Taz writes:
It isn't solidified.
It is in my sink. And every drain I've ever unblocked.
It is liquid body oil in an amalgam of soap waxes and deposited minerals.
You forgot tea leaves, coffee grains, hair, carrot peel and dirt.
Bicarb does saponify oils, just like any base will.
Maybe, but it'll be slow and ineffectual compared to caustic soda - which is, as you guessed, and I'd already pointed out, is what constitutes old fashioned drain cleaner.
You will notice that the method for unclogging drains with sodium bicarb is to use boiling hot water and sodium bicarb for 15 minutes, THEN add the vinegar. The heat will speed up the saponification reaction.
Which is pretty much exactly what I said.
The bubbling from the vinegar will help to break off the already loosened deposits in the pipe.
Maybe. But really the boilng water is doing all the heavy lifting.
But why piss about? Caustic soda is cheap and readily available, it does the job without all the hassle of boiling water - it produces its own heat - and is a really strong base. I thought it unpleasant to mention it earlier, but it's so good at breaking down fat that it's used in the industrial production of soap - the Nazis used it to for exactly that purpose but with human fat. Not baking soda.
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Faith is the denial of observation so that Belief can be preserved."
- Tim Minchin, in his beat poem, Storm.