How to Clean Drains with Baking Soda and Vinegar

 

The nastiest clogs need to be tackled with tenacity – dissolved into goo and flushed down your pipes as you yell, “Victory!”

But not every drain clog needs such drama. Sometimes regular drain cleaning and a gentle shove is enough to resolve smelly drain clogs and clear drains.

Enter baking soda and vinegar. They can clear some clogs, but Liquid-Plumr^® is your best bet for tackling tough clogs when homemade solutions fail. Read on!

Follow these easy steps to unclog your drain:

STEP 1:

Start by pouring a pot of boiling water down the drain.

STEP 2:

Next, pour a cup of baking soda and 1 cup water/1 cup vinegar solution.

STEP 3:

Cover with the drain plug and wait 5 to 10 minutes.

 

Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate, a base. Vinegar is made up of water and acetic acid, which is (you guessed it) an acid.

When you combine these, a reaction happens where molecules get exchanged, creating carbon dioxide and water that bubbles through the clog, breaking it up to create loose material.

And drainage pipes aren’t pressurized like your typical water system. When you use boiling water to flush the clogged drain, pressure is added. Along with gravity, this pressure helps remove unwanted goop out of the pipes and unclogs drains.

Baking soda, vinegar and boiling water can help clean drains naturally, but you may need something stronger, like Liquid-Plumr^®, to fully unclog those really tough drain clogs.

 

With time, baking soda and vinegar may work as a natural drain cleaner on weaker drain clogs, and the benefits of regular drain cleaning can help keep your drains free of clogs.

But for tough drain clogs that need to be dissolved right away, you may want to use a stronger drain cleaner, like Liquid-Plumr^®.

 

Liquid-Plumr^® products are safe drain cleaners to use in your pipes and can resolve tough drain clogs better than natural remedies.

Liquid-Plumr^® Pro-Strength Clog Destroyer Gel contain two powerful liquids that, when combined, create a deep-cleaning foam that dissolves hair and funk throughout the entire pipe, helping to unclog tough drains.

The key active ingredients sodium hydroxide and sodium hypochlorite release heat to effectively dissolve the drain blockage. Now that’s some powerful science!

Read more in our Drain Tips & Hacks section for all your drain cleaning needs.