Quick answer
Slow shower drains are hair and soap scum in the trap about ninety percent of the time. The rest are mineral build-up in older galvanised lines, bio-film narrowing the pipe, or a partial main-line blockage. If clearing the visible hair restores full flow, it was local. If it drains slowly again within two weeks, the build-up is further along the branch and needs jetting rather than picking out.
Common causes
- Hair bound together with soap scum in the trap and the first stretch of pipe
- Mineral and scale build-up narrowing older galvanised waste lines
- Bio-film coating the pipe wall and progressively reducing the bore
- Downstream branch or main-line blockage affecting several fixtures at once
- Shower trap installed with insufficient fall so solids settle rather than flow
- Bath and shower sharing a branch, where the other fixture is the actual problem
What you can do now
- 1Remove the grate and pull out visible hair with a hooked tool rather than pushing it further in
- 2Flush with a kettle of boiling water afterwards, and repeat weekly as maintenance
- 3Fit a hair trap over the waste — it is the single most effective preventative measure
- 4Avoid caustic drain crystals in older galvanised pipes, which they attack
- 5Check whether the basin and bath are also slow, which points downstream rather than at the shower
When to call a professional
If it slows again within two weeks of clearing, the trap or branch line needs high-pressure jet cleaning rather than another manual clear. Call sooner if more than one fixture is affected or if the drain gurgles, since both indicate the problem is in the shared line. On older galvanised waste pipes, repeated blockages often mean the bore has closed up permanently and re-piping is the real answer.
Typical cost in Johannesburg
Manual clear R450 · High-pressure jet R950–R1,400
Indicative ranges only. We provide written, itemised quotes before any work.
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