Bathtub Backup

Nobody wants to wake up in the morning, trudge to the shower only to stand in six inches of soap scummy water and claim to have cleaned up for the day. The drain in your bathtub or shower can slowly plug over time, or can feel like a weekly occurrence. What is important to know though, is that cleaning and maintaining your shower drain is often an easy fix, and saves you the plumbers bill. While there are occasionally clogs that won’t drain with even the most dedicated individual, it’s good to know when to reach for the toolbelt and when to reach for the phone. 
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The first important thing to grasp before you start planning your attack is to consider what the drain pipes from your shower or tub look like. A typical set up would include L-shaped drain pipes, and a P-trap. A P-trap is required in all sinks, toilets and drains, and serves to keep toxic sewer gas from leaking into your home.  
Most often, clogs in bathtubs are clumps of hair, debris and soap hardened and caught inside the piping. We recommend ignoring the flashy chemical cleaners that boast immediate results, and sticking for the tried and true method of a plumbers’ snake. A true plumbers’ drain auger is an expensive piece of equipment, but there are plenty of user friendly inexpensive options on the market that will clear out any hair or debris that have settled in the piping below. 
There are a variety of drain plugs, stoppers, strainers and overflow plates out there, so it is hard to say exactly which parts of your bathtub may need to be removed in order to gain complete access to a clog. In some tubs, you can simply open the drain, push the snake through the base drain in the tub, twist, remove and repeat. However, in other bathtubs you may need to remove the overflow plate, remove the stopper, and then use your snake to pull through any caught debris. Make sure you do some research before you start taking things apart, and if you decide to remove your overflow plate cover, pay mind to the screws and small hardware so that it doesn’t go down the drain and contribute to your clogged bathtub. 
Prevention is key! The best way to deal with clogs is to try and handle them before they happen. Just like the many options for plumbers’ snakes on the market, there are multiple options for drain covers that will help catch any hair or debris potentially threatening the drain quality of your shower. Some sit over the top, and some sit inside the drain. The type of drain cover you choose will depend on the type of drain plug inside your bathtub. 
If you know how to remove the strainer, the stopper or the overflow drain to gain access to the clog, you save yourself the money of hiring someone to come out and fix the problem for you. If you are facing a clogged bathtub beyond your abilities and need the eyes of the best plumbers in the Twin Cities, give us a call.

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