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Grinding, Squealing and Screeching: Interpreting the Noises Your HVAC Makes

If something is failing or going amiss with your HVAC unit, chances are, your HVAC unit is letting you know something is not quite right. However, most of the cues come in the form of sounds that many of us may overlook. If you hear your HVAC unit grinding, squealing, screeching or squeaking, it is letting you know it needs help. I was unaware of these cues and overlooked them. It ended up costing me a lot of money in repairs. I want to make sure that does not happen to other people, so I made this website. I hope you learn how to interpret the noises your HVAC unit is making so you can get it the repairs it needs before you incur a costly repair, or worse, permanently ruin your unit for good.

Grinding, Squealing and Screeching: Interpreting the Noises Your HVAC Makes

Drain Cleaning: A Guide To Clearing Clogs

by Billie Carlson

Drain cleaning is a tricky business. It requires patience, precision, and knowledge to drain clean without damaging the drain or the pipes. Here are a few aspects of drain cleaning.

What Is a Clog, and How Do They Form?

Clogs are just a fancy name for an obstruction in your drain. They form when food particles, hair, and other debris accumulate on the drain's surface enough to impede water flow through it. If ignored, clogs will eventually grow large enough that you might even see them from the drain opening.

The most common cause of clogs is the accumulation of drain-clogging particles. This can happen for various reasons, but they are all preventable with regular drain cleaning and maintenance.

How to Clear a Clogged Drain

A drain snake can be maneuvered through drains with ease and used to remove clogging particles. That's because it's long and flexible. These are the most common tools used for drain cleaning in residential homes because they're so versatile. However, even though drain snakes do come in handy when drain cleaning, they can't always get the job done.

The drain auger is a more powerful tool that is recommended for commercial drain cleaning. That's because it's so robust and capable of handling larger clogs. These drain augers are much longer than their snake counterparts, which means there isn't a drain or clog they can't handle.

One of the best drain cleaning tips is always to pour a potful of boiling water down your drain before you try using any other drain cleaner. The boiling water will loosen up the particles and make it easier to remove them with drain snakes or drain augers.

If you have neither of these drain cleaning tools, using a plunger to break up the clog and dislodge it from the drain opening will help. This will allow it to be safely removed with an old towel. If this doesn't work on its own, try pouring in some boiling water again to make the drain cleaner more effective.

Tips for Preventing Future Clogs

You can prevent clogs by regularly cleaning your drain and checking it for signs of debris accumulation. You can do this once a month at a minimum. But you can do it more often if needed. Just remember that drain snakes and drain augers can't always get it done alone. That's why you should also try some other drain cleaning methods: pouring boiling water down your drain, using a plunger, and pouring drain cleaner. 

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