Thursday, June 25, 2009

Further Draining Adventures

So, while the we're very happy around here that the Korky flapper is doing its job and we're not losing lots of water down the drain, on Monday we were having some issues with sink water not going down the drain.

It all started with a little water backing up in the second sink basin in the kitchen. I decided it had been doing that for long enough, so I got out the plunger and worked on it for a while. After a few minutes of plunging, I had both sinks about a quarter full of water and... well... crud from the drain. I refused to give up, though, and by the time I was done the drains were both running clear.

With all that success, I figured I'd try my luck on the upstairs bathroom sink. It's been running slowly for a while, and it seemed like the logical step up after the kitchen. Of course, the sinks are completely different shapes. And the plunger didn't work quite so well.

Instead, as I was plunging in the bathroom, each downward push would result in water coming out of the overflow drain. So I plunged for a while and then, since the water was now running slower than before -- as well as being filled with brown gunk -- I decided to try some Drano. Wish I could say it worked. But... well... that would have been too easy.

This was the point where I did the really stupid thing: trying to use a plunger on a drain with Drano in it. You see, with the water bouncing around and splashing out of the overflow drain, I ended up with some of it on my hands. So I went into the kitchen and rinsed them. And rinsed them. And rinsed them. You see, on your hands Drano isn't deadly, it's just uncomfortable. It does something to the fat in your skin and I kind of felt like I'd gotten a major chemical peel on my palms. Even two days later my skin is still oddly taut and uncomfortable.

And, no, the drain wasn't fixed even with the plunging and the Drano. So Tuesday morning I called around and found a Drain Guy (different than a Plumber, I was informed), who came yesterday morning at 8am. He was here for about 15 minutes. He snaked the pipe and ran some water through the sink. I wrote him a check and he was on his way.

I love it when water that's supposed to stop stops and water that's supposed to run runs.

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