Don’t resist the urge to purge

The natural response to clear a blockage in our digestive system is to purge the obstruction with water. Why should plumbing assets be treated any differently?

With the growing popularity of waterless urinals there has also been an increase in blockages and resultant odour in drains and pipes. Various approaches have had limited success in resolving the problem; and the only winners are plumbers.

Back to our bodies. Constipation usually occurs where there is not enough water or fibre in our diet. Even the overuse of laxatives can exacerbate the problem, and the cocktail of chemicals that we ingest further destabilises our gut. The best steps to remedy constipation are to increase water intake; especially warm liquids; eat more fibre, and to reset the balance of our digestive health by introducing probiotics.

Clearing blockages in pipes and drains are no different. By tweaking a couple of simple steps in our daily cleaning regime can we prevent blockages without any extra effort or expense.

Daily purge with warm water

Much like our bodies, a daily purge with water helps to keep plumbing flowing freely. There is a common misconception that exclusively using oil seals in waterless urinals will block the odour emanating from the plumbing system. The focus of this approach is merely cosmetic because it does not strive to get rid of uric scale build-up and the odour-producing bacteria that thrive in in the plumbing environment beyond the oil seal. Moreover, using warm water is better than boiling water because it allows friendly bacteria and enzymes to work at optimum levels.

Creating naturally healthy drains

Another approach to combat the build-up of odour-producing waste in drains is to deploy sanitisers and harsh chemicals, often in vast quantities. This tactic merely masks the problem and can cause long-term damage to valuable assets, not to mention the harm to natural habitats from the ensuing outfall. Only cleaners containing friendly bacteria which continuously produce enzymes can promote a healthy drain environment. Likewise, our gut health is improved when we take probiotics, together with limiting certain types of foods, and not swallowing drugs without much thought.

The same common-sense principles that govern good gut health are equally applicable to healthy drains. A daily purge combined with biological cleaning solutions is a simple way to maintain free-flowing pipes that won’t smell. This proven approach has been used successfully in many locations around the nation. The aim of waterless urinals is to save valuable water resources. However, as its manufacturers will point out, for them to work as designed … don’t resist the urge to purge.