Sink drains often get clogged up from your day-to-day kitchen waste, but fear not, there’s an easy fix that doesn’t involve harsh chemicals.
TV’s beloved baker and now cleaning guru Nancy Birtwhistle, famed for winning the Great British Bake Off and authoring a top-selling cleaning book, has shared a simple, eco-friendly solution to unclog blocked sinks.
In an online tip, Nancy advised: “Now before you go out and buy sink unblockers, with many of them being so toxic to the environment, try this!”
Saying no to chemicals, she revealed her go-to trick: “All I used was 200g of washing soda and dissolved it in 200ml of boiling water from the kettle.”
Washing soda, also known as soda crystals, is a natural mineral salt that’s fantastic at tackling grease and gunk clogging up the pipes.
Although many opt for vinegar and baking soda for their blockages, those home remedies don’t pack the punch needed against stubborn grease and fats unlike our friend, the alkaline soda crystal, which is armed with detergent-like power to bust through the grime.
The method? Simply boil your kettle, clear any water around the plug, lob in the soda crystals, and then chase it down with your hot water straight from the boil.
Nancy advised: “Pour [boiling water] down the plug-hole sink and then sprinkle over another couple of tablespoons of washing soda, put the plug and leave it for several hours, even better overnight.
“Then the next day, remove the plug and pour down a kettle of boiling water, and the sink will be free-flowing nice and fast again.”
After demonstrating the effectiveness of the soda crystal solution on her own sink, Nancy observed that the water drained away incredibly quickly.
She further suggested: “Rather than reaching for the toxic, chemical-heavy and often expensive sink blockers, try this cheaper, eco-friendly and natural alternative.”
In the comments section of Nancy’s post, numerous followers expressed their astonishment at the simplicity and effectiveness of the cleaning hack.
One follower remarked: “I did this yesterday, works a treat.” Another shared: “I do this to my daughter’s sink once a week!”
A third user exclaimed: “This is brilliant, worked well and stopped the drain from smelling.”
