I leaned on my background as a chemical engineer to offer insights on the effectiveness of these controversial chemicals. In my experiment, I tested eight of the most commonly available chemical drain cleaners: six alkaline and two acidic. I performed dissolution tests to evaluate how well each of them could dissolve drain blockages. I had one goal: to determine which products, if any, would work effectively against the most common clogging materials.
200 ml of Drano Max Gel Gianmarco Chumbe/CNET
For this rundown, I headed to CNET's product testing lab in Louisville, Kentucky, to conduct a comprehensive batch distillation experiment with eight of the most commonly used chemical drain cleaners on the market. My primary objective was to determine the efficiency of each product in dissolving various types of clogging materials, including organic matter, grease, paper products and pet hair (the same pet hair we use for our robot vacuum tests, as a matter of fact). Throughout the experiment, I also noted the pH levels of the cleaning solutions when mixed with water and monitored any temperature changes. Furthermore, I considered the chemical composition and versatility of use of each product when comparing them to one another.
Categorizing the cleaners
Before conducting experiments with these substances, I separated them into acids and bases. As you may recall from high school chemistry, acids are compounds that donate a hydrogen ion (H+) when mixed with water and have a pH lower than 7. On the other hand, bases are compounds that accept those ions (or hydroxide, OH- ions) and have a pH higher than 7. Understanding this distinction is crucial, due to two important factors associated with these products: corrosivity and causticity.
Corrosivity refers to the potential of a chemical substance to cause rust and deterioration of the materials that make up your piping system. Causticity, on the other hand, relates to how a chemical substance reacts when it comes into contact with organic matter, specifically breaking down proteins and other organic molecules, which can lead to tissue destruction or chemical burns.
To determine the acidity or basicity of each compound, we measure their pH. In simple terms, the more acidic or basic a compound is, the greater its potential for corrosivity and causticity.
Sample pH reading from one of our test subjects. 11.38 pH corresponds to an alkaline solution. Gianmarco Chumbe/CNET
Acidic drain cleaners, particularly those with high acid concentrations like sulfuric acid drain cleaners, are more hazardous compared with their basic or alkaline counterparts. In chemistry, the order of addition does matter. Normally, you would gradually introduce an acid to water, slowly increasing the concentration of the acid. Never add water to an acid as this reaction is known to generate a significant amount of heat and release hazardous fumes. See for yourself in the GIF below (and don't try this at home).
Adding water into this beaker of sulfuric acid creates an immediate exothermic reaction, boiling the water on contact and releasing hazardous smoke into the air. Do not try this at home! Gianmarco Chumbe/CNET
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