Rant: That $60 drain snake from Home Depot was a complete waste of money

Bought one of those handheld drum augers to clear a clog in my kitchen sink last month. Figured it would save me a plumber fee. Nope. The thing got stuck on the first bend and the cable kinked up like a cheap spring. Ended up having to cut the pipe under the sink to get it out. Plumber came anyway, charged me $180 to fix my mess and clear the actual clog. Has anyone found a drain cleaner that actually works on tough kitchen clogs without ruining your pipes?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_john1d ago

Yo that sucks but honestly you probably should've rented a proper snake from a rental place instead of buying that toy from Home Depot. Those cheap drum augers are meant for bathroom drains and shower clogs, not kitchen sinks with all that grease and food debris. I've had good luck with the Zip-It style drain cleaners for hair clogs but for kitchen sludge you gotta go chemical first - like really hot water with dish soap and vinegar, let it sit 20 minutes before trying to snake. Plus if your pipes are old cast iron, that snake cable can literally punch through rusted spots and make things way worse.

derek991d ago

Hot water and dish soap did the trick for me last time.