How To Unclog A Shower Drain Repair Guide

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Easy

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Time Required

                          35 minutes

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How to Unclog a Shower Drain
10 steps

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Introduction

What you need

Step 1

              How to Unclog a Shower Drain

Begin by putting on a pair of disposable gloves to protect your hands from what is inside your drain and from the chemicals in drain opener.

Begin by putting on a pair of disposable gloves to protect your hands from what is inside your drain and from the chemicals in drain opener.

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Step 2

Remove the stopper from your shower drain, if possible.
Follow this link to determine how to remove the specific kind of drain stopper you have.

Remove the stopper from your shower drain, if possible.

Follow this link to determine how to remove the specific kind of drain stopper you have.

Step 3

Once the drain stopper is out of the way, use your fingers, tweezers, or almost any long thin object to pull out hair and larger items clogging the drain.
Dispose of anything you were able to remove from your drain.
If you cannot remove your drain stopper, skip ahead until step 7.

Once the drain stopper is out of the way, use your fingers, tweezers, or almost any long thin object to pull out hair and larger items clogging the drain.

Dispose of anything you were able to remove from your drain.

If you cannot remove your drain stopper, skip ahead until step 7.

Step 4

If you are unable to lift out the hair and larger items in your drain, consider using a plunger.
Cover the drain with a plunger and run the water in your bathtub or shower until it covers at least half of the plunger.

If you are unable to lift out the hair and larger items in your drain, consider using a plunger.

Cover the drain with a plunger and run the water in your bathtub or shower until it covers at least half of the plunger.

Step 5

Without breaking the seal of the plunger on the drain, push the plunger sharply down and up a few times.

Without breaking the seal of the plunger on the drain, push the plunger sharply down and up a few times.

Step 6

Push down on the plunger again, but pull up sharply to break the seal.
This will hopefully dislodge what is clogging the drain. Any residual items may be removed as in step 3.

Push down on the plunger again, but pull up sharply to break the seal.

This will hopefully dislodge what is clogging the drain. Any residual items may be removed as in step 3.

Step 7

The chemicals in drain opener are very dangerous. Wear gloves to avoid the liquid touching your skin.
If you are unable to unclog your drain by hand, consider using liquid drain opener.
The drain opener you purchased should have instructions on the back which will tell you how much of the drain cleaner to use.

The chemicals in drain opener are very dangerous. Wear gloves to avoid the liquid touching your skin.

If you are unable to unclog your drain by hand, consider using liquid drain opener.

The drain opener you purchased should have instructions on the back which will tell you how much of the drain cleaner to use.

Step 8

Slowly pour the liquid drain opener down the drain, but avoid pouring the liquid on your shower floor and drain stopper.
If you were unable to remove the drain stopper, lift the stopper up as much as possible and follow the steps above.

Slowly pour the liquid drain opener down the drain, but avoid pouring the liquid on your shower floor and drain stopper.

If you were unable to remove the drain stopper, lift the stopper up as much as possible and follow the steps above.

Step 9

Wait at least the time stated on your bottle of drain opener.
Different drain openers have different wait times, ranging from 10 minutes to 10 hours.
Regardless of the instructions, the longer you let the drain opener sit in your drain, the more effective it will be.

Wait at least the time stated on your bottle of drain opener.

Different drain openers have different wait times, ranging from 10 minutes to 10 hours.

Regardless of the instructions, the longer you let the drain opener sit in your drain, the more effective it will be.

Step 10

After an appropriate amount of time, run hot water down the drain to flush out any remaining blockage.

After an appropriate amount of time, run hot water down the drain to flush out any remaining blockage.

To reassemble your drain stopper, follow the steps you took in step one in reverse order.

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                    Kathryn Breitenstein

Member since: 09/29/2015

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