Drain Cleaner

There is a need for all of use in todays society to try and take care of our environment. The use of the homemade drain cleaner can be one of the many ways to try. The chemical drain cleaners have very harsh chemicals that will be flushed into our water systems with the city water service, these chemicals will be drained into our yards if we have a septic system. Just think of all the toxic chemicals that could be avoided if we first try a homemade drain cleaner.

The use of most of these drain cleaners will also have another great effect of clearing the odors that some drains may have. Even if the drain is sluggish and not completely backed up, the use of the drain cleaners can help to avoid clogs. And these solutions are safe for your pipes.

Vinegar and baking soda are natural ingredients preferable to manufactured chemical sodium hydroxide, which is also known as caustic soda or lye. The active ingredient in standard drain cleaners is sodium hydroxide. The mixture of the baking soda and vinegar is not too harmful for the environment because it is broken down in a short period of time and can therefore be considered a natural drain cleaner.  It can be dangerous for a person to touch or ingest, so do take care using the mixture.

One recipe for a natural drain cleaner is to pour ½ cup of baking soda into the drain followed by ½ cup of white vinegar. The reaction of the two ingredients is a churning action that will help to keep a drain clear. A good combination as neither of these ingredients are dangerous chemicals.

Another recipe is a little more involved but still not hard to do and includes items you probably have in hand. It is recommended to use this once a week to help keep drains clog free and fresh and order free too. Bring one gallon of water to a boil with ½ lemon thrown in. While waiting on water to boil, pour ½ cup of baking soda into drain. Add 1 cup white vinegar. Allow this to foam for several minutes while waiting on the water to boil. Discard lemon and carefully pour water down treated drain.  The best drain cleaner for you may be the homemade drain cleaner.