Professional Affton, MO Drain Cleaning solves drain plumbing issues before they grow into larger issues. Whether your water is draining sluggishly or not at all, professional drain cleaning protects your pipes and helps prevent advanced problems. Signature Plumbing's licensed experts are available 24/7 to help your home. get in touch today at (636) 742-2533 or get in touch online to schedule your drain cleaning appointment today.
Quick and dependable, our team of plumbing professionals treats your Affton, MO home as if it were our own. We handle sinks, sewers, drain inspection, and other plumbing operations which protects your home from water damage.
On this page, we'll be reviewing how to tell when your drain needs to be cleaned, consequences of not cleaning your drain, frequent questions regarding drain cleaning, and the Affton, MO drain cleaning services we provide at Signature Plumbing.
- 5 Signs Your Affton, MO Drain Needs to be Cleaned
- Common Drain Cleaning Problems in Affton, MO
- Our Affton, MO Drain Cleaning Services
- Affton, MO Drain Cleaning FAQs
- Contact Signature Plumbing For Your Affton, MO Drain Cleaning Needs
Hear from our local customers in our reviews to learn why we've been Affton, MO's go-to business for all your plumbing needs since 2011.
5 Signs Your Affton, MO Drain Needs to be Cleaned
To avoid damage to your home's plumbing, keep track of your drain's capacity and pay attention to any signs that you need to have it cleaned. We've picked out our five top signs to be aware of below:
1. Slow Drains
If it's taking a while for your sinks, showers, bathrooms, and/or more to drain water, one possible cause is that it's clogged. No matter how hard you try, everyone inevitably sends more than water down the drain, and over time hair, food scraps, toiletries, and more will accumulate, creating clogs. Professional cleaning can evacuate these blocks, letting your water flow freely again.
2. Water Backing Up
Depending on your home's piping, having a blockage in one area can cause a drain elsewhere to send water back up. For example, if your toilet line is clogged, you might not see the effects in the toilet. Meanwhile, water could back up out of a drain in your shower, unable to properly flow into the correct pipe.
3. Foul Odors
Watch out for bad smells that are present in and around your drain. Dirt, grime, bacteria, and fungi are not the only reasons for bad smells. Foul odors can also be caused by clogs in the pipes, resulting in sewage backup and air bubbles. In the short term, it's just a bad smell, but extended exposure can be dangerous.
4. Gurgling Sounds
If your line has a partial clog, you could hear gurgling or bubbling noises coming from trapped air. This allows some water to flow through, but creates bubbles and air pockets that aren't supposed to be there. Besides being annoying, these sounds are signals that something larger could be wrong.
5. Multiple Clogged Lines
Finally, all these issues can be amplified by having multiple clogged lines. The more clogs and blocks in your home's plumbing, the more you will see slow drains, water backup, foul odors, and gurgling sounds at any of the drains. It's also possible that rather than multiple smaller clogs, you have one large one.
If these issues are not just local to one drain, but are spread throughout your house, you might actually be up against a larger problem: Issues with your main sewer line. A main sewer line issue is a big deal because wastewater can back up and mix with your clean water. If you are concerned this could be the case, it's important to call a plumber right away.
Common Drain Cleaning Problems in Affton, MO
Home drain maintenence goes beyond the surface appeal – it's important for the long-term health and safety of your home. Letting too much debris build up can damage your home's value, increase your chance of getting sick, attract insects and rodents, and lower your house's plumbing efficiency.
Corrosion
When a blockage occurs in your Affton, MO drain and pipes, over time, it can corrode the pipes, increasing long-term wear and tear. This is caused via increased friction, changing the acidity of the water, or both. Corrosion is extra insidious because it normally can't be detected from outside the pipe until it cracks and releases water.
Clogs
Clogs can occur when debris accumulates, tapering the drain, creating bottlenecks and even blockages. When your drain is not able to handle as much water, its performance will suffer, and at some point it can cause water to back up out the drain. Or, if pressure builds up, it can cause your pipe to crack.
Water Damage
When a crack appears in a pipe, major water damage can result. You might be able to see it, but it could be hidden by the floors and walls. If water leaks in these areas, it can cause rot and weaken the structure of your house, necessitating repairs.
Health Risks: Bacteria, Mold, and Mildew
Bacteria, mold, and mildew aren't just sources of bad odors – they can cause sickness and disease, too. The organic matter in uncleaned drains makes an ideal environment for bacteria and fungi to grow, which can expand beyond the pipes and drains. What's more, they can also damage the pipe structure, leading to more issues.
Pest Infestations
Buildup of food waste and standing water can attract pests, particularly insects. In Affton, MO, mosquitoes, flies, and cockroaches can all live and breed in these environments and create long-standing problems. Working with an exterminator can expel the pests, and working with a plumber to clean the drains can fight against their return.
