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| Taking the Plunge | | By: Kathy Barberich |
| Taking the Plunge
The Fresno Bee
The only thing worse than flushing a clogged toilet in your house and not having a plunger in your bathroom is flushing a clogged toilet at someone else's house and not having a plunger in the bathroom.
Been there? Done that?
Show me the plunger.
According to professional plumber and maintenance man Bob Ennen, the first and best plumbing tool you can own is a good plunger. Although you need a good plunger, you don't need an expensive, high-tech tool. "A good plunger is just the old-fashioned kind," says Ennen. "Plungers haven't changed much in years."
A good plunger has a fold-out, funnellike cup. It will cost about $5 and can be found at your local hardware store. A chapter in The Stanley Complete Step-by-Step Revised Book of Home Repair and Improvement (Simon & Schuster) explains the basics of using a plunger.
To operate the low-tech tool, Ennen and other experts recommend pumping the plunger up and down over the drain opening in the sink or toilet to build up pressure that will--with luck--break free the clog.
When using a plunger in a toilet, maintain some water in the fixture. Clogs in toilets usually occur at the bend in the drain. The goal is to exert enough water pressure to push the clog over the hump. The greater weight and density of water exerts more pressure than air when forced against a clog. Make vigorous plunges on both the downstrokes and upstrokes.
If you are trying to unclog a sink or bathtub, make sure the pressure is not lost through adjoining passages. Plug the other drain openings in two-bowl sinks or the overflow opening of a bathtub or sink. A wet rag will do the trick. Once a blockage in a tub or sink has been forced free, flush the line with plenty of very hot water.
The only thing wrong with plungers is that they are ugly. But if we hide them, how will people know where to find them when they need them?
It's like keeping an extra roll of toilet paper out where someone can grab it. Do we try to disguise a plunger by crocheting a dress for it? Do we paint the handle and thread it with extra rolls of toilet paper? Do we stick it in a corner and put a large potted plant in front of it?
The folks at Plungees, makers of "the pretty plunger in a pretty box," sell plungers in square boxes with lids. The boxes come in high-gloss paint, laminate, wood and tumbled marble. A novelty number is covered in green turf with a golf ball attached. The handle of the plunger holds a tee flag. Prices range from $34 for the high-gloss, diamond-polished boxes with clear-handled plungers to $125 for the tumbled marble ones.
Find them at www.plungees.com.
Plungees plungers appear to be user-friendly. When you take the plunger out of the box, the top opens automatically. When the plunger is returned to the box, the top closes.
A less-expensive option is called Discreet Toilet Plunger and is available from Hammacher Schlemmer at www.hammacher.com. This plunger holder features a clam-shell canister that also opens and closes automatically. The canister has a vented bottom so moisture can evaporate. The plunger handle and canister are made of plastic. Cost: $17.95.
PlungerPot, found at www.plungerpot.com, holds various styles of plungers. It's made of molded plastic and features air holes and a pour spout you can use to drain any excess liquid. Cost: $14.95. You supply the plunger.
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