⌛ Best Chemical to Clean Drain

Please advise. I have a gentle sloping concrete drainage canal with a grill. There is already slime, slugs, and whatever in it, even though when it rains it flows out to the street area where a canal should be but not there yet. What would be the best available chemical to put in and flush out? Thanks

 

Aquaforte!

PAT! There there are places that sell this. Fortune Mart is one, basically it is a heavy BLEACH+, Commonly Known as CAUSTIC SODA! Hope this helps.


Jack P.

 

Best way by FAR is to pressure wash it. Much more environmentally friendly, and actually removes more of the gunk. And the job will last longer since there is little "food" left for the tiny eaters.

 

Muriatic acid works really well, but be sure to rinse it with plenty of water after it has stood for about an hour.
Also, don't splash any on you or your clothes as it acts fairly slow, but will eat into most natural fibers (including flesh).
It is sold in most hardware stores to be used on stains on cement or ceramic tiles and it is water soluble, so it is considered safe for the environment.

 

bleach does bio degrade but does damage before it does...

 

Yup, pressure-washing the grey-water canal is a once-a-month chore oer' heah.
Just get one of them electric motor pressure washers and git er' done.
(don't forget to check the oil in the pump, they sell them dry and won't tell ya s***."

 

I agree that pressure washing is your best option by far. Caustic soda is not bleach it is lye - very high pH and while it will kill most of the bacteria it will also require you to scrub the canal with a stiff brush to rid yourself of the detrius.
Muratic acid is not recommended because it will etch the concrete and weaken it with repeated dosing. All it will do is kill some of the bacteria and remove some stains - also it is a strong mineral acid, definetly not enviromentaly friendly!

I like chemicals to do my work for me also, but for my 2 pennies - mechanical means (pressure washing) is an excellent choice and the easiest and cheapest!!