Having a clogged drain in your home is never fun. However, aside from maybe having a clogged toilet, clogged shower drains are especially annoying to deal with. It’s tough to feel clean after a shower if you spent it standing in water and soap scum.
If you have a clogged drain in your shower or bathtub, the first thought that will likely come to your mind is, “Call the plumber!” While professional plumbing services will certainly be able to fix the problem and get your shower working again, you might be able to save yourself a few bucks by unclogging the drain yourself. This article will explain how to do that, and much more about clogged shower drains.
How to Tell You Have a Clogged Shower or Bathtub Drain
You don’t have to be Sherlock Holmes to tell when you have a clogged shower drain. Typically, the signs will be fairly obvious, and anyone who pays even a lick of attention while they’re showering will be able to detect them. If you notice any of the following things while showering or bathing, you likely have a clogged drain.
- Standing water during and after your shower.
- Floating soap scum that doesn’t drain properly.
- Excess soap residue several hours after showering, indicating that the water drained slowly enough that the soap had time to sit and harden on your shower floor.
- You hear gurgling noises as water is going down the drain, and it appears to be draining slower than normal.
The good news about shower drain clogs is that they typically happen slowly over time. Therefore, if you pay attention, you can detect drain problems before a full-blown clog completely prevents your water from draining.
Common Causes of Clogged Shower Drains
In addition to there being several signs of a clogged shower drain, there are also several common culprits that could be to blame. Here are the most common:
Hair
A buildup of hair is the most common cause of a blocked shower drain. People naturally lose head and body hair while they’re showering, and it inevitably goes down your drain. A drain cover helps a ton with hair problems, but it can’t prevent the issue completely. Hair builds up gradually and often starts by causing a slow drain, before evolving into a complete blockage over time.
Soap and Mineral Deposits
It’s also possible that soap and mineral deposits have built up inside your shower drain. Mineral deposits, such as calcium, magnesium, and potassium, are common in homes that don’t have a water softener. Additionally, depending on what types of body oils, body scrubs, shampoo, and body wash you use, the residue is more likely to build up.
Something Fell Down the Drain
One of the less likely reasons for a clogged shower drain is that a foreign object, such as a shaver or small soap bottle, fell into the drain. This is the main reason we encourage using a drain cover anytime you take a shower.
Internal Corrosion
Finally, depending on what types of drain pipes you have, there’s a chance they’re suffering from internal corrosion. This is extremely common with cast iron drain lines, as the iron slowly corrodes and breaks down over time. Therefore, if your plumbing system is 30 years old or older and your drains consist of cast iron, slow drainage followed by an eventual complete blockage is likely.
5 Ways to Clear a Clogged Shower Drain
If you’re unlucky enough to have a clogged shower drain and want to fix the problem yourself, here are some of your best options. For each of these methods, it’s first important to remove any standing water with a shop vac or sweeper.
Use Your Hand or a Wire Coat Hanger
The first possible way to remove a clog in your shower drain is to use your hand or a wire coat hanger. This method will only work if hair or a foreign object is the source of the clog. If you’re pretty sure that one of these things is the source of your troubles, here’s what you need to do:
- Remove the drain cover, if you have one on your shower.
- Use a flashlight to peer down into the drain and see if you can spot any visible debris or blockages.
- Reach your hand into the drain and remove the blockage.
- If it’s too far down the drain to reach with your hand, take a wire hanger and break it.
- Bend one edge of the hanger to create a hook.
- Use the hook to reach deeper into the drain and snag the blockage to remove it.
The wire hanger method is one of the best homemade ways to remove hair from a shower or tub drain. It’s essentially the same thing as using a drain snake, but much cheaper and easier.
Use Boiling Water
If the blockage is too deep for you to spot or reach, you can try using boiling water. When it makes contact with certain blockages and debris, boiling water can loosen it and restore normal water flow. The boiling water method is most useful against soap scum and mineral deposits, as it softens them and helps water drain normally.
However, hot water is only a temporary fix, as it merely opens a wider pathway in your drain rather than freeing it completely. Therefore, if you need a quick fix, boiling water is a great option because it’s free. For a more permanent solution, however, you will need to physically remove the blockage.
Try a Baking Soda Vinegar Mixture
Adding some baking soda and vinegar to your boiling water will give it even more of a punch. Baking soda and vinegar are household products that nearly everyone has lying around. They’re typically used for baking and cleaning, but they’re also perfect for drain cleaning. Here’s how it works:
- Pour around 3/4 cup of baking soda directly into the clogged drain.
- After letting the baking soda sit for several minutes, follow it up with half a cup of white vinegar.
- As the baking soda and vinegar mix together, you should hear it start to fizz inside the drain.
- Plug the drain with a drain stopper or cloth so that air can’t get into it.
- Let the concoction sit for around one hour and eat away at whatever is clogging the drain.
- After an hour, open the drain and pour boiling water into it to clear the drain further and wash away the remnants of baking soda and vinegar.
While this method is more effective than just using hot water, it’s not a permanent fix and it only works on shower drain clogs that stem from soap and residue build up.
The Toilet Plunger Method
While unplugging a clogged toilet is the most common use of a plunger, you can also use it with a clogged shower drain. The same principle applies to shower drains as it does to toilets. Sealing the top of the tub drain with the plunger and moving it rapidly up and down while maintaining the seal will have the same effect as it does with a toilet.
Use Chemical Drain Cleaners
When hot water and home cleaning supplies are not potent enough to clear clogs, you may need to use a chemical drain cleaner. Chemical drain cleaners work by creating a powerful chemical reaction inside enclosed spaces, such as plumbing drains. They’re more acidic and corrosive than natural products, which means they’re more effective.
However, it’s important to use caution when pouring a chemical drain cleaner into your plumbing system. The chemicals are corrosive enough that they can eat through certain pipes, such as cast iron, galvanized, and copper. You also want to wear gloves and goggles when using chemicals, as they can cause serious damage to the eyes and skin.
How Would a Professional Plumber Unclog a Shower Drain?
If you’ve tried all the home remedies in the book and your shower drain is still clogged, you have two options left. You can either get professional help from a licensed and experienced plumber or use the methods they would use for clearing clogs.
If you opt to find a professional plumber, nobody clears drains better than Fountain Plumbing. However, if you want to use the methods we would use, we recommend purchasing a drain snake. A drain snake is the most effective and least damaging way to unclog a shower drain.
However, using a drain snake takes some time and practice, and it may take a while for you to figure out the tricks to the trade. If you don’t have a few hours, and want your clogged shower drain repaired right away, contact us at Fountain Plumbing.