If you’ve ever experiences a smelly sink drain, you know how frustrating it can be. Not only does it stink to high heaven, but it can be tough to fix!
Is there a weird smell in your kitchen? It could be coming from your sink drain.
Thankfully, it’s no big deal and a simple fix. If you’re looking for a remedy for smelly drains that won’t use a ton of chemicals, this natural fix for stinky sinks is for you.
Why do smelly sink drains happen?
There are a bunch of reasons why this can happen, but typically it’s because something icky gets stuck.
Most often, food and grease gets stuck in your sink. It can slow down the water draining from your sink and gives you a sink drain that stinks up your whole kitchen.
So what is the remedy for smelly drains? Keep reading to find out how to take care of that smell and do it without any harsh chemical cleaners.
How to Cure a Smelly Sink Drain
Here is my favorite way that works for us every time. Down below I’ll be sharing a few alternate options.
Time needed: 15 minutes.
Mv Favorite way for how to fix a smelly sink drain
- Boil about 2 quarts of water.
While it’s boiling, clear out your sink. Remove any dish drains, etc. I usually take them and pop in some hot soapy water to soak.
- Pour into sink.
Once boiled, flush the drain by carefully pouring the hot water down the drain all at once. This will melt and soften any grease that’s trapped.
Let sit for 5 minutes. - Add baking soda.
Add about 1 cup of baking soda to the drain. I just eyeball it and pack it in as much as possible.
Next, pour about 2 or 3 cups of white vinegar down the drain on TOP of the baking soda. Let sit 5-10 minutes.
Refill your pot and set to boil. - Flush with hot water.
Flush with the boiling water or run hot water for 1-2 minutes and allow to drain out. Rinse any leftover baking soda down with the hot water.
- Flush with cold water.
Run cold water from the tap for 1-2 minutes.
And that’s it! Enjoy your non-smelly sink drain!
Want more options?
If you’re looking for some other options for how to fix a smelly sink drain, we’ve got you covered.
- Boil a pot of water and add a squirt or two of dish soap (I like Dawn) and stir to dissolve. Flush your sink with the hot water, let sit for 5 minutes, and flush with cold water. This is my “quick” fix. It can be paired with my above method too.
- Flush with hot vinegar. Boil 2-3 cuts of distilled white vinegar – it will smell, but it does work. Pour down the sink and let sit for 5 minutes before flushing with cold water.
- Check to make sure it’s the drain. Remove the filter from your sink tap and rinse it out to make sure that’s not the cause.
Have you ever had a smelly sink drain before? How did you fix it? Let me know in the comments!
Lowanda J says
Thanks for the tips, I can definitely use them. Smell drains get on my nerves.
Elizabeth @ Guilty Chocoholic Mama says
Great tip, Morgan! I use this method all the time. And by the way, I love your tagline…”learning to be a mom one day at a time.” I’m an old mom, and I’ve been at this a long time, but that is still how it goes! 😉 Stopping by from Mommy Moments!
Charlene Asay says
This is a great tip. Thanks for sharing. Have a wonderful day!
Natalie @ our parallel connection says
Some great tips here, especially reading about getting smell out of cutting board.
Heather @ Simply Save says
This is one of my favorite tricks. It works! And it’s fun…like those volcano science projects when we were kids. 🙂 Thanks for sharing on the Small Victories Sunday Linkup!
Carmen Gomez (Lilly) says
Thanks I really needed this tip! There’s a terrible smell in my kitchen sink, I have one of those,ugh I can’t think of the name right now, one of those sink chopping things light the switch under the sink, you know what I’m talking about, right! Every time I go to do the dishes the smell just punches me right on my nose. I like that your method is green, no harsh chemicals involved!
Morgan says
Hahha it’s cool, I totally get what you’re saying – a garbage disposal? For that, I’d also add some lemon peels or other citrus right down into the sink and the grind it when you’re flushing with the initial hot water – my dad had one when we were growing up and every time it stunk that’s what he did!
Carmen Gomez (Lilly) says
Yes garbage disposal (#mommybrain), awesome, thanks for the extra tip!
Embracing the Lovely says
Great advice! Thank you for sharing!
btw, I love your font! 🙂
Sandra says
You are right on time with this one! That smell is driving me crazy, thank you so much.
Monica says
Great tip, Morgan! I run a household full of boys. I know how yucky the sink drain can get. I do this too, but probably not as often as I should. Any tips on how often I should be doing this? I also will only use vinegar, I read somewhere that if you use baking soda and vinegar together, their cleaning power won’t work right. Have you ever heard anything about this? It was nice reading your sink tip( I should probably look it up,lol.). Have a great weekend, Morgan.
Kelly says
Hi, I’m visiting from Wow Me Wednesdays.
What a great idea. I have used the baking soda and vinegar before but never thought to pour the boiling water in first to soften the grease. That makes a lot of sense. I’m going to have to give it a try.
Have a great day, Kelly.
Michelle says
I find the smell ususally is coming from the garbage disposal and lemons were always the way to get it out. I like this tip and although I have a brand new sink and pipes from my kitchen redo, will be tucking this tip away for future use. Thanks for sharing at my party this week.
Kim says
Great tip! Why do mom’s get blessed with a super sensitive nose? I’m right there with you on those bad smells. Love using natural cleaners btw!
John Devis says
It is a common problem that people can face in their kitchen so I hope your fantastic tips can help them to get rid of it. Thanks for sharing!
Hazel Owens says
I’ll have to try this technique. I’ve heard of using baking soda and vinegar to clean out drains, but I didn’t think to run hot water before and after and to finish with cold water. An addition I would recommend is to put a lemon through the garbage disposal. It’ll give your sink a nice, clean smell. Thanks for the tips!
Debbie says
I will definitely try this technique. Also, my brother who is a Plummer says not to use lemons 🍋 for your disposal as it will plug up. What he says to use is ice cubes. Fill your drain w/disposal up with ice cubes then turn on your water and flip the switch to turn on the disposal. The ice will act as glass and scrape it all away.