which is alkalai. Not acid.
- . Christopher A. Young learn more about Jesus .
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