Five Tips for Dealing with Household Chemicals - Wisler Plumbing & Air

Household chemicals such as drain cleaners are not only ineffective much of the time, but they can also be a safety hazard. These expensive chemical cleaners often become a toxic pool that sits at the bottom or your bathroom sink, toilet, or drain. Here are five things you can do to mitigate some of the risks involved with these household chemicals.

1. Just don’t buy them.

The safest practice is to simply choose not to buy them in the first place. If you properly maintain drains to prevent them from stopping up, there will be no need to address a preventable problem later down the road.

2. Don’t store them in cabinets underneath the sink.

It’s very common for people to keep chemical cleaning products in the cabinets underneath the bathroom sink or kitchen sink. There are a few reasons why this is a bad idea. First of all, these areas are usually accessible by children. If they were instead stored on the top shelf or an area that was out of the reach of children, they would be much safer.

Next, those chemicals sometimes put off fumes, depending on how good the container is. There are metal components underneath the kitchen or bathroom sink that will rust when exposed to these fumes. Drain cleaners or chlorine products that are not completely sealed will eventually lead to significant corrosion of the plumbing. Even worse, these fumes are definitely not something that you would want yourself, your children, or your pets to inhale.

3. Keep them all in one safe place.

As you start to collect cleaning products, it can quickly become a challenge to keep track of where you put them all. You might even buy several bottles of the same product because they are stored away somewhere in the back of a cabinet and you forgot you even had them. This is why it’s a good idea to store all products in one safe place. The best place to keep them would probably be in a storage room on a high shelf.

4. Only use the original product container.

Never pour a chemical into another type of container that it did not originally come in. If a container was not designed specifically for that particular product, it could lead to a very dangerous situation. There is also the potential to accidentally mix the chemical with something else, which could create a bad reaction. If the original container becomes damaged or the lid is lost, you should properly dispose of the product and get rid of the container.

5. Follow all product indications.

Always read the label and follow the instructions for the product carefully. The label will tell you exactly how you should properly dispose of the product. Different chemicals will have different disposal requirements.

If you would like to learn more about dealing with chemical cleaners or if you would like us to help with preventative maintenance so you won’t have to buy them in the first place, contact us online or give us a call at (540) 483-9382.