Why DIY Plumbing Can Do Serious Harm to Your Home

Look, I get it. It’s 10 PM, your sink’s backed up, and you’re thinking, “How hard can DIY plumbing be?” You’ve got a plunger, some drain cleaner under the sink, and you watched a couple YouTube videos. You’re basically a plumber now, right?

As the guy who gets called in to fix the aftermath of DIY drain clearing gone wrong, let me tell you – I’ve seen things. Things that make me wake up in a cold sweat. Things involving coat hangers, pressure washers, and in one memorable case, a leaf blower. (Yeah, that happened. Right here in Pompano Beach. No, it didn’t work.)

The “What Could Possibly Go Wrong?” Filesdiy-plumbing

So there I was, last summer, answering an “emergency” call from a house off Cypress Road. The homeowner greets me with those five words that always make me cringe:

“I tried to fix it myself.”

Turns out, they’d tried to clear their kitchen sink with a pressure washer. A PRESSURE WASHER. Let that sink in (pun absolutely intended). By the time I got there, their kitchen looked like the Splash Mountain ride at Disney, and there was a piece of their pipe in the front yard. Don’t ask me how it got there. I’m still trying to figure that one out.

DIY Plumbing – Chemical Warfare Approach

Can we talk about chemical drain cleaners for a minute? You know, those bottles under your sink promising to dissolve anything and everything?

Here’s the thing – they don’t discriminate. They’ll try to dissolve:

  • The clog
  • Your pipes
  • Possibly your soul

I once had a call from a condo near the pier. The owner had used not one, not two, but THREE different types of DIY plumbing drain cleaner in their bathroom sink. By the time I got there, the pipe had more holes than my excuses for working late during football season.

Top 5 DIY Plumbing Disasters

  1. The Coat Hanger Catastrophe
    • “I thought I could fish out the clog!”
    • Spoiler alert: They fished out their pipe’s protective coating instead
    • Now their pipes are about as reliable as my high school girlfriend
  2. The Boiling Water Blunder
    • Hot water can help with grease clogs
    • BOILING water can crack pipes
    • Especially in our older Pompano Beach homes where the pipes are as sensitive as my mother-in-law
  3. The Plunger Olympics
    • There’s a right way to use a plunger
    • Then there’s the “plunge until your arms fall off” method
    • One guy plunged so hard he pulled his sink out of the counter. Skills.
  4. The “Let’s Take It Apart” Lesson
    • P-traps look simple to remove
    • They’re less simple to put back together
    • Water all over your cabinet is nature’s way of saying “call a plumber”
  5. The Rooter Rental Gone Wrong
    • Rented a drain snake from the hardware store
    • Somehow got it stuck. Like, REALLY stuck.
    • I had to cut through the wall to get it out. The snake now lives in that wall forever, like some kind of plumbing version of Excalibur

What These DIY Plumbing Attempts Really Cost

Sure, calling a plumber isn’t cheap. But you know what’s even less cheap?

  • Replacing the pipes you dissolved with chemicals
  • Fixing the water damage from your impromptu indoor swimming pool
  • Therapy for the trauma of seeing what’s actually in your pipes

True story: Had a customer try to save $200 on a professional drain cleaning. Ended up spending $2000 on new pipes and floor repairs. Their wallet probably still wakes up crying.

When DIY Plumbing Actually Makes Sense

Okay, I’m not saying you should never try to fix anything yourself. Some things you can totally handle:

  • Using a plunger (the right way, not the Olympic way)
  • Cleaning your drain strainers (you do have those, right?)
  • Running hot (not boiling!) water down the drain

Just remember: if you have to say “hold my beer” before trying it, maybe don’t. Whether it’s a plumbing emergency or something unknown, you probably just want to call a pro.

How to Know When to Call a Pro

Ask yourself these questions:

  1. Is your solution something you’d be embarrassed to tell a plumber about?
  2. Did you find it on a website that also sells miracle weight loss tea?
  3. Does it involve any power tools not specifically designed for plumbing?

If you answered yes to any of these, do us both a favor and just call me first.

What We Actually Do That’s Different

When I show up to clear a drain, I bring more than just a strong stomach and a plunger:

  • Professional-grade equipment (not a leaf blower)
  • Years of experience (mostly in saying “I’ve never seen that before” with a straight face)
  • Knowledge of local plumbing quirks (like how our Pompano Beach sand gets EVERYWHERE)

Plus, I know which tools won’t accidentally turn your home into a waterpark.

The Bottom Line (Or: Why Your DIY Project Keeps Me in Business)

Listen, I love the DIY plumbing spirit. Really, I do. It’s what keeps me in new tools when I have to rescue well-meaning homeowners from their own good intentions.

But if you’re standing in your kitchen at midnight, watching a YouTube video titled “EXTREME DRAIN CLEARING HACKS!!!”, maybe just wait until morning and give us a call at Benjamin Franklin Plumbing instead.

I promise:

  • Not to laugh at your DIY plumbing attempts (at least not while I’m there)
  • To fix it right the first time
  • To tell you if I find any lost jewelry (it happens more than you’d think)

And hey, if you really want to know what’s going on with your drains, I’ll show you with my camera. It’s like YouTube, but with less clickbait and more actual solutions.

Just please, for the love of all things plumbing, leave the pressure washer in the garage where it belongs.

P.S. If you’ve already tried something and now you’re panic-Googling “how to get a Hot Wheels car out of a toilet” – it’s okay. I’ve seen worse. Way worse. Just call me. Your secret’s safe, and I’ll bring my special “toy car retrieval tool.” Yes, that’s a real thing I had to buy. No, I don’t want to talk about why.