Shower drains slowly

First post around here, so hopefully this is in the right place.

I used a 1/4" auger to clean out a bunch of hair in my shower drain. I managed to get it about 6' down. However, my drain is still draining very slowly, with no noticeable improvement after cleaning. I hooked up my drill to the auger to see if that would help get it past 6', but I still can't seem to get the auger down further.

Any suggestions? I've tried Drano in the past, and it doesn't do anything.

Also, I have something that's supposed to catch hair before it goes down the shower drain, but it's obviously missing a lot of it. Suggestions?

Are you on city sewer are do you have a septic system?

Ryan said:

Are you on city sewer are do you have a septic system?

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City

a lot of times you can snake from the sink drain to get to the tub.....only if when you run the water in the sink when it drains it comes up in the tub......if its only the tub sometimes you can use a KENETIC AIR RAM its an air gun that you pump up.....a little at a time...you would put a wet rag in the overflow...ans screw the cover with part of the rag sticking out pump it up 10 psi at a time until you clear it usually you don't go more than 30-40 psi ...this also depends on the condition and age of your drain....you can rent these at hd or lowes I believe...stay away from chemical drain cleaners.....when you snake it are you going thru the overflow????

Geofd said:

a lot of times you can snake from the sink drain to get to the tub.....only if when you run the water in the sink when it drains it comes up in the tub......if its only the tub sometimes you can use a KENETIC AIR RAM its an air gun that you pump up.....a little at a time...you would put a wet rag in the overflow...ans screw the cover with part of the rag sticking out pump it up 10 psi at a time until you clear it usually you don't go more than 30-40 psi ...this also depends on the condition and age of your drain....you can rent these at hd or lowes I believe...stay away from chemical drain cleaners.....when you snake it are you going thru the overflow????

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It's just a shower, no tub, so I'm guessing that means there's no overflow? My bathroom sinks are fine, they never back up.

AaronM said:

It's just a shower, no tub, so I'm guessing that means there's no overflow? My bathroom sinks are fine, they never back up.

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ok ...its a shower..so get a snake 1/4 will do no less than 25' long that should take care of it you can rent them most any where

Geofd said:

ok ...its a shower..so get a snake 1/4 will do no less than 25' long that should take care of it you can rent them most any where

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Not sure if you are saying the snake is only 6' or you get the snake down 6' and it won't go further? Problem with a snake is that it won't scrape the walls of the pipe or yank all the hair off as sharp edge that is catching it. If the snake doesn't work, and you don't want to pay a plumber, chemicals would be the next step.
You may have tried "drano" but I would guess you didn't use enough.
The trap in a 2" pipe holds a lot of water so when you pour in the cleaner it mixes with it and gets diluted.
Go to a big box store and get a couple of gallons of "Heavy Duty" liquid drain opener.
Run the hot water in the shower for several minutes to heat up the pipe which helps the cleaner work faster.
Dump 1/2 gallon down the drain, wait an hour then dump another 1/2 gal. Let it sit over night if possible. If it is still sluggish, repeat with the second gallon.

Aaron the best way to clear that shower drain is to use a snake...you can rent them at home depot...they come in different sizes..i recommend 1/4'by 25' chemical can rot the pipe out prematurely or I can burn you or who ever has to fix the drain when the drain cleaner doesn't work...….another simple thing you can try is a wet vac...wrap a wet
rag around the end that goes into the drain this is used for better suction....I use a snake almost on a daily basis. with the exception of a water jet....snaking is the best method
when snaking you go in and out multiple times until the snake comes back clean......larger drains you have the ability to change the heads for different applications

Geofd said:

Aaron the best way to clear that shower drain is to use a snake...you can rent them at home depot...they come in different sizes..i recommend 1/4'by 25' chemical can rot the pipe out prematurely or I can burn you or who ever has to fix the drain when the drain cleaner doesn't work...….another simple thing you can try is a wet vac...wrap a wet
rag around the end that goes into the drain this is used for better suction....I use a snake almost on a daily basis. with the exception of a water jet....snaking is the best method
when snaking you go in and out multiple times until the snake comes back clean......larger drains you have the ability to change the heads for different applications

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I have a 1/4" snake that's 25' long, and my drill can hook up to it. However, I can't get it to go further than 6' down my shower drain. Are there "special" methods for getting the snake further down the drain?

Get your Main building scoped for roots or check the vent on the roof for blockages. This way you can rule these out.

AaronM said:

I have a 1/4" snake that's 25' long, and my drill can hook up to it. However, I can't get it to go further than 6' down my shower drain. Are there "special" methods for getting the snake further down the drain?

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sometime when I hit a tough spot I put the snake in reverse....remember don't force it if you start to slow down...just stay there for a bit then inch it forward....can yo access this drain from the basement?????

Your probably going to have to bite the bullet and call a good drain cleaning service in your area. Let them clean it out
with a professional machine and then you will be using the shower tonight with it draining properly and knowing that
you have a period of warranty that they offer.

Hi i would recommend water jetting from outside if possible as the better will do a far better job than a drain snake but i have come across plastic shampoo bottle caps jammed down the waste pipe when someone has lifted the hair trap out to clean it and it is not easy to get out and they usually get caught about 100 to 150mm down the line.
Good luck

Geofd said:

sometime when I hit a tough spot I put the snake in reverse....remember don't force it if you start to slow down...just stay there for a bit then inch it forward....can yo access this drain from the basement?????

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I checked the roof vents, they look fine, but they could still have blockages since they're just pvc sticking straight up. Would it be worth running a water hose through the vent?

I don't have a basement. I may just get an endoscope that hooks up to my iPad or mac so I can see down the drain myself.

Aaron I think tomfromohio has the awnser…..if your not comfortable snaking and don't know the tricks....bending the cable bumping the trigger running it in reverse...just bite the bullet and get it cleared.....if you want to get familiar try it when its not backed up.....draincleaning takes patience and experience and the right equipment......good luck