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If you’re tired of clogged shower drains, ankle-deep standing water, and want to know how to unclog hair from a shower drain quickly and safely—you’re not alone. It’s commonly one of the top plumbing issues for most households. And after several decades’ worth of humiliation and angst from human furball torment, we can relate too! Fortunately, we think we might’ve found a great solution and way to prevent the issue with a few products by Green Gobbler.
The best part is you can usually get it done without the mess, gross factor, or risks. Here’s some of what we cover in this post, or check out the Table of Contents above.
In a hurry? Check out our Table of Contents up above and time-travel to your favorite spot. Like Magic yet not.
What Causes Shower Clogs?
In most situations, hair buildup—often mixed with soap and hair products—is usually what causes shower clogs and slow-moving drains. It may also be due to other buildup or debris, such as plastic, paper products, toys, etc.
Build-up tends to accumulate just beneath the drain, which is when it’s usually the easiest to access. However, it can also become an issue farther down in your plumbing system or mainline. This is regardless if it’s coming from another plumbing source or with issues lurking elsewhere in the pipe.
How Are Clogs Fixed?
There are various ways to de-clog systems and to remove hair from a shower drain, depending on the situation. It often involves using anything from a plumbing snake to chemical drain openers, plunging, as well as various hacks like boiling water, baking soda, and good ole dish soap.
In more complicated or ongoing situations, it may be necessary to call a professional plumber. If you feel you’re dealing with a severe clog or backed-up system and aren’t sure why, please contact a plumbing professional.
When it comes to dee-clogging a shower or ridding a drain of hair, here are the top 3 methods most people, including professional plumbers, use:
1. Chemicals
Many people like to use chemical products to dissolve hair and to unclog shower drains since it’s typically the easiest approach and involves less mess. However, there are varying types of chemical products available. These types can vary in performance and what they do in general.
The most well-known versions tend to be acidic (or caustic), which can sometimes be damaging to pipes and potentially unsafe, whether in regards to users, the environment, or the drains. It’s often the cases that they’re not always the best option for shower or tub clogs either.
Other types of non-caustic chemical drain openers generally work through bacteria, enzymes, or other natural ingredients. In most cases, they’re usually deemed safe for both plumbing systems and users. Non-caustic options may even be considered septic safe as well as biodegradable, such as with the products by Green Gobbler.
2. Plumbing Snakes
A plumbing or drain snake tends to be the most effective solution and is what professionals often resort to, particularly for hair-related clogs. It’s also pretty easy to do, and I’ve even done it a few times due to my constant drain-plugging hairballs and with great success.
However, using plumbing snakes can sometimes damage pipes if you’re not careful and lack the experience—especially in older plumbing systems. And for those with knowledge and experience, it’s still dodgy, to where Even my ex, who’s been a professional plumbing contractor for over 30 years, gets nervous doing it sometimes.
Because of this, it’s usually better to leave snaking up to a plumber if you’re not sure how to do it or to opt for another method, such as a non-caustic treatment. This is more so the case if your clog isn’t on the ground level and may cause a lot of damage if something goes wrong, and/or if you live in a residence with pipes that are quite old.
You can check out these videos on YouTube for how-to instructions if you feel daring enough to give it a go.
3. Plunging
Using a plunger to clear a drain is another method people will use and it can sometimes work, but generally only so much. Often enough, the hair gets forced a little bit further down the drain, lying in wait to stop-up your pipes later on.
And while plungers may work for minor clogs, they may not work as well the next time since the hair or debris may get trapped farther down in the system, just someplace else. Hair is something that can easily get caught onto something as it moves down the drain.
Why We Prefer Green Gobbler Products for Hair Clogs & Which Ones?
As mentioned before, I’m no stranger to clogged drains. I have a lot of long, curly, and often unruly hair and we’ve had a lot of pets over the years.
