How To Use A Drain Snake In 7 Simple Steps

Is a drain at your place giving you grief? When they’re working well, you hardly give your drains the slightest bit of attention. Ignore them too much, though, and you may start to notice things going wrong – which is probably why you’re here to learn how to use a drain snake or drain auger.

In most cases, you will be alerted to your troublesome blocked drain due to the following red flags:

• Foul drain smells, caused by a stinky blockage
• Collecting water, as the blockage backs up in your pipes
• Gurgling or other unpleasant sounds.

Luckily, there are plenty of things you can try at home before giving your trusty local blocked drain plumber a call. These include:

• Boiling water: Well, wait a few minutes so it’s not going to sizzle your drain and pipes, but very hot water is great for breaking down blockages.
• Bi-carb: It’s already in your pantry, as is white vinegar, so mix them together and let them fizzle your blockage away.
• Cleaners: Start with the more natural remedies, but your local bunnings or supermarket will be well-stocked with caustic chemical cleaners that can be very effective.
• Plunger: Create a good seal and start plunging away!

Today, though, we’re going to zoom in on a DIY drain unblocking method that is arguably more effective than any of the simple home solutions listed above. It’s the drain snake, otherwise known as a drain eel, plumbers snake or drain auger.

How to use a drain snake in 7 simple steps

It’s the little brother of the plumber’s professional and motorised High Pressure Water Jetter, that gets deep inside your drainage and plumbing system to chew through some of the most stubborn and complex of blockages. The hand-held, un-motorised version is not expensive and found in your local hardware store, consisting of a coil that still gets down into your sewer and stormwater drains for this important task.

The only question left is how to use a drain snake or drain auger – so here goes!:

1. Prepare

Before getting the drain snake or drain auger into action, remove the drain’s P-trap or opening access point if necessary.

2. Insert

If you can easily insert the tip of the auger or snake into the drain opening, do that now. Use the crank to unwind it into the pipe.

3. Monitor

Be aware of any resistance your drain snake meets on the way in. It could be a bend in the pipe, but it might also be whatever’s clogging it up and causing the blockage. Continue to try get the drain auger past the resistance.

4. Find the clog

If the auger goes in further, keep going and pushing the drain auger through. If it won’t go any further, you’ve probably already found and partially cleared the blockage.

5. Work the clog

Try to get that auger in a little deeper, but not too far – because you want to start winding the drain snake back in a little now. But before you get too far, wind it back into the blockage – and then back out again. Repeat this process to break up the clog effectively and your drain blockage is fully cleared.

6. Retract

Wind the drain auger / snake all of the way back in carefully, because you don’t want to do any damage to your actual drain.

7. Test

How’s that drain going draining now? All good? Or still clogged? If the latter, repeat the process again, and if you’re making progress add a bit more power to your handiwork with a flush of hot water or some bi-carb/vinegar.

Need an affordable & professional drain fix?

If your efforts have proved to not be successful, there is no need to worry because Affordable Plumbing Solutions is standing by with some much more powerful professional High Pressure drain unblocking tools. At Affordable Plumbing Solutions, our friendly team is always equipped with CCTV drain camera technology, ultra high pressure water jetters, and innovative solutions like no-dig pipe relining.

Affordable Plumbing Solutions really are the plumbers Sydney can count on, offering not only great pricing, fast response and workmanship that we fully guarantee for every job – big or small. Give the experienced crew a call today on 0417 142 430.