How to Make a Velcro Snake Drain Cleaner

Do you find yourself purchasing Drano every few months to keep that shower drain from clogging?

Here's a simple guide to making your own drain snake so you can stop dropping money on Drano.

I got the idea from the flexisnake which I saw at the hardware store. It seemed so simple, I had to make my own. Plus my shower drain was getting pretty clogged.

Step 1: Materials and Cost

All you'll need is a small piece of stiff but flexible wire, and some adhesive Velcro. You can pick up both of these items at a hardware store for less than $5.

I had an old bike brake cable laying around which worked great. If you don't have any bike cable you can head down to your local hardware store and pick up a foot or so of thin steel cable for cheap.

I didn't happen to have any Velcro, so I picked up a pack for about $3. Make sure to get the kind with the adhesive backing.

Step 2: Give Your Snake a Prickly Head

Peel off a little bit of the adhesive backing from the prickly side of the Velcro.

Wrap it around the end of your wire about 2 times and then cut the Velcro.

My brake cable had a nice end cap to wrap around.

Step 3: Unclog That Drain!

Now that your snake is finished you just need to find a drain.

My shower drain has a non-removable plug which makes the snake the perfect tool to get all the hair out.

Just feed the snake in, prickly end first, and be prepared to see some gross clumps of hair and soap come out. Don't worry, I won't include any of those pictures.

When your finished you might want to use some wire cutters and just clip off the Velcro end of the snake. Those nasty clumps of hair don't come off too easy. When you need to use it again, just wrap a little more velcro on the end.

Ahhhh! Isn't it nice to have a shower drain that actually drains the water?