clogged drain

I haven't had a chance to write about safe cleaning products yet. I've been looking into ways to clean without toxic chemicals. It is a huge topic, so perhaps I'll start with an issue that is of some urgency in my house at the moment: a slow drain.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to guess that standard drain cleaners are dangerous to people and the environment. They are poisonous and can cause severe damage on your skin. They contain lye which is very corrosive. Debra Lynn Dadd, author of Home Safe Home suggests, "if you change only one cleaning product in your home, this is it."

After consulting her book as well as my copy of Clean and Green, I decided to try a mixture of baking soda and vinegar. Both books suggest 1/2 cup of each poured into the drain. After resting 15 minutes, flush with hot top water.

I did as instructed and it seems to have worked! The water is flowing down the drain more rapidly. It was a litle tricky to get all that baking soda through the small holes in my sink drain (why did we choose that anyway?) but the vinegar bubbled its way through.

Granted, this was not a huge clog. In that case it is advised to try a plunger or use a drain snake (if you don't know what that is, call a plumber!)