Holiday Drain Guide for Eden Prairie Homes

A normal week sends a predictable amount of grease and food scraps down your kitchen drain. A holiday meal can send several times that in one afternoon: turkey fat, gravy, butter, mashed potato scraps and a full day of dishes.

Bathrooms see the same spike. Guest rooms and lower-level bathrooms in many Eden Prairie homes get light use most of the year, then suddenly handle a houseful of people for several days. Minor buildup that was not a problem with occasional use can turn into a clog quickly.

Grease is the main cause of holiday kitchen clogs. It goes down as a liquid, then cools and sticks to the pipe walls, especially in lines that run through cooler basement or crawl space areas during a Minnesota November.

Let fat cool in the roasting pan, pour it into a can or jar, and toss it once it solidifies. Wipe greasy pans and plates with a paper towel before washing. If you deep-fry a turkey, never pour the oil down any drain or onto the ground; let it cool fully, then seal it in its container for the trash or check whether your county accepts cooking oil for recycling.

A disposal is not a trash can. Potato peels, pasta, rice and stuffing turn into a thick paste that settles in the trap. Celery, onion skins and corn husks wrap around the blades, and bones and fruit pits can jam it outright.

Scrape most food scraps into the trash or compost and only send small amounts through the disposal. Run cold water before, during and for a short time after each use, and feed food in gradually instead of all at once after the meal.

After a big meal, it is tempting to run the dishwasher, start a load of guest towels, and have everyone shower at once. All of that water heads into the same drain lines, and if any of them is partly clogged, it backs up at the lowest point.

Run the dishwasher after the kitchen sink has finished draining, and spread laundry out over the day. Many dishwashers share a drain with the sink, so a sink that drains slowly usually means dishwasher problems too.

Wipes, cotton swabs, dental floss, paper towels and feminine products cause many holiday toilet clogs, even when the packaging says flushable. A visible lidded trash can and a small, polite note do more than you might expect.

If a toilet does clog, have guests stop flushing and use the plunger. If it gurgles, if more than one toilet backs up, or if water appears in a basement floor drain, the problem is probably further down the main line and needs a plumber, not more plunging.

Stop using the affected fixture. If several drains are slow or a floor drain is filling up, stop using water everywhere in the house, including the dishwasher and washing machine. Keep kids and pets away from any sewage and treat it as a biohazard.

Skip chemical drain cleaners, which rarely clear holiday grease clogs and can make the job harder and less safe. Call to get connected with a local plumber serving Eden Prairie, and expect to pay more for holiday or after-hours service at many companies. Your plumber quotes before starting work.