You may not encounter clogs in your bathroom sink very often, since food and grease don't go down the drain. However, hard water scale, soap scum, and hair can cause a clog to develop over time. It's annoying when the bathroom sink doesn't drain fast enough for you to wash up or shave in the morning, so you may look for ways to clear the clog. Here are things to try.

Clean The Drain

Pull the stopper out of the sink to see if it's clogged with a mass of soap scum and hair. If so, wipe it off with a paper towel and wash the stopper so it's clean. This may allow water to drain again at its usual rate once the clog is out of the way. If the clog is stuck on the sides of the drain, you may still be able to remove it as long as it's near the top of the drain.

This involves removing the P-trap under the sink. Place a bucket under the trap since water will come out when you unscrew the connections. If you can't get the P-trap to come apart, call a plumber for help since you might break the pipe if you try to force the connections to loosen up.

If you can get the trap apart, see if it is filled with a hair clog or maybe even paper that your kids may have washed down the drain. Clean out the trap and look in the connecting pipes with a flashlight to see if there's a hair clog you can fish out.

Flush The Drain

If the clog is mainly soap scum buildup, you might be able to break it up and flush the clog out by pouring hot water down the sink. You could also try vinegar or a mixture of vinegar and baking soda. Avoid drain cleaners since those can harm your pipes and they could splash on you if you need to plunge the sink. A combination of vinegar flushing and plunging might make the clog move on through the pipe.

Call A Plumber

If you clean out the top of the drain and take apart the P-trap and the slow drain problem persists, call a plumber. The clog is probably deeper in the drain. The plumber may need to bring in some tools, such as a drain snake, to get rid of the clog.

The plumber may snake out the drain through the pipe after removing the P-trap, but if the drain is in the sewer line, the plumber may work through the cleanout outside. However, if the clog is in the main sewer line, the other drains in your home will probably be affected, too.

For additional tips, reach out to a local plumbing service.