How to Clean Bathroom Basin Drain : DIY Cleaning Tips

Hair, oily materials from toothpaste and toiletries, and other stuff accumulate on the basin pipes over time. This makes the drain clogged up and often emits a foul odor. Therefore, you should know how to clean bathroom basin drain the right way to keep it functional and smell-free.

You can clean your bathroom basin drain using household items like salt, baking soda, warm water, and vinegar. In some cases, you would have to use commercial formulas like the Drano Max Gel Drain Clog Remover.

Apart from showing you some simple DIY tricks like how to clean bathroom drain with baking soda and vinegar, we will also discuss what you should do to prevent the drain pipes from frequently getting blocked.

How to Clean Bathroom Basin Drain : A Comparison Table

Table of Contents

• How To Remove Hair From Basin Drain?
• How To Clean Bathroom Drain Smell?
  • Baking Soda and Vinegar
  • Baking Soda And Salt
  • Boiling Water
  • A Dry Wet Vacuum Cleaner
  • Wire Hanger
• Tips To Keep Your Basin Drain Clean
  • Don’t Treat The Basin Drain As Your Dustbin
  • Try To Reduce The Use Of Toiletries
• Frequently Asked Questions
  • Final Say

How To Remove Hair From Basin Drain?

Hair is one of the main culprits responsible for clogged bathroom basin drains. We often brush our hair in front of the basin mirror or shave. In doing so, strands of hair fall on the basin, which we usually wash down the drain without giving it much of a thought. These hair strands form a cluster on the pipes gradually. Once it gets big enough, you face clogging issues.

Of course, you can call the plumber to sort it out. But, you didn’t need to read this article to know that information. You came here because you want to take a more proactive approach and want to learn how to clean bathroom sink by yourself. So, let’s find out how you can deal with such a bad hair day.

Step one, take off the drain stopper and try to detect the clump of hair that is causing the obstruction. If you can reach your fingers, then pull them out. A pair of tweezers would be very helpful in this scenario. 

If it’s out of reach, then apply a clogging gel like the one we mentioned at the beginning of the article. Before using, don’t forget to read the instructions.

How To Clean Bathroom Drain Smell?

There might not be a trace of a stain anywhere in your bathroom. But, all that hard work you have put into making the bathroom nice and shiny would be meaningless if you experience a pungent smell in the bathroom. Apart from the toilet, your bathroom drain can be the source of the malodor.

Bacteria buildup is the root cause of odor coming out from the bathroom sink. We recommend using a non-abrasive unclogging agent to take care of this problem. You can also use this type of solution to treat bathroom pipe blockage. Wikihow suggests using hydrogen peroxide for this purpose.

Before purchasing a commercial cleaner, you need to be wary of the fact that the chemicals present in such products can adversely affect both your health and the bathroom pipes. If you do buy on-store cleaners, read the labels to find out what chemicals have been used and what their potential side effects could be.

We would also advise you against using bleach. This chlorine-based compound is notorious for its aggressive reaction abilities. Therefore, it might cause severe harm to the pipes and trigger an even more severe plumbing problem. So, we strongly discourage cleaning bathroom drain pipes with bleach or other antibacterial items.

Thankfully, there are safer, homemade alternatives. You can mix salt, baking soda, vinegar, and lemon juice and pour it down the drain. A cup full of such a mixture should be enough to get rid of the stench. Give it an hour to work, then follow up with some hot water. The smell should go away.

Baking Soda and Vinegar

The use of baking soda and vinegar for unclogging basin drains is quite common. Baking soda is widely known for its versatile use alongside its primary purpose.

One of its multifaceted utilities is that it works as a fantastic cleaner. Thanks to its acidic properties, vinegar, aka acetic acid, also does a pretty good job in cleaning stuff.

How to clean bathroom basin drain using baking soda and vinegar? It’s very simple, actually!

Mix one-third cup of vinegar with equal portions of baking soda. As soon as the mixture starts fizzing, dump it down the drain. It’s the fizzing that makes the solution so successful in removing hair and grime. Wait an hour before you clear the pipes pouring hot water.

Baking Soda And Salt

Instead of vinegar, you can combine baking soda with salt to clean the clogged pipes.

Take half a cup of baking soda and half a cup of salt.

Put them together and pour the mixture down the drain. Salt and baking soda are a stronger cleaning mixture, so you would have to wait only 15 minutes before flushing the drain with boiling water.

Boiling Water

In previously discussed methods, we have used boiling water to clean away the cleaning solution. But, sometimes, only boiling water would suffice.

Take a kettle full of boiling water and pour it down the drain. Do this several times with 5/10 minute intervals. If the clog is too big, it might not work. That said, you can do this regularly to avoid the pipes from getting overly clogged.

A Dry Wet Vacuum Cleaner

For dealing with mild to moderate clogs, a dry wet vacuum cleaner could be a great option. Cut the top of a plastic bottle and attach it on top of the hose for a superior suction force.

Remove the drain stopper, put the hose on the drain, and set the vacuum at its maximum liquid mode. It should generate enough pull to remove the things that had been blocking the drain.

Wire Hanger

You can improvise an unclogging tool using a wire hanger. Take a wire hanger, straighten it with needle-nose pliers, but don’t deform the hook. Then, twist the other end of the hanger gently to create a little handle.

Push the hook side of the hanger as far as you can into the basin drain hole, turning the hanger as you do so. Grab the handle firmly so that it doesn’t slip off of your hand. Keep on wobbling the hanger to trap as much hair and muck as you can. 

Lift it out, dispose of the dirt in a garbage bag, and then stick the hanger back down the drain. Repeat this process until the drain becomes clog-free.

Tips To Keep Your Basin Drain Clean

Don’t Treat The Basin Drain As Your Dustbin

Minimize the amount of scum that travels through the bathroom basin sink. At some point, the hair and soap deposits will create a block in the pipes.

If you throw more stuff into the bathroom basin, you would be accelerating the clogging process. Don’t flush napkins, cotton, or anything else down the bathroom sink.

In fact, avoid flushing such things at all. Put them in a garbage bag and save yourself from future plumbing disasters. Also, don’t do your dishes on the bathroom sink. The extra oil and grease from food and dishwashing soap will contribute to the buildup and worsen the clogging situation.

Try To Reduce The Use Of Toiletries

Remnants of soap, face wash, shaving foam, and other toiletries that we wash away in the bathroom sink pile up in the drain and eventually blocks it. It’s impossible to stop using these completely, but we should try to cut off unnecessary use. 

A single press of the soap dispenser button, for example, will give you enough soap to wash your hands. So, it’s wasteful to press it repeatedly and take too much soap in your hands.

Another thing you should be mindful of is allowing enough water out of the tap for flushing. After you wash your hand or spit out the toothpaste, let the water run for 3/4 seconds. It won’t make much of a significant difference in your water bill, but your basin pipes would be as clean as a whistle.

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Say

Cleaning the bathroom basin drain is important because the residual buildup will continue to grow if you don’t do anything about it. It’s not that difficult to learn how to clean bathroom basin drain.

Don’t want a blocked, foul-smelling basin?

Follow our instructions and restore your basin drain to tip-top shape.