What plumbers say about baking soda and vinegar is that baking soda and vinegar is mostly ineffective at clearing serious clogs.
Plumbers often agree that while the fizzy action between baking soda and vinegar does look impressive and does clean some partial clogs, it also lacks the pressure as well as the chemical power to break down heavy hair, grease or solid blockages that are deep down within the pipes.
The chemical reaction that takes place between vinegar and baking soda, mostly takes place right in the drain opening or sink basin.
And the gas escapes upward instead of pushing down into the clog.
The fizzing also makes you believe that the clog is gone or going, but it often only just masks the symptoms of the clog and leaves the actual blockage to grow.
And while harmless to PVC, the highly acidic nature of vinegar can also corrode metal pipes like copper pipes and brass pipes over time.
And undissolved baking soda can also become trapped within existing grease or soap buildup, and potentially make the clog worse and hardening the clog.
While the baking soda and vinegar won't fix a total blockage, many plumbers do agree that baking soda and vinegar can be useful for odor control as well as maintenance.
The baking soda and vinegar, controls odor in the drains by breaking down light, odor causing organic matter that sits near the drain opening.
And baking soda and vinegar can be used as a very occasional and gentle maintenance flush for healthy pipes, although it is not a guaranteed preventive measure.
Instead of using baking soda and vinegar, you should first try a plunger or drain snake.
For physical clogs such as from debris or hair, physically removing or pushing the clog using a plunger is often better and sometimes a snake can push the clog through or allow you to pull the clog out.
For greasy kitchen clogs, using a combination of dish soap and boiling water is also much more effective at melting and flushing fats.
And if you have severe clogs you may need a professional drain cleaning, like hydro jetting or professional drain snaking.
Drano can also work in most cases, but just be careful as it's caustic and can cause breathing issues and burns.