An issue with a drain is something you’ll probably discover soon after it starts: when water begins to back up, or takes a long time to drain away, then you know that something is wrong. The likely cause is a clog in the p-trap (the u-shaped pipe below the drain), although it isn’t the only possibility.

At Lifeline Plumbing, Heating & Cooling, we have experience working with all kinds of residential Aurora, IL drain troubles. We’ve gathered a list of some of their common causes. If you experience any drain issues that you can’t solve yourself, you’d better give us a call right away. We have 24/7 emergency service for your convenience.

• Foreign objects: Sometimes, people take drains for granted, and treat them as if they work like a kitchen garbage disposal. But you can’t just stick anything into a drain and expect it to go away cleanly. They can easily get clogged. This is especially a problem for kitchen sinks: make sure that excess food goes down the disposal, not the drain, or at least gets scraped into a compost bucket. Also, don’t pour grease or fat down a drain; when they cool, they will congeal and can turn into a solid block that will stop flow and won’t come out easily.
• Hair, dirt, and soap scum: Here are the culprits that plague bathroom and shower drains. These are objects you can expect to go down the drain, but if you don’t attend to slow drain problems quickly, they can turn into major clogs. Drain covers will help avoid this build-up.
• Corrosion: This is the enemy of metal anywhere it comes into contact with water. Derived from the Latin verb “to gnaw” (rodere), corrosion does exactly that: gnaw and chew into the strength of metal and weaken it. If your drain is corroded due to age, it may leak. It can also cause your drain to back up if corrosion elsewhere allows in dirt that blocks up the pipes.

You’ll want to get your drain problems cleared up as soon as you can; it’s a serious inconvenience to go without your kitchen or bathroom sink. When your drain in Aurora, IL starts causing problems, contact Lifeline Plumbing, Heating & Cooling. We’ll discover the cause and fix it, and we guarantee all our work.