Drano (styled as Drāno) is an American brand of

chemical drain cleaner Chemical drain cleaners or openers are pure or mixtures of chemicals used to unclog drains that are blocked by hair, food, or other organic materials. They are often accompanied by other mechanical drain cleaners for the optimal effect. Chemical d ...

that is manufactured by S. C. Johnson & Son.

Crystal Drano

According to the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...

's Household Products Database, the crystal form is composed of: *

Sodium hydroxide Sodium hydroxide, also known as lye and caustic soda, is an inorganic compound with the formula . It is a white solid ionic compound consisting of sodium cations and hydroxide anions . Sodium hydroxide is a highly corrosive base (chemistry), ...

(lye), NaOH *

Sodium nitrate Sodium nitrate is the chemical compound with the chemical formula, formula . This alkali metal nitrate salt (chemistry), salt is also known as Chile saltpeter (large deposits of which were historically mined in Chile) to distinguish it from ordi ...

, NaNO₃ *

Sodium chloride Sodium chloride , commonly known as Salt#Edible salt, edible salt, is an ionic compound with the chemical formula NaCl, representing a 1:1 ratio of sodium and chloride ions. It is transparent or translucent, brittle, hygroscopic, and occurs a ...

(salt), NaCl *

Aluminium Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

shards, Al After Drano crystals are added to water, the reaction works as follows: # Aluminium reacts with lye: 2NaOH + 2Al + 2H₂O → 3H₂ + 2NaAlO₂, although the exact species in solution may be NaAl(OH)₄. The release of hydrogen gas stirs the mixture and improves the interaction between the lye and the materials clogging the drain. It's possible that pressure may build up inside the pipe, causing the hot, caustic solution to spurt out of the drain. # Sodium nitrate reacts with hydrogen gas: Na⁺ + NO₃⁻ + 4H₂ → NaOH + NH₃ + 2H₂O. This removes hydrogen, which poses a fire and explosion hazard and produces ammonia, which is also capable of decomposing organic material, albeit less aggressively than lye. The sodium hydroxide (lye) is consumed by further action of the first reaction. Crystal Drano was invented in 1923 by Harry Drackett. From the 1960s into the 1980s, Drackett advertised ''Once in every week, Drano in every drain''.

Bristol-Myers The Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, doing business as Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), is an American multinational pharmaceutical company. Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, BMS is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and consiste ...

bought the Drackett Company in 1965 and sold it to S. C. Johnson in 1992. Drano has been developed into several forms; , the original ''Crystal Drano'' is marketed as ''Drano Kitchen Crystals Clog Remover''.

Other Drano products

Drano Aerosol Plunger

Drano Aerosol Plunger was developed in the late 1960s, intended as a safer product that would be kinder environmentally. It was basically just a can of CFC propellant, the best-known brand of which was Freon. After

Earth Day Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection. First held on April 22, 1970, it now includes a wide range of events coordinated globally through earthday.org (formerly Earth Day Network) includin ...

in 1970, there came increasing pressure to eliminate CFC propellants. Drackett used cheaper propellants, a blend of

propane Propane () is a three-carbon chain alkane with the molecular formula . It is a gas at standard temperature and pressure, but becomes liquid when compressed for transportation and storage. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum ref ...

and

butane Butane () is an alkane with the formula C4H10. Butane exists as two isomers, ''n''-butane with connectivity and iso-butane with the formula . Both isomers are highly flammable, colorless, easily liquefied gases that quickly vaporize at ro ...

, in all its other products. However, the propellant mix created a fire hazard. The product was problematic. The forceful propellant required most consumers use both hands to control the can, plus another hand or two to hold a rag over the drain vent to contain the pressure. The pressure sometimes knocked apart poor plumbing without blasting free the clog. Consumers who ignored instructions and attempted to use chemical drain openers first could be chemically burned from blow-back.

Liquid Drano

Liquid Drano was introduced in response to

Clorox The Clorox Company (formerly Clorox Chemical Company) is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of consumer and professional products. As of 2024, the Oakland, California-based company had approximately 8,000 employees worldwide. N ...

's purchase of

Liquid-Plumr Liquid-Plumr is a chemical drain opener made of 0.5–2% sodium hydroxide and 5–10% sodium hypochlorite, and a surfactant, produced by Clorox. The product is safe for septic systems, PVC, plastic, and copper pipes, although is not recommended ...

in 1969. Originally, it was simply a liquid lye (sodium hydroxide). In the late 1970s, the product was reformulated as a combination of liquid lye and

sodium hypochlorite Sodium hypochlorite is an alkaline inorganic chemical compound with the formula (also written as NaClO). It is commonly known in a dilute aqueous solution as bleach or chlorine bleach. It is the sodium salt of hypochlorous acid, consisting of ...

. Sodium hypochlorite is used in low (5%) concentration as laundry bleach and in higher concentrations as a swimming pool disinfectant. Liquid Drano is marketed in several forms, including Drano Liquid Clog Remover, Drano Max Build-Up Remover, and Drano Dual-Force Foamer Clog Remover. All are variations on the basic Liquid Drano formula.

Drano Foamer

Drano Foamer first started out a powder similar to Crystal Drano in which water had to be added. This was the first-ever foaming pipe snake product. This caused

to launch Liquid-Plumr: Foaming Pipe Snake, which is a 2-in-1 liquid. Many years later, the makers of Drano decided to reimagine Drano Foamer as a 2 in 1 liquid known as the Dual Force Foamer.

Drano Kit

The Drano Snake Plus Drain Cleaning Kit combines a mechanical

snake Snakes are elongated limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales much like other members of the group. Many species of snakes have s ...

for loosening clogs, with yet another gel-variation on the Liquid Drano formula.

Use for bombs

Drano has been used to create homemade bombs called ''Drano bombs'' by mixing the product with

aluminum Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

. In 2017, a Drano bomb severely burned a 12-year old girl in the neighborhood of

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Drano bombs have the ability to cause

third-degree burns A burn is an injury to skin, or other tissues, caused by heat, electricity, chemicals, friction, or ionizing radiation (such as sunburn, caused by ultraviolet radiation). Most burns are due to heat from hot fluids (called scalding), solids, ...

and blindness.

References

External links

Official site

Drano Crystal Clog Remover
at the

Consumer Product Information Database The Consumer Product Information Database (CPID), former Household Products Database, is a collection of information about chemical ingredients in a variety of household products marketed in the United States. Description The Consumer Health P ...

FTC order
{{S. C. Johnson & Son Products introduced in 1923

Drano Drano (styled as Drāno) is an American brand of chemical drain cleaner that is manufactured by S. C. Johnson & Son. Crystal Drano According to the National Institutes of Health's Household Products Database, the crystal form is composed of: ...