Natural Drain Cleaner

This will not be my most glorious post, but it fits in well and in the long run will have a significant impact on our sustainability. This post starts with the clogged drain in our master bath. I had been watching it slow for a week or so, and over this weekend it began backing up. Neither my wife or I was too keen on going out and purchasing some Drano-all those heavy metals going into the water stream aren't something we undertake lightly, but the drain was getting nasty. We use Seventh Generation and other eco-friendly, less toxic cleaners, but nothing like drain cleaner. Luckily a friend had given us a copy of Clean and Green so I looked up natural alternatives. The solution seemed too easy-chuck some baking soda down the drain, let it sit for a few minutes, and then wash it down with some vinegar. I had my doubts, but as they used a reference to Mt Vesuvius in the book's description I was willing to give it a try on the merits of the obscure historical reference alone. Down went the soda, it chunked up in the water so I had to cram it in-it was difficult to get past the stopper. Then a liter of vinegar. I don't know about creating a volcano, but the effervescence was encouraging. It took about 15 minutes, but by the end I had the drain working again, but it will take some retreatments to get it done right. Still I am very encouraged that $1 worth of all natural ingredients got the job done with virtually zero impact on the environment. I am now a believer in natural cleaning products. Will be tackling a natural 'soft scrubber' next for the kitchen sink. I will provide a report!
-Beo

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