Drains, unclogging

Drains run slower and slower as greases, soaps, fats, and detergents build up on the inner walls of drain pipes and eventually cause blockage. What is the chemical action of unclogging drains with household products such as Drano and Liquid-Plumr ... 

Question 9.6 How Do Drano and Liquid-PIumr Unclog Drains ... 

Bases are characterized by their bitter taste and slippery feel. Interestingly, bases themselves are not slippery. Rather, they cause skin oils to transform into slippery solutions of soap. Most commercial preparations for unclogging drains are composed of sodium hydroxide, NaOH (also known as lye), which is extremely basic and hazardous when concentrated. Bases are also heavily used in industry. Each year in the United States about 25 billion pounds of sodium hydroxide is manufactured for use in the production of various chemicals and in the pulp and paper industry. Solutions containing bases are often called alkaline, a term derived from the Arabic word for ashes (al-qali), a term we met in Section... 

Sodium hydroxide, NaOH, is a very strong base, commonly used as a drain deaner. Why is this chemical only helpful in unclogging natural materials, such as hair or grease, and not synthetic materials, such as plastic, or inorganic materials, such as sand ... 

Acids were first recognized as a class of substances that taste sour. Vinegar tastes sour because it is a dilute solution of acetic acid citric acid is responsible for the sour taste of a lemon. Bases, sometimes called alkalis, are characterized by their bitter taste and slippery feel. Commercial preparations for unclogging drains are highly basic. 

Sodium hydroxide, known as lye, is a strong base that can cause burns and other health problems. Lye is used to make soap, clean ovens, and unclog drains. 

Early chemists called any compound that tasted sour an acid (from acidus, Latin for sour ). Some familiar acids are citric acid (found in lemons and other citms fmits), acetic acid (found in vinegar), and hydrochloric acid (found in stomach acid— the sour taste associated with vomiting). Compounds that neutralize acids, such as wood ashes and other plant ashes, were called bases, or alkaline compounds ( ash in Arabic is al kalai). Glass cleaners and solutions designed to unclog drains are alkaline solutions. 

Table 14.2 lists some common bases. Sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide are found in most chemistry laboratories. They are also used in processing petroleum and cotton and in soap and plastic manufacturing. Sodium hydroxide is the active ingredient in products such as Drano that work to unclog drains. Sodium bicarbonate can be foimd in most homes as baking soda and is also an active ingredient in many antacids. When taken as an antacid, sodium bicarbonate neutralizes stomach acid (see Section 14.5), relieving heartburn and sour stomach. 

Compounds that neutralize acids, thereby destroying their acidic properties, were called bases, or alkaline compounds. Glass cleaners and solutions designed to unclog drains are familiar alkaline solutions. 

Unlike the water that comes into your house, water that goes out is pressurized only by gravity and the force of the water pushing down from above. It s inevitable that at some point accumulated gunk will overpower the strength of a little bit of water. First the sink just seems a little slow. Then it takes 20 minutes to clear. Then it s an hour. And finally you wake up to find last night s toothpaste still in the basin. It s time to unclog the drain. 

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