When cleaning up in the kitchen, it’s easy to just put everything down the drain. However, some items can actually cause damage to your plumbing. It’s important to be aware of what items do not belong in your drain.
Eggshells
It might be a natural habit for you to send your discarded eggshells into the garbage disposal. In fact, many people believe that eggshells can help to sharpen the garbage disposal “blades.” However, you should not be putting eggshells down your drain at all. When they are ground up, they can actually be a potential cause of damage to your garbage disposal. Small pieces of eggshells can also lead to clogs and blockage in your pipes. Instead of throwing eggshells down the drain, throw them away or put them to better use. For example, you can use eggshells in your compost.
Cooking Oil
Most people are familiar with this one, but you should not put cooking oil down your drain. Oil can solidify in your pipes and cause serious plumbing problems. It can lead to blockages which can then lead to leaks in your pipes. It might seem harmless to add small amounts that are leftover from cooking, but this oil will build up over time. Instead, wait until your used cooking oil has cooled and solidified. Then put it into a container you can seal and throw away. Additionally, you can reuse your cooking oil by straining it and storing it.
Pasta, Rice, and Flour
There are many things that will easily slip down the drain. However, once they are in the pipes they can cause problems. Pasta and rice are common culprits. As they are exposed to water, pasta and rice will swell and expand. This can cause blockages in your pipes. Similarly, flour is affected by water and will cause problems. Flour will create a glue-like substance that can clog up your pipes. Since pasta is also made of flour, it can create this gluey substance in addition to swelling. You can’t catch everything, but you should do your best to not deliberately put pasta, rice, and flour down your drain.
Your plumbing can be majorly impacted by what you put down your drain. Damage caused by the items in your pipes can be very expensive to repair. It’s best to avoid putting these things in there in the first place.
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