5 Common Causes of Blocked Drains and How to Prevent Them

Posted by Sydney Blocked Drains Plumbers on 3 Feb 2026

Blocked drains are a hassle that could disrupt your everyday life. They can lead to water damage, bad smells and even health risks. If not promptly dealt with blocked drains could cause severe problems for the plumbing system, which can lead to expensive fixes or replacings.

Key Takeaways

  • The blockage of drains can affect your daily life and cause flooding, unpleasant smells, and even health issues.
  • Fat, oil and grease buildup can accumulate on the pipes’ walls, causing obstructions; try not to pour grease down the drain, or use hot water and soap for cleaning dishes.
  • Tree roots naturally extend into the ground searching for nutrients that could cause severe damage and completely block pipes that can lead to flooding. Regularly maintain trees near drainage systems by pruning them.
  • Disposing of non-biodegradable materials like wet wipes, towels, and so on. could cause unpleasant odors emanating from bins and toilets. only wash toilet papers down drain.
  • Hair

In this article, we will examine five of the most common causes of blocked drains and the best way to prevent them from happening.

Cause 1. Grease, Oil and Fat buildup

Oil, grease, and fat might appear to be harmless substances to drain down the toilet, however, over time, they begin to accumulate over the insides of the pipes causing obstruction. If this happens then water cannot move freely through the drainpipes. The best solution is to refrain from the practice of pouring grease in the drain, or utilize soap and hot water to wash your hands when cleaning dishes as it helps break down greasy substances.

Cause 2. Tree Roots

In time, the tree roots naturally expand into the soil in search of nutrients, which means that they grow towards underground pipes. Once inside the pipes, trees roots can cause a lot of damage and can completely block them, causing flooding. It’s crucial, therefore, if you have trees nearby that you maintain the growth of your trees around drainage systems by pruning them in a regular manner.

Cause 3: Items that are soiled

It’s easy to think that flushing items that aren’t biodegradable like the wet wipes, sanitary towel etc. shouldn’t cause a lot of problems over the long haul, but when too many of these items are put in toilets, they’ll pile up and push others away, that block pipes. This can result in nasty smells emanating around the toilets and bins too! Always remember what should be flushed and what shouldn’t (i. the only toilet paper needs to have to be flushed).

Cause 4 Hair

Additional Information

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Are you experiencing a clogged toilet, blocked shower drain, overflowing drains or an issue with your kitchen sink? We can help you sort out your drain blockage problem quickly and provide the following services:

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Clearing blocked drains can be difficult and it’s best to get a professional plumbing service involved to tackle it for you, To get your blocked drain in Sydney cleared today, contact Sydney Blocked Drains Plumbers now and speak to one of our friendly team members.

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We’re here to help with all of your plumbing needs, such as blocked drains, CCTV drain inspections, drain repairs and pipe relining.

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