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How to Unclog a Kitchen Sink with Standing Water

Posted on August 9, 2022August 22, 2022 by Foundation for the Future

A kitchen sink with standing water is an odd sight. Most people will never see it once in their lifetime unless, of course, they’ve purposefully plugged it with a drain stopper. When the plumbing is backed up, and the water’s not draining properly, something is very wrong. There’s clogging somewhere in the pipeline, and it’s important to get it remedied without the wait.

When you have standing water, you’re not going to be able to use boiling water to clear it. Boiling water is not going to go anywhere. It’s going to end up sitting in your sink or pipe. If they are PVC pipes, they could end up compromised from the temperature. To this extent, using natural substances to unclog a kitchen sink – such as vinegar and baking soda – won’t work, either.

A blockage that builds up can cause more pressure in the plumbing and an eventual burst pipe. Here’s everything you can try to unclog a kitchen sink with standing water.

Unclog a kitchen sink with a plumber

If the clogs keep happening, there’s an underlying cause. You may need a plumber Hamilton to solve it. Sending food debris down the kitchen sink can cause a clog. If you’re regularly putting grease, oil, coffee grounds, and similar materials down the drain, these can coat the pipe and cause clogging. A lot can get caught in a kitchen sink pipeline when we aren’t being careful.

If you do not know how your kitchen sink clog has happened, you may want to contact a plumber for further advice and analysis. They can examine the kitchen sink and identify where the issue is as well as how to permanently resolve it.

Unclog a kitchen sink with a plunger

Don’t use a bathroom plunger as it’s going to be covered in bacteria you do not want in your kitchen sink. Use a kitchen plunger and plunge the drain for a few moments. A small clog will typically dislodge and be sent away. To work a plunger properly, you will need enough water to fully submerge the head of the tool. Be sure to maintain a seal over the drain.

Plunge up and down rapidly. This will tossle whatever’s in the pipe, hopefully causing a release. If you have a dishwasher with a flexible hose and you notice the water’s going into the dishwasher, clamp the line or pinch it closed with vice grips. This act will prevent back-flow into the dishwasher line during plunging.

Unclog your garbage disposal

If your kitchen sink drain is connected to garbage disposal, this is another area to troubleshoot. Turn it on. If the clog’s running, it might break it apart and release the standing water.

Assuming the disposal isn’t running, it might be overheated. It can be reset at the side or the bottom, depending on the model of your garbage disposal. Resetting it and turning it on could help dislodge what’s in the pipe.

Unclog a kitchen sink with a wet-dry vacuum

A plunger applies pressure down the pipe. A wet-dry vacuum will apply pressure up the pipe. If you have a wet-dry vacuum, put it to use. You can suck up the standing water and then go at what’s in the pipe.

So long as you can place the hose over the drain entrance and apply a seal, turn the vacuum onto its highest setting and see if the pressure can dislodge the clog.

Unclog a kitchen sink with an auger

An auger, a plumbing snake, can easily be fed down the pipe. You can put it through standing water with no problem, and it works. You will eventually get some resistance and hopefully encounter the clog in the pipe. When you do, start turning the crank in the device. The cable should bore into the clog and push forward.

As you manipulate the auger, the clog should break apart. Retract the auger once you see the sink draining. If this works, you may want to flush the pipe with hot water from the tap afterward, ensuring all the bacteria is run down the plumbing.

Remove the standing water from your sink and place a bucket under your sink. You’re going to unscrew the connectors for the PVC pipe that holds the P-trap. Water will come rushing out, hopefully into the bucket. Check the drain trap for clogs. If there’s debris, you may be able to remove it manually.

If you haven’t yet established where the clog is, you can carefully send the auger down the wall pipe. You should hopefully find something and be able to clear it. When reassembling everything, be sure to tighten but not over-tighten the plastic connectors.

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