Blocked drains are one of the most common — yet most inconveniencing — plumbing occurrences. If left unattended, blocked drains can cause toilets and sinks to overflow, and excess water pressure can damage pipes. In the long run, your whole plumbing system may be compromised by blocked drains.

The Australian Department Of Health lists food scraps, rags, cans, grease and paper among the things that must never be flushed to avoid pipes getting clogged. However, it isn't always easy to monitor the little things you do which may harm your drains, like improperly wiping food residue off plates before a sink wash or absent-mindedly flushing a wipe down the toilet.

Here are a few ways you can protect your drains from blockage without altering your entire routine.  

Pouring Hot Water Down Your Toilet Can Solve Mild Blockage

Before you enlist a professional plumber's services, you may want to apply frequent, simple de-clogging practices to improve the flow of liquids and solids down your drains. While the coke and mentos myth must be dispelled at all costs (this home maintenance tactic can irreversibly damage your pipes), pouring searing hot water down your toilet will help break down grease, solidified fats and other residues.  

Hot water will loosen materials such as paper and even polyester, which is commonly found in baby wipes and does not dissolve once flushed. Typically, you will want to pour the water from a height of at least one metre, to ensure the liquid's momentum creates additional energy and capitalises on the heat to break through minor blockages.

You Will Need To Clean Your Drains At Least Once A Week

The rule of thumb is that the more mindful you are of what goes down your sinks, toilets or shower drains, the less frequently you will have to clean your drains. Nevertheless, you will have to perform basic maintenance at least once a month to remove the debris caused by hair and grease. You will want to remove debris beneath the pop-stoppers in sinks and use bent metal wires or hair-catching brushes to pull out hair and dirt clumps from your bathtub and shower drains.

You may also need to invest in a robust disposer brush to clean out your garbage disposal. Use a mixture of ground ice and salt to diffuse the grease and slime accumulated in the disposal, and flush it all down with cold water. You can use lemon to combat emanating drain odours or a specialised product recommended by your plumber.

For more information or help with blocked drains, contact a plumber.