Do you have little ones that could use something to do? Maybe you would like them to help out more around the house? Well, here is an idea that might keep them entertained and help you get the house cleaned up at the same time.
The same concept that makes that volcano erupt, also is the best way to clean your sink and bathtub drains and get a slow moving drain going again. So, why not have the kids help you with the task? Get a box of baking soda and a bottle of vinegar. If you don’t want to use a whole bottle or are worried about spills, find containers that are smaller and will work for littler hands. Measure out a safe amount of each, start with a ½ cup of baking soda and a cup of vinegar. Have your child help pour the baking soda into the drain, then slowly pour the vinegar on top of the baking soda. Instantly, the mixture will cause a volcanic reaction. It will bubble and fizz and at the same time go to work cleaning out weeks or months of build up in your drain. You can make the experiment even more exciting for the little ones by adding a few drops of food coloring to the vinegar. Let them pick their favorite color. They may even enjoy mixing colors to make a new color. Practice making green (one drop of blue and two drops of yellow) or purple (mix a drop of red and a drop of blue). With a little help from you, your kids can help clean and learn something about science.
For those of you who have a little budding chemist, check out this explanation on how and why vinegar and baking soda react like they do to one another.
In short, a base (baking soda) and an acid (vinegar) create a lot of energy and the reaction is the energy being spent very quickly in the form of the bubbles or eruption that we see when the two ingredients mix.
So, if you are looking for a way to entertain the kids and get your drains cleaned check out this simple yet fun science experiment.
If for some reason you try this experiment and your drains still don’t seem to be moving any better, try pouring very hot water slowly down the drain. If this still does not help, give us a call at 1st Home and Commercial Services and we will send out a technician to help trouble shoot and fix the problem for you.