Nine times out of ten, a slow shower drain is a soap-and-hair plug sitting just below the waste cover. Most can be cleared in 10 minutes with no special tools — but only if you skip the chemicals and tackle the blockage mechanically. These are the six methods we use, in the order we try them.
1. Remove and clean the waste cover
Lift or unscrew the chrome cover. Use a torch — 80% of shower blockages are a felt of hair and soap sitting on top of the trap. Pull it out with gloves or pliers. This alone fixes most slow drains.
2. Boiling water (only on metal traps)
For a soap-only blockage, pour a kettle of just-boiled water down the drain in slow stages. Skip this if your drain has a plastic trap — it can soften and leak. Plastic traps want hot tap water with washing-up liquid instead.
3. Bent wire coat hanger
Straighten a hanger, bend a small hook in one end and fish out the hair plug. Cheap and surprisingly effective on shallow traps.
4. Baking soda + white vinegar
Pour a cup of baking soda followed by a cup of white vinegar. Cover the drain for 15 minutes, then flush with hot water. Good for light soap scum, not for hair.
5. Drain snake (auger)
A flexible 3m drain snake (£10–£15) reaches past the trap into the waste pipe. Feed it in, twist as you push, and pull back slowly — the blockage usually comes out attached.
6. Cup-style plunger
Cover the overflow (if there is one) with a wet cloth, fill the tray with 2cm of water, and plunge sharply. This shifts blockages further down the run that a snake cannot reach.
What not to use
Avoid caustic chemical drain cleaners. They rarely shift a hair blockage, they damage chrome and plastic, and they make any subsequent plumber visit dangerous (we need to know what is in the trap before we open it).
When to call a London plumber
Call us if multiple wastes are slow (sink, bath, shower) at the same time, if water is backing up between bath and shower, or if there is a foul smell. That points to a shared waste blockage that needs drain jetting from the gully outside — usually £180–£280 fixed price.
Still blocked after trying these? Call 07427 826446 — same-day shower drain clearance across London.