There’s nothing worse than turning on the shower and having a plugged up drain. Hair and soap scum are two of the biggest culprits that clog shower drains. How can you clean a shower drain and keep it from getting clogged? Find simple tips that are cheap and easy, to unclog any shower drain, here!

Every time you shower, you should remove any hair and soap pieces that accumulate on the drain cover in your shower. This will help keep the amount of material that goes into the drain itself to a minimum.

When your tub or shower stall is dry,  pour ½ a cup of baking soda down into the drain itself.  Pour it slowly so that it goes into the drain opening instead of accumulating on the top of the drain cover. Next pour 2 cups of plain, white vinegar down your drain. The combination of the vinegar and baking soda will cause a harmless chemical reaction that will loosen materials that are stuck in your drain, causing them to move freely down your pipes.

After the baking soda and vinegar mixture has stopped foaming, run cold water down your drain for 5 minutes.  Repeat the baking soda and vinegar combination every week to keep your shower drain in tip-top, unclogged condition. Baking soda and vinegar can be used in all of your drains to help keep them running free and clear!

It’s hard to get clean if your shower head is spewing nastiness at you. Remove your shower head from the wall. Fill a bowl with straight vinegar and let the shower head soak in it for a few hours. Leave overnight if it’s especially bad. Then scrub the holes with a toothbrush. If the holes are still clogged or green, use a toothpick or pin to clean them out. Rinse well and put the shower head back where it belongs.

Clean out the drain. This is quite possibly the worst part of the process, especially if you have long hair. Grab a garbage can or a plastic bag. Then unscrew the cap on your drain or just reach in, depending on the style of your drain. Using a large crochet hook or clip clothespin or (if you must) your fingers, yank the hair out and quickly throw it away.

Keep pulling the hair out until the shower drain is clear. Better yet buy a Zip-It drain cleaning tool. Zip-It is a long plastic strip with teeth that get hairs stuck deep in the drain out. You may want to wear rubber gloves for this part, particularly if you share the shower with other people. There are just some hairs you don’t want to touch!