Blocked Sinks London

Kitchen sinks block because of fats, oils and grease (FOG) — they pour down warm as liquid, cool inside the pipe, and stick to the walls. Over months, the layer thickens until water can't get past. Food scraps, coffee grounds and starchy waste accelerate the build-up.

Bathroom basins block because of hair and soap scum. Hair tangles into mats; soap fats bind it together. The blockage usually forms at the trap (the U-bend) just below the basin.

Utility and laundry sinks get lint, detergent residue and the occasional sock.

Cooking fat, oil and grease — pour cooled into a tin and bin it instead. Coffee grounds — surprisingly cumulative; they scour pipes initially then clog at low points. Food scraps — even with a waste disposal unit, fibrous items like celery and onion skins wrap around the blade. Egg shells — calcium carbonate combines with grease into rock-hard deposits. Rice, pasta and bread — swell with water and form a paste. Paint — never down any drain.

For a typical bathroom basin blockage at the trap, we'll disconnect the U-bend, clear the gunk, refit and test. Ten minutes.

For deeper blockages further down the waste pipe, we use a motorised drain auger that follows the pipe and cuts through the blockage. For commercial kitchens with heavy grease build-up, a high-pressure jetter clears the pipe walls completely and stops the problem recurring for months.

Boiling water down the drain (don't pour boiling water into porcelain basins — the temperature shock can crack them). Bicarbonate of soda followed by white vinegar, left for 15 minutes, then flushed with hot water — works well on early grease build-up. A plunger over the drain, with the overflow blocked with a wet cloth.

If none of that shifts it, stop and call — using a wire hanger or rough tools can damage older pipes and turn a £50 call-out into a £500 repair.