"Green" cleaning products: Drain openers

The sink in the upstairs bathroom clogs constantly. At least 3 times per year it becomes completely stopped up, and we then decide it's time to do something about it. Usually "something" involves buying several bottles of Drano or Liquid Plumr to blast the clog into oblivion. Usually it takes 3 or 4 applications before the drain is completely clear. This time, I decided to try something a little less... hazardous. Traditional drain openers can be bad for cast iron pipes, which is what our waste pipe is made of. Drain openers also contain very harsh chemicals like hydrochloric or sulpheric acid. Stuff like that will kill the good bacteria in the cesspool and slow the process of breaking down household waste. The chemicals will also leach into the soil.

The traditional method is to use baking soda and vinegar, so I decided to give that a try.

I dumped probably 1/2 cup of baking soda directly into the drain, then added about a quart of vinegar (slowly). It started to bubble up over the top of the drain, so I gave it 1 plunge with the plunger. The result was instantaneous: no more clog. I waited a minute or so to let the mixture work its way down the pipe, then flushed the drain with hot water for about 5 minutes.

Not only did it work better than commercial drain cleaner, it was cheaper too!

Can I come home now?

I don't know what made me think I could come home from the academy and work on the house on weekends. My weeks are so draining that when I come home, I'm exhausted. And usually extremely sore from one venture or another. At first it was from the huge amount of PT that we do. Once I got used to that, they switched routines on us, and I got sore again. Then it was from being being bounced around the backseat of a car during Emergency Vehicle Operations. It felt like I was in a car crash every day... Then another new phase of PT. This past week was physical tactics, which involved practicing take-downs, joint locks, pressure points, and groundfighting. I'm sore in new and exciting places and have so many bruises that I look like a battered wife.


I'm feeling a little bitchy and whiny today, did you notice?


I did accomplish a few things, but nothing renovation-oriented. Laundry, grocery shopping, and vacuuming are about as motivated as I got. My mom talked about bringing her cabinet doors over tomorrow, and she could work on those while I sanded some more woodwork. Sanding is a great mother-daughter activity... :)


I've also been occupying myself by learning how to use my new camera. It's a Kodak z612, and it has incredible zoom capabilities. Here are a few pictures that I've taken around the house (arachnophobes, beware!):

Columbine in the garden

Kitty

Bach

Scary spider outside the laundry room/back porch

Clawfoot Tub: Free to Good Home

I rescued this tub from our old landlord, and we brought it with us when we moved to the Prairie Box. Its feet are missing, but the enamel is very good shape (no cracks, gouges, etc). There's no interior rust or major stains, but it needs refinishing to bring back its shine. Near the drain is a slightly discolored spot, but I'm all but positive it would come out with some elbow grease. I've already lightened it considerably using Iron-Out and LimeAway. The exterior is a little rusty, but it appears to be surface rust only. I would love to use it in our house, but my husband just doesn't fit comfortably inside it. :(



Tub as originally found


After some cleaning


Exterior


Tub depth (I wear a 9.5 in women's)

I really just want to make sure the tub will go to someone who will use it in their home, not get scrapped. We could possibly arrange to meet partway, depending on your location. For reference, welive near South Bend, IN. Post a comment or drop me an e-mail (tabbycat1264 AT yahoo DOT com) if you are interested!

I hate Lowes

Every time I go in there, I end up spending WAY too much money. $214 later I came out with 6 gallons of paint and primer, roller covers, a lead-approved respirator, grass seed, and weed killer. Ugh. There's no such thing as renovating on a budget.

When I got home, I scraped and sanded the window trim, door trim, and 2 baseboard pieces for the living room. I now have about 8 pieces that are ready for finish sanding and stain (maybe 50 feet total). Not too bad. I only worked on pieces that could be done outside. I don't want lead dust floating around until I can open the windows and put in fans for cross-flow. The stairway doesn't have lead paint on it, but all the rest of the living room woodwork does. There are a few pieces of baseboard that I was afraid to take off, since it was so brittle, and parts of the window trim had to stay in place as well. I'd like to do more, but it's 87° outside, and the driveway is in full sun. I was starting to bake a bit out there, so I'm inside for a break.

Next on my agenda today is cleaning out the little front bedroom and preparing it for paint. I've got some furniture and clothes there that need to be taken to Goodwill, plus it's just generally messy. Imagine that...

Mini Progress Report

I don't have a whole lot of progress to report, but I did spend some time sanding the stairs two weekends ago. Last weekend I was sick, so all of my energy was spent laying in bed and hoping to feel better by the time I had to go back to the academy. Tomorrow has been scheduled as a work day, though, and I'm determined to make some progress.


Tonight Shayne and I are going to Lowes so I can get a respirator and maybe a Zip Wall. I'd like to set it up over the doorway into the dining room so that the dust stays out of there. I'm also going to purchase some primer to paint over the red in the living room. I've finally decided it's just not the way I want to go. I love the red so much though, that it may just be the new kitchen color. Who knows. I can't possibly think that far ahead.


Also on the list of things to do in the immediate future is painting the little front bedroom. It's a gawd-awful yellow and green combination that grates on my nerves every time I look at it. Perhaps a nice soothing caramel color with white woodwork? That might be next weekend's project. I only have 1.5 days off next weekend (5 day week at the academy, return Sunday night), so I don't want to do anything that requires a lot of clean-up. Other than paint, that room is actually finished (at least until we refinish the upstaris floors), so it's time to start making it liveable and useful. Right now all it's doing is collecting junk and not doing anyone any good.

More tomorrow...