Plumber's snake
slender, flexible auger used to dislodge difficult clogs in plumbing that cannot be loosened with a plunger
A plumber's snake or drain snake or drain auger is a slender, flexible auger used to dislodge clogs in plumbing. The plumber's snake is often reserved for difficult clogs that cannot be loosened with a plunger. It is also sometimes called a toilet jack. A plumber's snake is often used by plumbers to clear a clogged drain pipe or sanitary sewer.
Auger varieties
Plumber's snakes have a coiled (helix-shaped) metal wire with a broader gap between the coils at the terminal end. The operator turns a crank to rotate the helix as it moves through the pipe.
If the clog is caused by a dense, but shreddable obstacle, such as tree roots or glass wool, the auger might break it up enough to enable flow. A small, lightweight obstruction might be snagged or corkscrewed by the auger, enabling the operator to pull it away. As the auger cable rotates, it also flails against the interior walls of the pipe, scraping off minerals and oil.
Hand auger / hand spinner
Hand augers are useful for clearing sink and bathtub drains.
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This entry incorporates text from “Plumber's snake” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.