$3 DIY Slow Drain Fix (Not for the queasy)



(I was in no way compensated for this review. I spent the $3 required to conduct this experiment myself, and the maker of the product doesn't even know my name :)

Quite randomly, I ran across a post about this product, Zip-It, a few months ago and thought it was worth a try. It was very inexpensive at Home Depot for under $3! I decided to try it on the slow drain on my vanity sink, which had gotten much worse over the years. Read More >>



It's basically an 18" flexible plastic dipstick with barbs on each side. I lowered it into the drain. I did have to wiggle it around a little but you can see how much actually went into the drain. When I backed it out, I began to get nervous, as it really seemed caught on something! I was pulling really hard, thinking that I had probably made a big mistake and we'd have to just cut it off and leave it in there when, suddenly, it gave way about 3 inches and extracted this... 

See that little black speck to the right? That was a warning of things to come that I didn't heed. I pulled again, and... (you may want to stop reading now - this is absolutely the grossest thing I've ever seen posted on a blog!)

NO WONDER IT WAS SLOW!!! That black stuff sprayed for a radius of at least 2 feet all over my vanity and wall! EWWWWW! If I ever need to use this again, I'll place a towel around the sink. I think the thing that looks like a wet rat is the result of my rinsing my hands after applying my hair products every morning, year after year. Time for a new plan for that!

This little gadget is incredibly effective! It's also inexpensive and chemical-free. The only concern I had was the resistance I felt when I backed it out. I don't know if I was damaging anything down there or not. Maybe I lowered it too far? If you know any plumbers, it might provide peace of mind to ask them before using it.