The Zip-It: (Cobra Products, Inc.): Unclog Sasquatch-Sized Drain Clogs with Ease
Written: Oct 18 '09 (Updated Oct 23 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: This thing really works.
Cons: None.
The Bottom Line: The Zip-It drain cleaning tool really works. No fuss, a lot of muss, but it really works. Made in the USA. Imagine that.
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| MiDoyle's Full Review: Zip-It Drain Cleaning Tool |
Sasquatch visits my house periodically. He takes long hot showers, using a bar of soap, about a quart of shampoo-conditioner and body wash. He exfoliates every pore. Then, he does a full body shave, comb and dry. Sasquatch takes his manscaping to an extreme. I know this because soon the drains in the bathroom shower and sink begin to gurgle and slow down, sometimes stop completely.
Normally, I take off the drain caps and dig out the gunk with a screwdriver, wire hanger, or old metal skewer. I hesitate to use caustic chemical drain openers. A recent clog resisted an organic drain opener even after five applications.
I remembered seeing the Cobra (Brasscraft) Zip-It advertised somewhere and gave it a shot. It was $1.98 at my local big box home improvement store and is nothing more than a 20 3/8" length of plastic with barbs on either side (32 total/16-a side). It has a small handle for your fingers to slip in.
Simply slip it down the drain until the handle is flush with the top of the drain. Then, pull up slowly. It bends but not too much. [The directions say you don't have to take off the drain cap, but I would recommend doing so for greater control and to make sure you really get at all of the clog in the pipe.]
At first pass, up came a chunk of %^%$#! Smelly. Hairy. Disgusting. Foul. Brackish gunk. I wiped the Zip-It with a paper towel and made a second pass. More %^$#@!. Wiped again. Third pass brought up even more #@$&#! Gross.
A final pass brought up less gunk and I was done. I cleaned up and took all the goop and gunk and the Zip-It and tossed it all in the trash.
[The Zip-It is meant to be a one-time application but you might be able to re-use it (if you wanted to do all the drains in your place at one time) if you really were careful with the sharp edges and cleaned it off with a hose or something. But at a $1.98, it's pretty economical.]
Total time was about five-ten minutes given the back and forth. (We had quite a running commentary as I was clearing the clog. "Honey look at this!" "Oh my Gawd. etc." My seven-year old thought everything smelled llike poop.)
The drain works fine and for $1.98, I'm very satisfied with the Zip-It's performance. Made in the USA., it really works. For Sasquatch-sized hair clogs, it does the trick. The Zip-It is really handy to keep around. (four stars)
The easiest way to keep drains open longer is to be proactive and use a weekly organic opener to keep things flowing properly. Otherwise, it is helpful to reduce use of soaps and things that produce gunk in the first place (shampoos, conditioner, body wash, and hair goop). But then you might start smelling like Sasquatch in the first place.
Sources
www.bigfootinfo.org; www.livingsasquatch.com; www.cobraus.com
Recommended:
Yes
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MiDoyle
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Member: Michael Doyle
Location: Morris County, NJ
Reviews written: 525
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Schadenfreude is worth living for.
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