One of the perks of being a homeowner is the privilege of using products like Drano (apparently supposed to be spelled with the little line over the "a" to indicate the long "a" sound- but I don't have that capability here). I am absolutely positive that our apartment in Provo needed Drano not only in the sink, but in the bathtub as well. But, considering that Drano costs between $4 and $6 a bottle, depending on what strength you use and where you buy it, it wasn't exactly first on our list of things we needed on our tight budget. Plus, it wasn't our place and eventually we would move and it would no longer be our problem. A bad attitude, I know.
But when my sink here at home started taking longer and longer to drain, I knew something had to be done. Likely if I had known the excitement and magic of the stuff, I would have rationalized the $5.50, even in my college days. Have you ever really stopped to wonder how it is that you pour a mysterious liquid down the drain and Viola! in minutes your drain is acting like you never put anything down there but pure, distilled, mountain fresh water? Well, I am sure if you haven't ever wondered, I have you wondering now. So, I will tell you.
Drano is made of sodium hydroxide, sodium nitrate, sodium chloride and aluminum. These chemicals dissolve when they hit the water, releasing heat. The sodium hydroxide then reacts with the aluminum to release hydrogen, creating even more heat- to near boiling temperatures. Then the aluminum shards (yes, Drano contains aluminum shards) become agitated by the near boiling temperature of the water/Drano mixture and physically cut through the hair and grime in your drain.
Now, you are probably wondering, what of the sodium nitrate and the sodium chloride? Well, nitrate, when broken down, is ammonia. I would think that the ammonia itself is used for part of the cleaning, but no, it is the byproduct when the nitrate is used to harness the unstable free hydrogen so your drain doesn't blow up- thoughtful of them to add that, don't you think? The sodium chloride then...you know they didn't really say what this was for...probably an industry secret...
Anyway, fascinating!! For those of you who like chemistry you can see a full history and explanation, complete with chemical reactions, on Wikipedia.
5 comments:
The most interesting thing I've learned all day.
I am glad to hear your tale is testimony to the success of Drano.
In our lovely home, Drano proved useless, as did some other horrible chemicals, as did some sort of 'snake' apparatus, as did a call to the plumber to find out it would cost more than we wanted to have them sort it out. Finally, Matt took to cutting out the metal pipe in the basement that housed the indestructible clog. However, he first succeeded in bending the pipe due to using the wrong type pipe cutting tool. After my grandpa got the right tool in his hand, the pipe was cut and replaced with beautiful lightweight PVC pipe. However, then we learned the clog Matt removed was very gross, but not, in fact, the only one. Another segment of pipe was cut out, replaced, and finally the water in our pipes flowed like...water.
Our friends were glad to finally be able to stop making fun of us for the 'sorry, use the tub" sign on our sink that had residence for months.
You smarty pants, you!! I have missed you, and am happy to see your new blog. What is the update on you moving? The rumor is that you are not going to anymore.....I hope! I hope you're hanging in there with your pregnancy too - you're almost done. Do we get a prego pic on the blog? :)
I didn't think it was possible to fall asleep on my laptop...j/k
I love your post's...they make my post's feel very "un-educated" and, possibly, more exciting than ever.
She made it all up - aluminum in Drano? Come on. Next you're going to tell me that Tums are mostly calcium.
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