Blocked Shower Drain? Here's How to Fix It

Standing ankle-deep by the end of a shower is a clear sign of a blocked shower drain. Nine times out of ten the cause is the same, hair bound together with soap scum, sitting just below the grate. The good news is that makes it one of the easier blockages to clear yourself. Here is how to do it, and how to keep it from happening again.

Why your shower drain blocks

Every shower sends hair, skin, soap and shampoo residue down the drain. Hair catches on the grate and the pipe walls, soap scum sticks it all together, and over a few months it builds into a mat that water struggles to get past. It is gradual, which is why a shower that drains a little slower each week suddenly seems to block “out of nowhere”.

How to clear a blocked shower drain

Work through these in order, they get more hands-on as you go:

• Lift and clean the grate. Unscrew or prise off the drain cover. A lot of the time the blockage is right there, a clump of hair you can pull straight out with gloved fingers or long-nose pliers.
• Fish it out. Bend a hook in the end of a piece of stiff wire, or use a cheap plastic drain claw from the hardware store, and pull the hair mat up through the opening. This is the single most effective fix for a shower.
• Plunge it. Cover the grate opening with a cup plunger, add enough water to cover the lip, and pump firmly. The suction can break up what is just out of reach.
• Bicarb and vinegar. Half a cup of each, left to fizz for fifteen minutes and flushed with hot water, helps cut the soap scum holding it all together. Skip the harsh chemical cleaners, they are rough on pipes and rarely shift a hair mat anyway.

Stop it coming back

A blocked shower drain is easy to prevent once it is clear:

• Fit a cheap mesh hair catcher over the grate and empty it regularly.
• Once a month, run a kettle of hot water down to keep soap scum from building up.
• Brush hair before showering so less of it ends up down the drain.

When it is more than hair

If you have cleared the hair and the shower still drains slowly, or it blocks again fast, the problem is further down. A few signs it is bigger than the shower:

• The water smells of sewer, not just soap.
• Other fixtures (the basin, the toilet) are slow at the same time, which points to a blockage in the main blocked drain the bathroom shares.
• It comes back within days no matter how well you clean the grate.

In those cases the blockage is deeper in the line and needs proper gear. A high-pressure water jetter clears the full pipe rather than poking a hole through it, and a camera finds whether it is roots, a sag or a damaged pipe behind it.

If you are in Newcastle and the shower is still holding water after a good clean-out, give us a call. We run a 24/7 service, quote a fixed price up front, and sort the cause, not just the symptom.