I’m also no stranger to plumbing issues in general. I have a little knowledge about the industry after living with a plumbing contractor for a few decades. Luckily, he was able to deal with the clogs most days, and he eventually taught me a few tricks of the trade. This included anything from knowing how to snake a drain to cutting gas pipe, etc.
We came across other Gobbler products in the past sort of by accident and while dealing with separate septic-related issues at two different houses. We had mixed results on a few items, or simply preferred other brands for things like septic treatment.
The Main Line Opener and Clog Dissolver stood out the most when we tried them out on our sinks, toilets, and shower drains. Each time I wind up using them, I end up feeling more impressed.
I loved the fact that we didn’t have to snake the drain as well as the lack of fumes and overall hassle. The ex loved the fact that I could deal with my furballs on my own and without potentially hurting the pipe. Win-win. Needless to say, I’m a fan but also an unsponsored one.
How Does Green Gobbler Work on Standing Water?
My mother’s plumbing had also been having draining problems over the years, which she treated with another well-known chemical product. It worked but it would just come back later, even with the sinks.
When I first started staying with her toward the end of 2019, it didn’t take long for clogs to start sooner than usual. Not long after, the ankle-high standing water soon followed, which drained but rather slowly.
We tried to treat it with her usual method/product. While it worked some of the time, it didn’t work nearly as well as Green Gobbler. Eventually, the product she was using stopped working in general.
I also noticed her toilets didn’t flush completely all of the time, and that the sinks were slow to drain. All of that made me suspect it was more of a mainline issue. Or, at the very least, something to do with the newer, low-flush toilets.
With an upcoming house move and everything else going on at the time, I wanted to avoid calling a plumber. I also wasn’t up to having to snake the drain on my own—or worse, resort to bugging my ex. So, I decided to give the Main Line Opener and Liquid Clog Dissolver a try and loved the results.
Our Prefered Deep-Cleaning Method
To get my mother’s plumbing running smoothly—particularly in the shower—we used the entire Main Line in her powder room toilet. I then applied some Clog Dissolver down her sink and shower drains.
After flushing the toilet once, both solutions were left to sit in the drains for 2 to 3 hours. For good measure, I repeated the process despite things working well the first time. Since then, everything’s been great!
It actually worked so well with her shower that I immediately noticed something I’d not seen before in any shower. There was hardly a millimeter of water during the shower. It just flowed smoothly down the drain. Perfectly. Weird yet cool. Even months later, it still drains well. Sold!
Not only was the process ridiculously easy and effective, but I got to skip getting grossed out and having to mess with a plumbing snake or having to have someone come take care of it. That alone was a win!
NOTE: You do not have to do two applications unless necessary. We decided to go this route since it felt more like a mainline issue rather than a simple hair clog, and because the house is at least 15 years old and suffers through hard water issues. Please, always follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
How Do You Prevent Hair Shower Clogs?
Because the product is considered safe and biodegradable, we apply a small amount down the drains as maintenance. This is mainly to keep the line and pipes clear and as a preventative measure. And since we’re moving to a new place that will likely be a few years older in the next few months, we’ll likely be pre-treating that system as well, just to avoid future problems.
Who Is Green Gobbler?
Green Gobbler is based in Copiague, New York. They manufacture a wide variety of products that include septic treatments, drain openers, deodorizers, weed killers, and snow and ice melt. They also offer concentrated vinegar, orange oil, fruit fly and drain treatments, as well as industrial-strength surface cleaners.
While we haven’t used every single one of their products, we have used quite a few. Here are some of Green Gobbler’s other products, with the products we’ve used listed with an asterisk (*):
- Main Line Opener*
- Liquid Hair & Grease Clog Remover*
- Drain Opening Pacs* (the original powdered version of the Liquid Drain Clog Dissolver/Hair & Grease Clog Remover)
- Septic Saver Enzyme Pacs*
- Septic Blast*
- Enzyme Cleaner for Sink Drain, Grease Trap, Sewer Lines, Septic*
- Bio-Flow Drain Cleaner & Deodorizer Sticks/Strips*
- Drain Clog Dissolver*
- Hair Grabber Tool*
- Powder Plunger Toilet Clog Remover
- Urinal Clog Eliminator
- RV, Marine & Porta Potty Treatment
- Refresher Garbage Disposal and Drain Cleaner
Which Green Gobbler Products Work Best for Shower Drains?
