When you have a drain clog, you can bust it by using a snake or taking the pipes apart, but most people would rather just pour a chemical down the drain. Three broad classes of chemicals are available for this purpose. The most common are caustic ones, particularly sodium hydroxide, which is the main ingredient in Drano and other widely used drain cleaners, but enzymatic chemicals that digest the material that blocks pipes are also easy to find and are effective, although they tend to work slowly.
Acids are the third class of clog-eating chemicals, and the best acids for cleaning plumbing pipes include hydrochloric acid and sulfuric acid. Acidic drain cleaners should be a last resort and only used when other drain cleaning chemicals dont work fast enough or cant do the job. Theyre hazardous and not particularly good for the pipes or the environment, and some countries, such as the UK, prohibit their use by anyone other than licensed professionals.
In the United States, you can buy sulfuric acid drain cleaner in big box stores under brand names such as Kleen-Out, Clean Shot and Liquid Lightning. These are 93 to 95 percent sulfuric acid solutions, which means theyre highly concentrated, so you must treat them with respect. Follow the directions on the product label carefully and observe the standard safety precautions for handling an acid.
If you do use a drain cleaner, be sure to flush the area with plenty of water afterwards. This will help to neutralize the chemical and rinse away any residue that could eat away at your pipes.
Safety Guidelines for Using a Sulfuric Acid Drain Cleaner
The first thing you learn in any chemistry class is to never pour water into an acid. If you have to dilute the acid, pour it into the water — never the other way around. The reason is that the hydration reaction of sulfuric acid is highly exothermic, which means it releases heat, and the mixture can boil spontaneously. Acid is denser than water, so it sinks, and the explosive bubbles spray the acid solution in all directions.
Theres a potential for spitting and spraying even when you pour acid into water, so when you use a sulfuric acid drain cleaner, you need to wear protective eyewear and cover your hands and other parts of your body. Clear the area around the sink and cover the faucet before using the drain cleaner because the corrosive mixture can damage any metal with which it comes in contact. The Clean Shot Instant Drain Opener directions recommend coating the drain assembly and all other metal parts of the sink with petroleum jelly.
Because it corrodes metal, sulfuric acid can damage chrome, stainless steel and galvanized steel plumbing pipes. Its recommended for use only if you have plastic plumbing pipes, and even these can sustain heat damage if you introduce the drain cleaner too quickly or use too much of it. Pour the product slowly down the drain, using only the amount recommended on the label.
How to Use Sulfuric Acid to Clean a Drain
The time to use sulfuric acid is when all efforts to mechanically clear the drain, including plunging and snaking, have failed. Dont use sulfuric acid if youve recently introduced another drain-cleaning chemical because the chemicals could combine to create toxic fumes. After putting on protective clothing, covering vulnerable parts of the sink and drain and reading the application instructions on the product label, use the following procedure:
- Open windows to provide ventilation.
- Pour the recommended amount of drain cleaner (about 200 ml or about 7 ounces) slowly into the drain.
- Wait for about 10 seconds, then turn on the faucet and allow water to flow slowly into the drain. If the drain backs up, turn off the water and wait a bit longer.
- Pour more acid into the drain — up to 500 ml or about 16 ounces — if the clog doesnt clear. Wait even longer – several minutes to an hour — to give the acid time to work.
- Flush the drain with plenty of water when the clog clears and the drain begins to flow.
- Neutralize the acid by mixing a solution of 1/4 cup baking soda per quart of water and pouring it down the drain. You can use this solution to neutralize any spills that occur.
What Drain Cleaning Chemicals Do To Sewer Lines
FAQ
How do you neutralize a spilled drain cleaner?
How do you neutralize Drano burns?
Does drain cleaner react with vinegar?
Will baking soda neutralize sulfuric acid?
How do you use a DIY drain cleaner?
Use it with boiling water to give it a boost. A DIY drain cleaner is one that utilizes common household ingredients, and there are more than a few possibilities. Because they are acidic, vinegar and lemon juice may be even more effective by themselves for drain cleaning than they are mixed with baking soda.
How do you clean a clogged drain?
Open the windows to let in the fresh air. Slowly pour the suggested acid cleaner into the sink (roughly 7 ounces). You should turn on the water tap and let it flow softly down the drain when the timer reaches 10 seconds. If liquid accumulates within the drain, turn off the flow and wait. Pour up to 15 ounces down the drain if the blockage remains.
Does baking soda clean a drain?
When you clean your drain with baking soda, your drain will smell fresher, but baking soda is unlikely to eat its way through blockages all by itself, which is why people combine it with other ingredients in the hopes of making it more effective. Some work better than others.
What should I do if my drain is not draining?
If you have a stopped drain, suck out all the water with a wet/dry vacuum because both acids are weaker when mixed with water. Pour in at least a cup of vinegar (regular white vinegar or apple cider vinegar) or a cup or more of lemon juice — enough to see the top level of the liquid in your drain — and wait for the level to begin falling.