Bath Products and Your Drains
Baths are a great way to relax and unwind after a long or stressful day. They’re also a great way to pamper yourself and get in a little me-time before the kids get home from a sleepover or before a big event.
Nowadays, there’s a whole aisle at the store filled with bath-related products to build the perfect pool of relaxing scents and soft bubbles for your afternoon soak. Through dissolving salts and perfumed candles, the product that has been in the spotlight for the past few years has been the bath bomb.
What Are They?
Bath bombs come in all sorts of colors, smells, and even shapes. They’re typically made of a combination of baking soda, citric acid, cornstarch, and whatever scent or insert the company chooses to create different scents and colors.
Once placed in the hot bath water, they begin to fizz and dissolve into a colorful and bubbly solution that makes for a super relaxing and soft pool.
How Do They Affect Drains?
You may think that because they contain baking soda and citric acid, bath bombs may even be good for your drains! This way of thinking makes sense; after all, plumbers encourage homeowners to clean their drains with baking soda and citrus.
The baking soda component is not the problem for your drain. Added salts don’t always completely dissolve and can find their way in chunks into the drain. From there, they’re likely to catch hair and begin forming a clog.
To create the sweet smelling scents in your favorite bath bombs, manufacturers add in oils. Once down the drain, cold oils can quickly solidify in place and cause clogs.
Some bath bombs contain more than baking soda, oils, and salts. Confetti, glitter, and flower petals are popular additives that do not dissolve, creating an ever larger chance for clogs.
Our Advice
We recommend shopping smart if you really want to use a bath bomb! Choose one with no extra additives and be sure to rinse out your bath drains with hot water, vinegar, and baking soda.
Drain problems? Give Dyess Air & Plumbing a call! We’re not just a team of HVAC specialists, we also have a team of expert plumbers ready to clear your drains!