Blocked drains are for most people an unavoidable experience. The blockage is due to a build-up of grease, fat and scale deposits lining the wall of the pipe and causing the water to have to travel through an ever decreasing sized passage. You can minimize the occurrence of blocked drains by using bleach and being careful with what you put down the drain, but the likelihood of complications in the future is still an inevitable outcome.

Tell-tale signs of a blockage are a toilet that won’t flush, water coming back up the plug hole, or in the sever cases, a toilet which has completely overflown onto the floor or your bathroom. The most commonly spoken advice with toilets is to not use excessive amounts of toilet roll, and to flush in two parts if you will be using a lot of toilet roll.

The health hazards of having a blocked drain is another issue, as the blockage carries harmful bacteria which enters your home through the plug holes. People often experience sickness and diarrhea with feverish symptoms as a consequence of leaving a blockage to develop.

If you have rented a property or owned a home for any time over a year you will have likely experienced a blocked drain already. Usually a blockage leads to an embarrassing situation, but this is the preferred outcome over more severe problems such as flooding.

If you have tried to tackle the issue with the use of bleach and you are not having any luck, then it is time to hire a professional drainage team to manage the issue before it gets worse. Many people go years without experiencing a blocked drain by being very selective of what goes down the plug hole or toilet. The most common culprits for blocking drains are non-water soluble items such as cotton wool buds, sanitary towels, baby wipes, nappies, cotton wool and excessive amounts of toilet paper.

Many people also get blockages through flushing their leftover dinner down the toilet to avoid food causing unpleasant smells in the home.

Is it a DIY job fix or a job for a professional?

You can usually fix the problem yourself if it is a simple solid blockage close to the entrance of your pipe, or a hairball trailing down the pipe from the plug hole. These issues are the job for a DIY enthusiast and a high force drain jetting professional may not be 100% necessary.