Cleaner The Big Clean Co shares the viral sink-cleaning hack she never recommends

A cleaner has shared why you should never use vinegar or bicarb soda to un-block your drains – and what you should do instead for a sparkling sink.

Kacie, from Melbourne, runs The Big Clean Co, and she regularly shares handy hints and tricks on Instagram and TikTok with her followers.

In her latest clip, Kacie revealed why using a vinegar and bicarb soda mix is ‘reckless and actually creating more of a blockage’ in your sink.

A cleaner has shared why you should never use vinegar or bicarb soda to un-block your drains – and what you should do instead for a sparkling sink (Kacie from The Big Clean Co pictured)

She said if your drains are blocked regularly, there’s a ‘larger issue at play’ that you need to have a look at. 

‘Hear me out. Everyone I know who uses this old wives’ tale uses it regularly,’ Kacie said.

‘If you’re using vinegar and bicarb soda because you think it’ll break down any grease or oil in the drain, it won’t.

‘There are no surfectants in this formula, which means you’re just creating salty water when you mix these two.’

The cleaner added that you would be better off ‘putting how water and detergent down the drain to get oil moving’.

‘If you’re using vinegar and bicarb soda because you think it’ll break down any grease or oil in the drain, it won’t,’ Kacie said; this is because there are ‘no surfectants in the formula’

Kacie said some people who use the technique use it because they think it will create a chemical reaction that moves out the blockage.

But this would only be the case if ‘you were able to close the drain, allowing this to exist inside a closed space so the pressure can build’.

‘You can’t do this with your drain and so you’re getting this half-a**sed reaction that means what’s most likely happening is part of the bicarb sitting in the drain – causing even more of a blockage.’ 

The cleaner admitted you’d be far better off using a kettle of boiling water and some dishwashing liquid to get rid of a blockage 

If your drain is getting repeatedly blocked, Kacie said you have two options.

You could either unscrew your pipes to clean them out yourself or you could call a plumber, find out what’s blocking it and have the pipes professionally cleaned. 

Thousands who saw the video were quick to thank the cleaner for sharing it.

‘Thank you for sharing this! So many people using bicarb and vinegar together, not realising it does nothing,’ one person wrote.

Another added: ‘Absolutely agree! I have tried it and it does nothing. Much better off, as you said, looking at what the problem is and then working on a solution which is usually a plumber which in the end costs a lot less before you get a big problem’.

Others shared their own solutions, including pouring an entire kettle of boiling water down the drain in order to un-block it, using a plunger or trying a mix of dishwashing liquid and boiling water.