By Mel Dorman, February 19, 2021
Think I’m kidding? Nope. I’m about to tell you how spending $25 will save you hundreds of dollars over the next few years.
First, go to your favorite hardware or home improvement store. Buy a 25 foot drain snake, like the one in the photo. These are simple, hand-held devises that wriggle and snake down your clogged drain, snag the offending hairball, and haul it back out for you. In 5 minutes, you can un-clog a drain that would otherwise cost you $200 for a plumber to do for you.
You insert the curly metal end into your drain and, while holding the handle in one hand, you turn the rotating arm clockwise. The snake arm twists and coils down the drain, around tricky corners and joints, and ultimately finds the nasty ball of hair and scum and goo that is clogging your drain. Then you reverse the direction of the snake, and it wriggles back out of the drain, holding its prize and thus liberating your plumbing to drain freely!
I’m not telling you that it’s not a tiny bit gross when you get the hairball out; I’m saying that it’s satisfying and that you’ll save a ton of time and money doing it. As far as I’m concerned, this is an essential tool that all homeowners should own. Your friends will start begging you to come over to un-clog their drains. Just make sure to charge them!
Do yourself a favor and watch a few YouTube videos on how to use it the first time around. While it’s simple, it’s also not intuitive in the beginning.
Note: please be careful with drain snakes and older cast-iron plumbing. It is unlikely, but possible, that the snake can get stuck and/or cause damage to your pipes if you force it. Be gentle. Enjoy.
Mel Dorman
Broker | OR & WA
She/They
Ten years ago, Melissa was living in a slum in Kolkata, India, helping over 200 women escape sex trafficking by providing alternative work at a social business...
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