Cobra Products 400 Zip-It Drain Cleaning Tool
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List Price: Our Price: $2.02 You Save: $7.93 (80%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Tools See more product details |
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Cobra Products 400 Zip-It Drain Cleaning Tool
Customer Review: DOES NOT WORK
Summary: 1 Stars
This was the first drain cleaning tool I tried,and I can tell you for sure...it does not work at all! It made the clog 10 times worse. Couldn't use the sink at all!! It went form a slow draining sink to a completely NON-DRAINING, unusable sink!!Customer Review: A few tips for saving your Zip-It for another day.
Summary: 5 Stars
My bathroom sink was only about a year old, but suddenly the water seemed to pool and not go straight down the drain. I was wondering what to do, when I came across this gizmo.
Four bucks seemed kinda steep for something designed for only one use, but I figured if I didn't have to call a plumber or annoy the hub, it was cheap at the price.
Once you use the Zip-It, it's one of the those times when you get a shiver of joy at something inexpensive that WORKS exactly as advertised with no problems!
The first thing you should notice is, no matter what the picture looks like, this thing is LONG (in fact, when I got the box from amazon, I had no idea what it was because the box it was packed in was huge!)
Don't rip it out of the package insert. Tear a hole at the top and slide the Zip-It out; that way, you'll have the protective packaging to keep it safe when you get more than one use out of it.
It's got a series of teeth on both sides, and a keyhole top meant for the index finger when you give it a yank to extract it from the drain.
I put on a pair of disposable gloves to handle all the yucky stuff I expected to pull out. I also got a plastic grocery store bag and put that on my wrist so I could easily drop in and wipe off the goo when I fished it out of the drain. I also put a pair of manicure scissors within reach.
If you have a stopper you can't remove like my sink has, pick it up with your fingers (it has some give to it), slide the Zip-It into the drain. Or try to. I found I couldn't - it wouldn't go down more than an inch. There was a reason for that. There was all this hair, soap glop, and interestingly, fuzz from a new bathrobe that was still shedding (I just had no idea it was shedding in my drain!) Apparently the mix of those things created a nest that stopped water from passing.
When the Zip-It only went down an inch, I put my finger in the hole at the top and yanked it out. I used my gloved fingers to pray some of the gooey mess off, but the hair was wrapped around the device's teeth. I then used the manicure scissors to carefully cut through one side of the hair, picked it off with my fingers, and flung it into the bag on my arm.
With the initial clog out, I moved the Zip-It to the other side of the drain and snaked it in. This time, it went all the way down with ease. Unfortunately it was...stuck!
Hmmm. Now what to do? So I put my finger through the hole at the top, got a good grab and YANKED. HARD. The thing flew out, bringing glop with it, which also flew all over the place (I should mention you should keep some paper towels handy!)
I did this three times at different points around the drain. The job was done, so I peeled off the gloves and stuffed them in the goop bag for disposal. Then I turned on the water to wash off the Zip-It and the scissors.
The water went down the drain like a champ! The gizmo cleaned up quickly, with only one or two teeth a little askew. I slid it back into the packaging for the next clog in the house.
One thing to note: the packaging says that the teeth are sharp. Well, they are, but it's not like they're razor blades. I found the vinyl gloves I used to be a good protection, but then, I wasn't grabbing the Zip-It anywhere but the handle. You will, however, have to touch the body of the product to push it down the drain if you have a non-removable stopper like mine.
I envision I'll be able to get at least two more uses out of it. That works out to a little more than a buck - not bad at all, for a fix I did sans husband and plumber!
I highly recommend this, and it would make THE most fantastic stocking stuffer for the Mr. or Ms. Fix-It on your list, or anyone who is enamored with cool devices that are cheap and do what they say!
Customer Review: It works. It really works!
Summary: 5 Stars
OK. I bought this kind of on a desperate lark. Our bathroom sink was draining very slowly and drain cleaners were not helping. So, I was planning on taking the drain pipes and trap apart to solve the problem. Not necessarily a difficult task, but I wasn't looking forward to emptying out the vanity, the mess, etc. So, when I saw this for such a low price, I thought why not? And, here is what happened: I inserted it into the drain and pulled it back and out came a disgusting clump of black goo, hair, etc. I rinsed that off (swirling it in the toilet...don't tell my wife) then repeated this a few times until it came back clean. That sink now drains like it was brand new! The instructions say to throw away after use. But, being rather frugal, and not afraid of dealing with mucky goo, I cleaned it thoroughly in the toilet bowl, a quick final rinse with soapy water and it now waits for the next plugged drain! Customer Review: Clogged my drain worse
Summary: 2 Stars
I don't know who piped older houses but they never gave a thought to having to repair/replace plumbing pipes. The one in our master bathroom is in frequent need of cleaning and the way I have to do it is by taking apart the plunger pin apparatus under the sink--forgive me if I don't know the correct terms, I'm not a plumber. After taking out the sink plunger I can usually extract a wad of hair/crud that I couldn't get to before. But with the goofy angle of the pipes under the sink, reinserting and reassembling the plunger are a B---ch with a capital B. Usually takes 15 minutes before I have the angle of the pieces just right. So I thought I'd try the Zip-It because our drain was starting to slow again and I did NOT want to wrestle with the pipes.
I inserted the Zip-It 4 times completely and pulled out a little bit of stuff but nothing compared to what I was used to. And that's when I decided to try a little water to see if it drained any better. If anything, it was even slower. I waited for the water to drain and then tried the Zip-It again. Nothing changed. So I had to go back to my old stand-by and pull the plunger piece out. I then proceeded to use the Zip-It for about ten minutes, fishing around and trying to unclog the drain as if it were an actual plumbing snake.
Well, the slowed drain is gone--I've now got a clogged drain with standing water.
The reason I graciously give it two stars is that it might work for some drains but not the one I was working on.
Customer Review: Works well
Summary: 4 Stars
I've actually had this product for a few years, I didn'nt think to review it until until a recent search reminded me of the product. I use the Zip-It on the drains of my bathub and bathroom sink. It's good at pulling up the hair mixed with whatever else is slowing up the drain. It's nice not having to use chemicals, since my drain flows normally again once I get enough stuff out if it. The only tough part is when you have a drain stopper connected on your sink. I have to twist and slide the Zip-It around to pull it out of the drain, but it still works. It's worth buying.