An all-too-common pain when it comes to your plumbing is the constant battle against clogging drains. Unfortunately, the more you use your sinks, bathtubs, and showers, the closer you are to a clogged drain, no matter how cautious you are in preventing them.

It is best to catch a clog early before it becomes a complete blockage in your pipe, potentially disabling your entire drain line system in your home. Pay attention to any slow drains in your fixtures. Slow-moving drains mean there’s only partial clogging in your drain as water is still able to escape. But know that you’re on your way to a complete blockage if it isn’t taken care of soon enough.

When you find yourself with a fully clogged shower drain, you’ll generally have standing water remaining in your shower that isn’t able to drain. Unfortunately, you’ll have more problems than your clog if you let still water fester long enough in your home, so you should take care of it immediately before matters get worse.

How to Unclog a Shower Drain with Standing Water

There are a few ways to unclog your drain that don’t require expensive, specialized plumbing equipment. If you’re tight on money, here are some great DIY methods for clearing a shower drain before you call your local trust plumbing professional.

Remove All Visible Blockage

Before you get too deep into your drain, it’s a good idea to clear any debris you notice immediately after removing your drain grill (if you’ve got one). This could very well be the extent of your problem, eliminating your need to use snaking for now.

Flush the Tub Drain with Boiling Water

Boiling water is a great way to soften and flush out scum build-up from soap and grease along the walls of your piping. However, doing so is a temporary solution as it’ll likely give you enough pathway for your wastewater to drain but won’t remove all debris, such as hair.

If it doesn’t work at first, do it again a few times more to see if it’ll work. If not, then you’ll have to try another method alongside this one to get your drain cleared.

Plunge Your Bathtub to Unclog Your Bathroom Drain

You might think of plungers as a toilet tool. But if you’ve got the right one, they’re also suitable for other types of drains, such as your shower.

If you’ve got a lot of standing water in your tub, making it difficult to plunge, remove it with a container. First, ensure you get rid of the water somewhere else that isn’t adding to your backflow problem.

Using Baking Soda, White Vinegar, and Boiling Water

If boiling water doesn’t work, you may require a chemical solution to dissolve a build-up of hair and other bathroom debris. Baking soda and vinegar are a great addition to your boiling water, creating an even more practical solution for drain clearing.

Before using any chemical solution, remove any visible debris and standing water that will otherwise dilute it before it reaches your clog. Use a bucket or cup for water removal.

Now to create your solution! First, prepare 1 cup baking soda and 1 cup vinegar (any will work, including white vinegar).

With both your cups of baking soda and vinegar ready, pour half a cup of baking soda down your drain. Next, take a long stick, coat the interior of your drain as much as possible, and push it down as far as your stick will allow.

Next, slowly pour half of your cup of vinegar into the drain. You should start to hear fizzing – the chemical reaction between your baking soda and vinegar. Once you hear it, cover your drain with a rag to trap the fumes.

Repeat the process with the remaining baking soda and vinegar combination you’ve prepared when you hear the fizzing stop.

After you’ve used all your solution, prepare boiling water. After 30 minutes, slowly pour your hot water down the drain. This will remove any remaining solution and debris softened by your chemical treatment.

Use Salt, Baking Soda, and Boiling Water

Another quick home remedy for clearing your clogged drain is salt and baking soda.

Mix half a cup of salt and half a cup of baking soda and pour it down your drain. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes (or overnight, depending on the severity of your clog).

Finally, prepare boiling water and pour it slowly down your drain to clear away your solution and any loose debris.

Why Are Clogged Bathtubs a Common Problem?

Since the fixtures in your bathroom, such as your toilet, shower, and sink, are repeatedly used, problems occur more frequently than anywhere else in your home.

Even more so, your bathtub drain takes the most beating as your wastewater carries hair, soap, and scum from all your hygiene and hair care products.

Dangers Posed by Standing Water

You might be inclined to ignore a bathtub clog, as you might have a tight schedule or simply too rough a day to want to deal with it at the moment.

There are some problems with letting standing water fester too long in your bathtub, including attracting unwanted pests and insects into your home. Standing water is a breeding ground for mosquitoes, which should be enough to convince you to fix that clog ASAP!

Preventing a Clogged Tub Drain

A few ways to proactively fight potential clogging in your tub include:

Using a drain cover: these tools catch debris like hair from overloading your drain, letting you toss it aside and into your trash bin as opposed to flushing it through your drain line.
Avoid oily bath products: body oils are a common ingredient for a clogged drain. Mix it with hair, soap scum, and other common cloggers, and you’ll likely need to call a plumber shortly.
Limit your waste: if you get into the habit of emptying waste bins into your tub and washing it down your drain, more significant bits and clumps of dust and dirt will find a way to add to any oncoming drain clogging nightmare.
Regularly maintain your drain: use your homemade drain clearing solution regularly to avoid easy build-up along your pipeline.

Contact Deer Valley Plumbing for Drain Clearing Services

You may find a drain line clog too severe for your DIY solutions, requiring professional help and specialized equipment.

But don’t fret! At Deer Valley Plumbing, we offer emergency services and same-day scheduling so that we can clear those clogs and get those pipes flowing freely again. In addition, we offer effective drain-clearing methods to ensure a powerful, long-lasting solution for handling any drain clogging you might face. So call us at (623) 250-2680 and schedule your next drain cleaning service with us today!

We offer professional drain cleaning services in the following locations:

And, if you’re in Colorado, check out the Fort Collins drain cleaning services from our friends at Lion Home Service today!