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Almost half of all plumbing clogs that our Berkeley plumbing contractors clear could have been easily avoided by following a few simple drain maintenance techniques.
The majority of clogs occur in the smaller pipes that lead down into the main lateral line for the home. Bathroom sink and tub drains usually clog due to hair getting wrapped around the drain components and collecting soap residue. To prevent this you can place a strainer over the drain to catch the hair before it reaches the drain.
Kitchen drain clogs are almost always caused by cooking grease. Pouring grease down the drain allows it to coagulate on the interior of the pipes, restricting the flow of water down the drain.
As food particles follow down, they get stuck to the solidifying grease and start to form a dam in the pipe. Even if you have a garbage disposal to finely mince up food waste, it might still clog. Avoid this trap by pouring grease into a disposable container, freezing it and throwing it in the garbage.
Toilet clogs are usually caused by the flushing of an object that shouldn't be flushed. While most of the time it is a child experimenting with the cool toilet swirl, sometimes adults try to flush things like sanitary napkins, diaper wipes and other cloth-like materials that seem similar enough to toilet paper.
Letting younger children flush a few pieces of toilet paper every once in a while can stop the experimenting. Also explaining that only certain items can go down the toilet will go a long way.
Main drain line clogs can be caused by grease or the invasion of tree roots. There are chemical root killers that can be poured into the drain to kill off tree roots but they are quite caustic and can be dangerous if they aren't handled properly. If the clog is bad enough to back up your drains, it's probably too far gone to fix it yourself with a chemical treatment.
Call in a professional Berkeley plumbing contractor to use a power auger to clear it out.