Unclogging a Bathroom Sink Using a Plunger

There are three items that you are going to need before you start to tackle your clogged bathroom drain. You need to collect your plunger, some hand towels and, believe it or not, some petroleum jelly. The uses for each of these items are going to be discussed as we get to them. Once you have collected the items you can begin to work on your bathroom plumbing project.

Before starting to use your plunger, you need to make sure that the actual stopper in the sink has been removed. If you do not, then you will not be doing a whole lot of good because every time that you push down on the plunger you will be pushing the stopper down. To remove the stopper, simply make sure that it is fully extended so that you can grip it and unscrew it like you would any regular screw.

You are going to need a plunger that has a large suction cup. This is so that it can completely cover the entire drain opening in your sink and provide the proper amount of suction needed to remove the blockage in the drain.

Check the water level in the sink. There needs to be enough water to cover the cup of the plunger. It's not just the bottom of the cup, but the entire cup. If there is not enough water to do this, then add some water to the sink.

You are going to want to make sure that any and all extra drains are blocked up. Many bathroom sinks have an overflow drain. To block this overflow drain, just use a wet rag and stuff it into the overflow hole. This will provide the maximum amount of air or water pressure to build up and be used against the blockage.

After checking the water level and making sure that all other connected secondary drains are blocked, you are ready to follow the steps to actually unclog the drain:

1. Take the petroleum jelly and smear some around the edge of the plunger cup. This, as mentioned earlier, enables a tighter seal to form when you use the plunger.
2. Place your plunger into the sink around the drain's opening. You are going to want to angle this so that there is no air under the cup once you have placed it into the water.
3. Utilizing around twenty repetitions thrust the handle up and down repeatedly. This should remove the blockage, but in the event that normal water flow does not resume immediately, repeat this process a few more times before moving onto a different method.
4. After either removing the blockage, or deciding to use a different method to do so, use the towels to clean up any and all mess made during your project.