It’s easy to neglect your drains. Along with your garbage cans and recycling bin, they are just another point of waste disposal in your home – and, as with your bins and cans, a quick rinse every now and again should suffice to keep them clean, right? Wrong.
Unfortunately, your drains can’t be lumped in with the others in terms of cleaning. They require special attention and added effort. Sometimes that means being extra vigilant about what goes down your drains (fats and coffee grounds are two notorious offenders), but often it means calling drain cleaning services near you for maintenance help.
What you’ll be rewarded with, for your added attention, is a cleaner, fresher home and a heavier wallet. Let’s look closely at the three main reasons why drain cleaning is of key importance to homeowners.
A Clean and Safe Home
Without regular drain cleaning, backups occur. The backups themselves are annoying (more on them in a moment) but an insidious by-product of those clogs and backups are the bacteria, viruses and noxious gases they may contain. Backups are, in essence, a regurgitation of liquids that have gone through the sewer system, and so they contain a multitude of hazards. If your home has backups, allow for air ventilation and contact a plumber immediately.
You want liquid to flow one way in your home: cleanly out from the taps, and exiting through the drains.
No Embarrassing Clogs or Odours
Clogs and backups are just unsightly, messy and – frankly – embarrassing. They also smell foul, in a way that gets into upholstery and fabrics. If you are the type of homeowner who likes to entertain guests, or who routinely plays host to visiting relatives and friends, you’ll want to be proactive about drain health. There’s nothing quite as embarrassing as a smelly home, even if the visitors are your family.
Even if you live by yourself, and do not have any plans to host people, you still have to live in your home. And living in a smelly house or apartment is no way to live.
Fewer Costly Emergencies
Aside from health and aesthetic benefits, there is a real financial upside to regular drain maintenance. You may think that regularly having your drains inspected would eat away at your wallet, but most homeowners actually find the opposite; being proactive about drain maintenance by paying small fees to a professional plumber for inspection saves you having to shell out big money for emergency repairs.
Unclean drains can lead to costly problems down the line, including large-scale issues with your drainage system.
To reiterate, it’s understandable by drain health is last in some homeowner’s mind. But the fact is that drain cleaning, including regular professional maintenance, is not only crucial to maintaining a healthy, clean home, it’s also cost effective. Next time you hem and haw about having to call in a plumber to check a minor clog, remember that that clog can turn into a major issue over time, costing you much more than any preventative action would.