A plumber’s snake, sometimes known as a “Turd Chaser” is a flexible auger used to remove clogs in plumbing that cannot be loosened with a plunger. Most of these devices consist of a coiled metal wire with space between the coils at the end. The other end has a crank that rotates the coiled wire as it moves down into the pipe. The auger end digs itself into the clog much like a corkscrew, allowing retrieval of the object causing the clog when the snake is pulled out. The most common clogs are small tree roots, baby wipes and tampons. The end of the snake can break up objects allowing them to pass through the drain. The snake flails around inside the surface of the pipe scraping off accumulated matter ranging from mineral deposits to bacon fat which was reducing the effective interior of the drain pipe. There are a variety of auger sizes and types depending on the type of clog.
