Liquid Fire- drain line opener??

[Beetle-Kill]

On the advice of my local hardware-store owner, I gave this a shot at clearing out a slow drain in my lower shower.
Anyone else try this stuff?

*I used it, it stunk up the whole house, I almost passed-out while flushing it, but it worked.

 

[heat seeker]

Its active ingredient is sulfuric acid. No way I would put that in my drains. Besides, grease responds better to alkalis.
Not to mention the fumes, which you are now aware of. I much prefer plunging and snakes for clogs.

 

[ROVERT]

Chemicals should never be used to open drains.

 

[Ehouse]

Usually, the trap is not too hard to detach and clean.

 

[Beetle-Kill]

Yeah, gonna have a chat with the hardware store guy. I now have 3/4 of a bottle to get rid of. What would be best to neutralize this?

 

[woodgeek]

Yeah, gonna have a chat with the hardware store guy. I now have 3/4 of a bottle to get rid of. What would be best to neutralize this?

I would try a similar or greater weight of baking soda and a LOT of water and fresh air. Be careful.

 

[Grisu]

Yeah, gonna have a chat with the hardware store guy. I now have 3/4 of a bottle to get rid of. What would be best to neutralize this?

Does your waste district not accept any hazardous substance (e. g. paints) for disposal? That would certainly the safest and less messy option. Otherwise, you can do it as woodgeek suggested. Pour the sulfuric acid in a big plastic bucket and then outside (!) add slowly a lot of baking soda. It will bubble/foam and release a lot of carbon dioxide. I would recommend wearing nitrile gloves and safety glasses/faceshield. Once you do not get any more bubbles when adding the soda it is neutralized and you can pour it down the drain. Btw. I would also make a bucket of backing soda solution (1 pack dissolved in warm water) and pour that down the drain that was clogged. You do not want to have any sulfuric acid still in there; it will certainly eat your pipes. Good luck and be careful.

 

[SlyFerret]

When I ran a hardware store I told my young guys (high school and early college) not to sell it unless somebody specifically asked for it. I didn't want them selling it as "the best stuff we have".

Yes, it works. Yes, it was the strongest stuff we carried. But it is nasty stuff that can be dangerous if not handled carefully.

-SF

 

[woodgeek]

Back in college we had a shower clog in our v poorly maintained rental apt. After a few weeks with no relief from the LL (siphoning the shower water out the window with a hose), my roomie (a chem major) went after it with some 1 M sulfuric acid he swiped from the lab. Fixed it right up....and the drain pipe failed a couple weeks later! I'm sure that was just a coincidence.

You haven't lived until you've got a mouthful of some guys show water.

 

[Wildo]

It comes in a bottle in a bag thats what we use as a last resort at work. Works good with no leaky pipes in 2 years. In the kitchen it didn't solve the problem but Lye crystals did with no added leaks. Yes I neutralized in between btw.

 

[SlyFerret]

Another thing to keep in mind with that stuff, that I forgot to mention...

If it does not work, the poor plumber that you call in has to deal with a pipe full of sulfuric acid in addition to your disgusting old clog!

-SF

 

[heat seeker]

Another thing to keep in mind with that stuff, that I forgot to mention...

If it does not work, the poor plumber that you call in has to deal with a pipe full of sulfuric acid in addition to your disgusting old clog!

-SF

And one should definitely inform the plumber of what's in there! I wouldn't be surprised if a plumber would refuse to work on that job, too.