Plated pins with Lead solder.

[Photobacterium]

Imagine the typical homeowner buying 96% sulfuric to unclog their drain. If they get impatient the typical response would be to try some other product. Imagine if that 2nd product was sodium hydroxide 99% also sold as a drain opener. That would be a rude reaction in ones face.

this is what i don't get about the extreme acid & base solutions to a clogged drain.

if they don't work, who do you call ? a plumber - and then THEY have to contend with a drain that is not only clogged, but they get to work on a system that is filled with concentrated sulfuric or a similarly nasty solution on the lye/alkaline end of the pH spectrum.

plumbers deserve hazard pay ? i can't help but wonder.

i have a clogged drain now and there's no way i'm pouring sulfuric in there. i found some Liquid Fire, which has decent reviews here at GRF, and was going to buy some tomorrow - but for a Cell, not for the sink.

remember in Shop Class (back when Industrial Arts were taught in American schools) ?

i remember one of my instructors showing us his hand with the 2 or 3 missing fingers, and telling us in detail about the belt sander accident where he lost the fingers.

also i'm grateful to everyone here for sharing their knowledge of hazards & shop talk regarding accidents.

i'm glad i started with the more dilute solutions of these things, e.g. Napa H2SO4.

 

[Geo]

our shop teacher cut off a couple of his fingers in class.his name was Ball, mr.Ball.

 

[steyr223]

Hello all
I hope you're having a good new years
I have been on a job where they cleared a whole block somebody poured 2 gallons of muratic down the drain.
Crystal drano turns to solid cement if left unattended
Ace hardwares brand the red bottle will float your porcelan off the bottom your tub left unattended
I sold a product called rootx. ,came in plastic bottles with 2 powders separated buy a tissue you would dump it in the toilet and it would foam up then you flush the toilet instantly or you would get it in the face. There's only 1 drain opener that works that's a citrus based degreaser
thanks steyr223

 

[butcher]

Never use chemical drain cleaners on a clog that will not let some water go through drain, if some water moves through so will the drain cleaner, if not you will end up with a mess of chemicals when you do have to snake the drain.

A good old snake is the best for cleaning drains, especially if roots or other things may be in the drain, water pressure or water jet is also handy.

Companies end up with waste chemicals from other processes, they recover these wastes many times for (environmental reasons), they need a market for this waste, or have to pay to get rid of it, what better method for them than to market these as drain cleaners?

 

[oldgeek]

Never use chemical drain cleaners on a clog that will not let some water go through drain, if some water moves through so will the drain cleaner, if not you will end up with a mess of chemicals when you do have to snake the drain.

Amen!

I use a product called THRIFT (Sodium Hydroxide) It works really well keeping my drains clear. If i notice one slowing up, it gets about a half of a cup of crystals, and enough hot water to wash it down.

 

[butcher]

The caustic soda is safe for cast iron pipes; sulfuric acid is hard on them.

caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) (lye) makes soap out of grease and fats, so it can actually make soap out of the clog in the drain, it will also make soap out of your skin, as many of you know when you get it on your hands you feel the slimy and slippery of your skin changing to soap, vinegar or dilute HCl will neutralize it when you do get it on you.

In the old days on ships and long voyages, if someone died on the ship (and they did not want to bury him at sea), they would put the body in a barrel of caustic soda, it would make a soap solution, they would just dump the soap over board and then they could bring the bones home for burial, that way they did not have more disease on a ship than they already had.

 

[steyr223]

Right. On
I've got near 35 years as a plumber 20 of those years as a
Drain cleaner and I always wondered why liquid plumber
Made my hands so dam slippery (of course that was an extra charge for
cable damage) cool now I know
I love the plethora of info on this form :lol: