Have Kids? 3 Toys That Can Clog Bathtub Drains Fast
One of the things that makes children so fun (and so difficult to manage) is the fact that you never know what they try next. While many children love taking baths, parents may experience more than their fair share of surprise bathtub clogs. Here are three toys that kids may unintentionally use to clog bathtub drains, and how to keep your plumbing safe down the road.
1. Bouncy Balls
Perfectly round and slightly squishy, bouncy balls can clog a pipe opening fast. Since bouncy balls come in a wide variety of sizes, colors, and textures, watch out for any balls small enough to pass through drain openings.
Keep in mind that squishier balls may be pressed through the round grates of a drain, so keep those types of toys out of the tub. To prevent balls from being dropped into drains, always keep a drain cover on your bathtub or shower drain.
2. Bathtub Crayons and Markers
If your little ones love to draw, you might be thinking about getting some of those fun, soap-based bathtub crayons and markers. While these fun products are designed to be safe for porcelain and other common bathtub materials, they can be dropped into a drain easily, especially if they are slender and don't contain protective grips.
If you let your child use bathtub crayons or markers stay in the bathroom with them as they color, and take them away as soon as they are finished drawing their picture.
3. Bricks and Mini Figures
Small bricks and mini-figurines make for fun toys, but they can become the ultimate bathtub drain clogger. With sharp edges and the ability to interlock, these toys can fall into drains and create a complex network of sharp edges that other bathtub grime can catch on — creating a massive clog. Additionally, some figurines and bricks are tiny enough to pass through standard drain covers easily.
To protect your plumbing, never let your kids play with bricks and mini-figures in the tub. Instead, do what you can to encourage play in a safe, protected area where the tiny pieces can't be dropped within any plumbing basin.
Remember, if you tend to have trouble with your little ones clogging your bathtub drains, plumbers are always available to help. To learn more about treating clogged drains, contact a professional plumber. Professional plumbers can quickly and efficiently remove debris and stuck toys from drains, allowing water to flow through the plumbing quickly and easily once again.
Over the years, we have hired numerous contractors to work on our home. We hired drywall hangers to hand drywall in our newly finished basement. We hired painters to paint our upstairs bedroom, and we've had plumbers come fix our pipes more times than we can count. At some point, we became curious, and we wanted to learn more about the world of these contractors. We then spent many months reading and researching the industry before realizing that was not quite enough. We wanted to write about the industry, too! So, that's how this blog got started. We hope it brings you as much knowledge as it has brought us.