Welcome to Ready & Able, formerly known as David LeRoy Plumbing! Although our name and brand have changed, we are still here to serve you and all of your plumbing, heating, cooling, and air quality needs!
Performing regular drain maintenance is one of the best things you can do to protect the health and habitability of your Harrisburg home. With regular drain cleaning, you can stave off foul drain odors, heavy buildups of biofilm, and messy whole-house backups. Although dumping boiling water down your drains might seem like a cheap and easy way to get the job done, it can cause far more problems than it solves. Read on to explore the pros and cons of this do-it-yourself drain cleaning method.
Con: It Can Damage Your Pipes and Other Plumbing Components
Boiling water breaks down grease and slime, kills dangerous pathogens, and sloughs off trapped food debris. Although it works well in a lot of cleaning applications, it can do serious damage to your plumbing system. Not all of your plumbing system’s components are highly heat-resistant. Plastic elements can melt, and porcelain fixtures can crack.
Cracked Porcelain
Dumping hot water onto cold porcelain surfaces will cause rapid expansion and cracking. It will also instantly void your fixture manufacturer’s warranty.
Damaged Pipes and Drains
Many modern homes have polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes and drains. Although PVC pipes have a high resistance to heat, they aren’t entirely impervious to heat damage. Slow-moving hot water can cause PVC pipes to warp and deform. This will result in loose, leaky connections and the need for pipe and drain replacement.
Even if you’ve poured boiling water into your PVC pipes before without incident, this doesn’t mean that heat-related problems aren’t looming ahead. Minor changes in wastewater flow can trap hot liquid in pipes long enough to diminish their integrity. It’s far better to let your cooking water cool before disposing of it and to choose a drain cleaning method that isn’t as high-risk.
Pro: It Takes Just Minutes and Doesn’t Cost a Thing
Among the top benefits of using boiling water to clear your drains is that it’s cheap, easy, and free. You can put water from your tap on the stove and have it piping hot within minutes. Unfortunately, it could take just minutes to crack porcelain fixtures or permanently alter the shape and integrity of your pipes.
Con: It Isn’t What Your Plumbing System Needs
Hot water can get slow, sluggish drains moving. It can clear out foul odors and break down biofilm and sludge. However, boiling water only remains at a sufficiently high temperature for cleaning just after it’s poured. As it comes in contact with cold pipes, it quickly loses heat and effectiveness, leaving debris in the pipes.
Your Sewer Line Won’t Get Cleaned at All
All of your drains converge into your home’s sewer line. This underground pipe is subject to the same buildups of silt, sediment, biofilm, and organic waste as your drains. The boiling water that you pour into your drains will never maintain its heat long enough to clean your sewer line. If the only drain-cleaning method you’re using is hot water, your sewer line will eventually clog and affect your drains. Multi-drain issues are a sign of an impending whole-house backup, a dangerous event that can send raw sewage into every drain and plumbing-connected appliance in the building.
Drain and Sewer Line Inspections
Plumbers offer several options for drain cleaning. Two of the most common are hydro-jetting and rooter service. Hydro-jetting uses high-pressure jets to flush drains and wastewater pipes, cleaning everything from biofilm to tree roots. Rooter service involves inserting a mechanized drain auger to break through most clogs.
With professional drain cleaning, you also get the benefit of sewer and drain inspections. These inspections allow plumbers to catch and correct minor issues early on with specialized camera equipment.
Warranty Compliance
Hydro-jetting or rooter service will keep you compliant with the terms of all fixture and home appliance warranties that require regular drain cleaning. Boiling water won’t. With professional drain cleaning, if a covered issue ever arises, you won’t have to pay for it out of pocket.
Con: Boiling Water Won’t Solve All Your Drain Problems
There are many plumbing problems that professional drain cleaning can resolve and boiling water cannot. Despite being an easy DIY drain cleaning technique, it isn’t effective for drains that are already clogged or slow-moving.
Tough Clogs
If your sink is clogged with built-up hair, boiling water will only flush the hair to another location. Your drains might move more swiftly for a while, but they’ll slow right back down as soon as the clog gets snagged on rough pipe interiors or sediment in your sewer pipe.
Drain Gnat Infestations
Drain gnats love dirty drains and can withstand sudden influxes of hot water. Pouring boiling water down your drains won’t disrupt their nests or stop them from multiplying. Professional treatments like hydro-jetting will eliminate drain debris and gnat infestations.
Get Professional Drain Cleaning
Homeowners in Harrisburg can count on us for expert drain cleaning services and other plumbing solutions. We offer hydro-jetting, video camera drain inspections, drain pipe replacement, and emergency plumbing. We also provide top-notch heating, cooling, and indoor air quality services. To find out more or schedule an appointment, contact Ready & Able Plumbing, Heating & Air today!
Welcome to Ready & Able, formerly known as David LeRoy Plumbing! Although our name and brand have changed, we are still here to serve you and all of your plumbing, heating, cooling, and air quality needs!