In several situations, we found that using both the Main Line Opener down the toilet and the Liquid Clog Remover down the drains at the same time really helped solve the issues. This is more so the case for really backed-up systems.
When it comes to common issues that start clogs to begin with—namely hair—we found that the Liquid Clog Remover worked great for unclogging and as a preventative later on. However, in situations or homes where we experienced toilets that weren’t always flushing, as well as slow-draining and clogged showers, we preferred to use the Main Line Opener, too, or even just one its own.
How Does Green Gobbler Work?
These high-density formulated products are non-caustic, enzymatic pipe cleaners. They’re designed to deodorize, change the pH levels within a pipe, and create a barrier within the drain and pipe walls.
This allows the product to quickly dissolve any organic matter within, such as hair and paper products. Other types of material that it will remove besides hair and toilet paper include tampons, diapers, paper towels, fats, and oils.
How Safe is Green Gobbler?
The Green Gobbler drain openers, such as the Main Line and Clog Dissolver, are considered safe. They do not contain sodium hydroxide, are deemed safe for septic systems and are non-acidic. They won’t dissolve plastic products, making them safe to use on most pipes. The company claims that their products are biodegradable and made from a proprietary blend of natural ingredients and are free of harsh chemicals.
Does Green Gobbler Damage Pipes?
According to the company’s claim, Green Gobbler products are natural and considered safe on most pipes and drains, including copper, steel pipes, floor drains. PVC, septic systems, and sewers.
Many of their products are also safe to use on toilets, garbage disposals, sinks, tubs, and shower drains. However, some of their products may be specifically designed to work on certain things more so than others, such as the Septic Blast or Main Line Opener.
Can You Use Green Gobbler in the Toilet?
According to Green Gobbler, their products can safely be used on toilets. However, as mentioned before, certain products may address specific issues better than others.
For instance, Septic Blast may work best for septic concerns; whereas, their Main Line Opener may be great for slow-moving systems as a whole. Because of this, it’s always a good idea to base your selection on your specific needs or dilemma.
We have not personally used Green Gobbler for actual clogged toilets since we feel plunging works just fine. However, we have used their products like the Liquid Dissolver and Main Line Opener on toilets that flushed but were prone to backing up. We had pretty good results each time!
Is Green Gobbler better than Drano?
While we can’t speak for others, we’ve had several situations where the Drano didn’t do much, if anything, at all to clear shower drains of hair. This was over the course of several years and several different houses. However, when we used the Main Opener and/or the Dissolver, the drain always cleared without further work being needed.
Based on our experience, we would have to say that we definitely found some of the Green Gobbler products to work much better than Drano and other similar products—especially when compared to their Main Line Opener and Liquid Clog Dissolver. However, some online reviews state mixed results.
The product my mother used in the experience mentioned above and that failed to work was Drano.
Conclusion
In the end, we really love using the Green Gobbler drain-opening products so far and find that they’re the easiest way to clear a clogged shower drain of hair. They also seem to do well on sinks and toilets. More so when doing a deep clean or double treatment on a system.
While we’ve had experience with several of their products, we often with mixed results with the majority of them. However, our top-favorites within their product line would be the Liquid Clog Dissolver and Main Line Opener, which gave us the best and most consistent results.
We found both products easy and convenient to use. We also appreciate that the products are biodegradable and considered safer for the environment, according to the company’s claims.
When it comes to long-haired or curly-haired households prone to hair clogs, in particular, we highly recommend both the Main Line and Dissolver, depending on your needs.
To see Green Gobbler’s website, click here.
What’s your favorite way to clear a shower or sink drain? Comment down below!
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