If you smell something bad in your shower or tub drain, that’s a sure sign you’ve got a blockage or possibly a mold problem. Here are our tool-free ways to prevent these issues!
A lot of our customers invest in scented shampoos, conditioners, soaps, and shaving creams to ensure their shower time is relaxing. After all, you work hard! You deserve to relax after a long day of working, watching the kids, or both.
But what happens when bad smells cut through the sweet scent of your soap? On top of making your shower experience unpleasant, foul odors in your drain (or anywhere else in your bathroom) can be a sign that something’s wrong and you need to call Beehive Plumbing.
On today’s blog, we’re going to tackle the top causes of smelly shower drains and the different tool-free, hassle-free ways you can prevent them.
Clogged Strainer
Sometimes the answer you seek is right in front of your eyes. It may seem like a cliché answer, but your stinky drain might just have a clog.
As you know, most showers have a strainer or stopper as a built-in feature. These are handy for catching everything you don’t want going down your drain. But over time, all the hair and soap scum can build up, making these catchers smell unpleasant. This is the most common cause of bad odors in your shower drain.
Putting an additional hair-catcher over your drain is an excellent way to prevent stinky clogs from building up. But if you feel you have to, some showers have stoppers you don’t need tools to remove, so you can simply pull the stopper out and scrub it down yourself.
Mold & Mildew
This might not be a surprise, but mold and mildew like to grow in hot, dark, consistently damp places. Your beloved shower drain is no exception. If your shower is starting to smell funny, or if you have mold allergies and start showing symptoms whenever you shower, you might want to check if something is growing under there.
To tackle this, try removing your drain cover, sprinkling a half cup of baking soda as far down the drain as possible, and pouring 1 cup of vinegar over the top.
Poor Ventilation
In the strange world of plumbing, even the air you breathe can turn against you. If your bathroom has no window or extractor fan, the steam from your bath or shower can amplify the smell of anything that’s already growing in your drain.
Additionally, poor ventilation can cause mold to grow in all parts of your bathroom, not just the tub or shower. If this is a problem for you, try putting a small fan on your bathroom counter, leaving the bathroom door cracked, and pointing the fan out the door.
Improper Cleaning
While we know going to work and spending time with your family are higher on your priority list than cleaning the tub, inconsistent cleaning can lead to a whole host of problems down the line. The problems include more hair getting washed down the drain, more soap scum building up in the pipes, and a higher likelihood of mold growing in your drain and in other parts of the shower.
The solution to this problem is simple: implement a cleaning schedule, stick to it, and use whatever products work best for you.
Call Beehive Plumbing to solve all your drainage problems!
No one should have to endure a shower that smells like a sewer. You can tackle the stench head-on by understanding the reasons behind a smelly shower drain and taking small, no-tools-involved steps to prevent problems along the way.
And remember, if the smell persists, Beehive Plumbing is just one phone call away. Get a quote today and learn more about our drain cleaning services!
