Is your sink drain releasing some sort of black gunk and sinking the water slowly because of that? Not to be surprised, it happens with everyone more or less and can occur in your kitchen sink, or bathroom sink.
Well, why it happens? During your busy schedule, you’ve to take quick showers, and leave leftovers of food, grimy pans, pots, and dishes pile up in the drain.
As the sink faces heavy use each week, without proper disposal and piles, it clogs stiffly. Thus, the black gunk occurs, also known as black slime, black sludge.
Offer some love to your bathroom and kitchen sink, and wash them out thoroughly with my how to get rid of black gunk in sink drain instructions. Plus, to have a better understanding, I’ll tell you how the black gunk occurs in the first place with more detailed speech.
Let’s bring it on.
What is Black Gunk in Sink Drain and How It Happens
The black gunk is basically build up from leftovers, uncleaned stuff, and mostly a collection of hair, dirt, grease, grime, phlegm, toothpaste, lotion, skin cells, shaving cream, hand soaps, etc.
These things cling down the drain pipes and never leave the place, which becomes a convenient place for bacteria growth. Over time, the bacteria creates black layers, and eventually blocks the drainage system.
Well, now, the crux of the matter is this thing doesn’t go away by itself; for example, pouring gallons of water in the drain will do nothing. The clogging remains. Furthermore, what becomes irritating is that water sinking becomes a time killer in the drains, and a pure inconvenience for everyone.
How to Get Rid of Black Gunk in Sink Drain
However, fortunately, I’ll show you a few way to clean your sink with natural home products that you’d always find in your house. In particular, a mix of baking soda and vinegar to scatter the food base and gunk to clear out the clog. Also, you can take a plunger to push down the food so that the suction power increases again.
Let’s check out the in-detail methods.
Method 1: Use of Baking Soda, Vinegar, and Hot Water
It’s the most budget-friendly and effective way to clean black gunk from the sink drain. However, baking soda and vinegar create a form to loosen up the dirt and grime from the drain. Plus, vinegar contains antibacterial elements.
Items you'll need:
- White Vinegar – 1 cup
- Baking Soda – 1 cup
- Boiling hot water – 1/2 gallon
Step 1: Start Boiling Water
On the very first step, you’ll need hot water. Take a pot of water and allow the stove to boil the water. Keep boiling until you see the steam coming out or water bubbles.
Step 2: Take Baking Soda
While the water is yet to be boiled, dump a half cup of baking soda or an entire box if you face tough clogs to dissolve in the drain. Don’t be panicked if the baking soda piles up; later, it’ll be rinsed with hot water.
Step 3: Pour Vinegar
The white vinegar is what you’ll need. Take the measurement mentioned above and pour it directly down the drain. When it hits baking soda, they’ll act together to create fizzing and bubbling. As soon as the mixing happens, this black gunk will loosen its form and unclog the drain. Leave it as it is until the water is boiled enough.
Step 4: Run the Boiling Hot Water
You’ve to be a bit careful with this one. Take the hot water pot carefully and dump it directly into the drain. If you miss your aim, it might splash out of the sink drain. This rinsing process, coupled with vinegar and baking soda, should clean the clog and shove all the dirty elements down the whole drain.
Now, wait for a few minutes to test the next step.
You would love to repeat the method again. If this process doesn’t help cleaning the gunk totally, you might consider the drain cleaner.
Method 2: The Plunger Method
The moment you see that water is standing in the sink and not drowning at all, it’s time to use a plunger. Besides, it happens because of a clogged pipe.
Well, you’re going to require a plunger but not the one from your bathroom. You’ve to use a clean one for your bathtub and kitchen skin. Plus, it’d be wonderful if you’ve stored a plunger beneath the kitchen skin for emergency purposes.
Now, put the plunger on the drain to have an amazing suctioning effect. Then strongly push up and down. When the water starts to clean out, run hot water to make sure all the gunks are gone for good. In the end, go with clean water to see if it’s back in shape; otherwise, plunge again if you need.
Method 3: Drain Cleaner
Drain cleaners are basically heavy-duty chemical products that are intended to clean or dissolve every sink clogging out there, especially the bathroom, bathtub, and kitchen ones. But these chemicals are quite abrasive to acrylic or plastic materials, so you should be truly careful before dropping them down the drain.
Items you'll need:
- Drain Cleaner
- Gloves
- Hot Water
Step 1: Pour the Drain Cleaner
Before starting the process, you must read out the instructions written on the drain cleaner bottle. Don’t wish to mix it with other chemicals, considering the label. Wear the pair of gloves and start pouring the drain cleaner safely into the drain. Make sure your aim is set directly to the drain so that no dripping happens.
Note: You must wear the gloves in the first place because they’re sticky to get stuck on your skin and leave a risk of harming it.
Ensure to wipe out each drop left from the drain cleaner on the sink surface because it might linger on the surface and expose some staining afterward. And you’ve to do it immediately.
Step 2: Wait for A Certain Period
Most of the drain cleaners take a particular time to dissolve the gunk or sludge fully. It can vary from bottle to bottle, around 30 minutes – 1 hour. Don’t be mistaken to fill the sink with water during that time. And always read the instructions.
Step 3: Flush the Drain
Once the timer is over, switch on the hot water or boil a pot of hot water. Then run it down the sink for a while by following the instructions. This process will rinse out the earlier dropped drain cleaner and remove every inch of remaining black gunk from your sink drain.
Lastly, talking of drain cleaner, you can count on Roebic Crystal Drain Opener, Drano Max Build Up Remover, Zep Clog Attack, Liquid Plumr Clog Remover to clean the black gunk in sink drain. I’d recommend you to apply the Drano Max Build Up Remover because of its natural macrobiotics and enzymes.
Conclusion
As you’ve learned how to get rid of black gunk from sink drain, you can free your sinks from the dirty mess in no time. Each process I’ve mentioned will take around 10 to 15 minutes at best. If the process 1 and 2 doesn’t work for you, the drain cleaner will keep your hopes high.
However, if you feel that this cleaning process is way out of your league and jammed the whole draining pipe, you must call a professional to do the cleaning, known as a plumber.
Happy Cleaning.