Reduced Performance in Your Home's Plumbing
If you don't clean your drains regularly, you'll see reductions in your home's plumbing efficiency. It may slowly build up over time, but slow drains will impact your daily life:
- Sinks full of dirt and gunk
- Toilets that don't flush properly
- Showers with grimy floors and low water pressure
As time goes on, the debris will build up and eventually totally block the pipe. At this stage, you're likely to see leaks in your pipes, spilling out water and damaging your property's value. To prevent this, do what you can to ensure that only water (and in the toilet, waste) goes down the pipes and hire a plumber to inspect them regularly.
Our Affton, MO Drain Cleaning Services
Regardless of which drain is blocked and how, Signature Plumbing is equipped for the job. Our goal is to fix the problem, whatever the cause is.
- Sink Drain Cleaning: Debris from washing your dishes and brushing your teeth can get into sink drains and cause clogs. Our Affton, MO drain cleaning professionals break up blocks effortlessly.
- Basement Drain Cleaning: The lower elevation makes basement drains prone to catch all kinds of clogs, whether from rain debris, leaking pipes, or something else. We won't just unclog the drain, we'll look for any damage to your foundation or cracked pipes.
- Sewer Drain Cleaning: At the end of your home's plumbing system, your sewer is prone to clogs from all kinds of home debris, and external threatslike tree roots on top of it. If we find any damage while cleaning, we can excavate the sewer line to go in and fix it.
- Toilet Drain Cleaning: Wipes (despite some being called flushable) can often cause clogs, in addition to toilet paper and other debris. Our industrial grade cleaners, drain snakes, and hydro jets are specially made to handle tough clogs.
- Bathtub Drain Cleaning: Hair, soap, dirt, and pet fur often collect in shower and bath drains, causing buildups and blocks over time. We'll take out the blockage, and any mold or mildew that's built up along with it.
- Drain Camera Inspections: At Signature Plumbing, we go the extra mile beyond fixing your drain – with our drain inspection services, we can run a state of the art camera through your plumbing to find the root cause of the clogs. This can solve the mystery and tell you what's going on with your plumbing.
Call us now for 24/7 drain cleaning (or other plumbing) services, at 636-742-2533.
Affton, MO Drain Cleaning FAQs
Drain cleaning in Affton, MO means working together - regular professional drain cleaning attacks the tough clogs, while individual maintenance keeps the pipes clean the rest of the time. Here are answers to some of the most pervailing Affton, MO drain cleaning questions:
Should I use chemical drain cleaners?
We don't recommend the use of chemical drain cleaners for a few reasons - they corrode your pipes, are ineffective against total blockages, and can be hazardous to your health. If they don't fully flush out, too, they can mix with other chemicals in your pipes to make dangerous compounds.
Can clogged drains make you sick?
Yes, in two ways. First, clogs can create breeding grounds for harmful bacteria and fungi. If they grow unchecked, you're risking your health by being around the given drain.
Second, if the flow of water is blocked, it can cause waste water to reverse its flow, contaminating other parts of your Affton, MO home's water system.
How often should drain pipes be cleaned in Affton, MO?
Generally, you'll want to have your drains professionally cleaned every 6 months to 1 year, to take care of any major blocks. You can do your own month-to-month home cleanings to decrease buildup.
What things should I avoid putting down drains?
While a complete list of items would go on forever, below are some things people frequently tend to put down their drains, but actually shouldn't:
- Fats/Oils/Grease
- Coffee Grounds
- Egg Shells
- Paper (besides Toilet Paper)
- Cleaning Products
- Rice or Pasta
- Paint
What are common causes of drain clogs?
Even if you do your best to avoid putting any of the above examples down your drains, inevitably, some sort of debris will build up to become a clog. Grease, hair, soap, and food waste are the most frequent causes of clogs.
Is it okay to pour boiling water down the drain?
Probably not - boiling water is harmful to certain pipe materials, so we recommend against using boiling on your drains. There are occasionally plumbing systems which can handle boiling water, but using warm (not boiling) water has many of the same benefits, with significantly less risk of damaging your drains.
How can I protect my drain?
Besides regular cleaning/inspections, drain covers can prevent blockages by stopping debris before it flows down. Compost or trash food scraps, don't send them down the garbage disposal. And pour hot (not boiling!) water down the drain weekly to wipe away oils before they become clogs.
Let Signature Plumbing Handle Your Affton, MO Drain Cleaning Needs
Affton, MO drain cleaning isn't always easy, but it is always important. At Signature Plumbing we treat your home and drains as if they were our own.
- Licensed Plumbing Professionals: Our team is licensed, insured, and have been serving Affton, MO for over a decade.
- Highly Responsive: We're available 24/7 to assist with everything from cleanings to plumbing emergencies.
- Transparent Pricing: We won't add on expenses after the cleaning - we're open with our pricing and quotes at the start of the work.
- On-The-Spot Fixes: Our team's trucks are stocked to fix whatever issues we find, so if something else is wrong beyond the original issue, we're still prepared.
We also offer these services in Affton, MO:
- Plumbing Stack Repair & Replacement
- Toilet Repair
- Sewer Repair
- Licensed Plumbers Near Me
- Emergency Plumbing
Don't let blocks or clogs become a drain on your life. Call us today at (636) 742-2533 or contact us online for all your Affton, MO drain cleaning needs.