Differences Between Residential And Commercial Drain Cleaning
Flushing the toilet at the office doesn’t feel too different from flushing your toilet at home. But behind the scenes, the systems that keep everything working are very different. Commercial plumbers need to understand the complexities of working in large buildings with more fixtures and a high volume of daily usage. Drain cleaning is an important plumbing service that helps prolong the lifespan of a plumbing system’s pipes and prevent expensive repairs. Read on to learn about the key differences between residential and commercial drain cleaning.
What Is Drain Cleaning?
When you hire a plumber to remove a blockage from your drain, that’s known as a drain clearing service. Drain cleaning takes this process a step further by preventing blockages altogether. Drain cleaning is a professional plumbing service that removes any buildup on the walls of drains. Common culprits for drain build-up include:
- Soaps, fats, greases, and food particles in kitchen drains
- Hair, soap, toothpaste, grime, toilet paper, toilet waste, and other bathroom products in bathroom drains
- Dirt and debris in utility room drains
When done frequently enough, drain cleaning can prevent blockages, slow water flow, and sewage backups.
The Differences Between Residential And Commercial Drain Cleaning
For a plumber to work in a commercial setting, they need to learn various skills and techniques specific to large-scale plumbing systems. Commercial systems are larger, more complex, more durable, and have much higher levels of daily use than residential systems. Below, we’ve outlined the differences between residential and commercial drain cleaning:
Daily Use Of Plumbing Systems
In a commercial building, you can easily see thousands of people using the bathrooms each day. Every one of these employees, workers, or clients relies on the building’s plumbing system to function. In a residential setting, only one family makes use of the system each day. Commercial settings, therefore, require much more fixtures, pipe fittings, and outlets.
Probability Of Damage To System
Since commercial drain systems are complex, large, and used almost constantly, there’s a much higher chance that things can go wrong. Residential plumbing damage is limited to a very small plumbing system. Commercial plumbing issues quickly escalate to plumbing disasters that incorporate the entire building. Drain cleaning maintenance is important for all plumbing systems, especially in a commercial setting.
Types Of Buildup
In general, residential buildings see a wider variety of substances that build up in their pipes. Along with the expected toilet-related build-up, you can find food particles and grease in the kitchen drains, hair and soap in shower drains, and dirt and washing detergents in utility room drains.
Commercial systems, although larger than residential spaces, have a more concentrated type of build-up. It’s much rarer to find hair or grease buildup in a commercial setting. You’re more likely to experience buildup from toilet-related activities.
Different types of buildup respond better to certain drain cleaning techniques than others. A professional plumber will know how to assess the buildup and choose the appropriate cleaning method in each scenario.
Size And Durability Of Drain System
Because commercial systems have a high volume of daily use, the system needs to be large enough to cope with that load. To meet national building codes, commercial buildings must follow strict rules about the number of toilets compared to the number of employees occupying the building. A commercial drain cleaning service will take much longer to complete because of the sheer scale of the job.
Complexity Of Drain System
Residential plumbing systems usually contain one or two bathrooms, a utility room, and a kitchen. Commercial plumbing systems are often spread out over multiple floors and contain hundreds of fixtures. Cleaning a commercial drain is complex and intricate.
Commercial buildings also contain durable fixtures and pipes that are specifically designed for high levels of use. Residential spaces can get away with using less expensive low-grade pipe fixtures because they are used less frequently every day.
Your Residential And Commercial Drain Cleaning Experts
At Art Rooter, Sewer & Drain Cleaning, our licensed plumbing experts are experienced in blocked drains. Whether you need residential or commercial drain cleaning, we have the tools and the know-how to get your drains clean and functional right away.
Contact us at 1-833-470-2880 to schedule one of our services or if you’d like more information.
