When does a clogged kitchen sink happen? When you least expect it! This occurs after spending a day cooking a large meal for your immediate and extended family. It happens after you have used every pot, pan, mixing bowl and spatula you own. Much like everything else, a clogged kitchen sink will happen at the absolute worst possible moment.

However, before you run off or send your spouse to the local grocery store for liquid chemical drain cleaner, you may have the answers to fixing this problem right in your cabinets. Natural methods of cleaning out clearing the drain are just as effective and they do not cause adverse damage to pipes like chemicals do. Furthermore, these natural quick fixes are inexpensive and easy to use instead of caustic drain cleaners. Here are some tips on what to do about a clogged kitchen sink:

• Remove everything from your sink

• Take one cup of baking soda and pour it down the drain

• Follow that with one cup of vinegar (the type does not matter)

• Cover the drain with a lid (make sure it creates a seal) for approximately 15 minutes (while the two ingredients are in the pipes, it will cause a chemical reaction that should break down whatever is causing the clog in your kitchen sink)

• Rinse out the drain with a lot of hot water and then repeat steps if necessary (as a side note – you may want to have a pot of water boiling on the stove so you can pour boiling hot water which will add some extra power to unclogging the pipe)

To prevent a clogged kitchen sink from occurring, try pouring the boiling hot water down the drain after you clean a large number of dishes, pots, pans, and other kitchen utensils. It is a great preventative measure that can stop the onset of nasty kitchen clogs. If this natural method fixing your clogged kitchen sink does not work, try a commercial drain cleaner instead. If none of these work, you may have to look into snaking your kitchen sink. It is not the prettiest of jobs, but it is the next solution for a clogged kitchen sink that is bound to work.