Sink Drain

Definitions, Explanations & History of the P-Trap

In the wild world of plumbing, a trap is a pipe located below or within a plumbing fixture. Such traps or pipes are most often shaped like the letters U, S, or J. In 1775, Alexander Cummings invented an S-shaped trap named the S-bend. The S-bend was eventually replaced with the U-bend when Thomas Crapper introduced the U-shaped trap in 1880. Since the new "U-bend" did not jam, it did not need an overflow like the S-bend did. This development marked a dramatic improvement in 19th century plumbing. Modern-day plumbing incorporates an advanced version of these early devices called the P-trap.

The purpose of the bend is to prevent sewer gases from entering buildings. The bend or trap also prevents hydrocarbons and other dangerous gases from escaping outside through drains in refinery applications. It's easy to see why this tiny piece of plumbing is essential to every day life, both in commercial and residential settings.

By virtue of its shape, the trap retains a small amount of water after the fixture is used. The leftover water in the trap forms a liquid trap seal or water seal. This seal prevents sewer gas from passing from the drain pipes back up into the occupied space of the building. All plumbing fixtures (including sinks, bathtubs, and toilets) must be equipped with either an internal or external trap.

Sink traps also have a tendency to capture heavy objects (e.g. jewelry) that are inadvertently dropped into the sink. This is because the trap is a localized low-point in the plumbing system. Additionally, traps can accumulate other debris, including hair and sand. Importantly, traps limit the size of objects that can pass on to the rest of the plumbing, hence catching and collecting over-sized objects.

Now there's a new device on the market that eliminates the need for the P-trap and the subsequent hazards associated with clearing a clog.

PermaFlow Never Clog Drain

PermaFLOW™ eliminates the need for harsh chemicals. You no longer need to use nasty drain cleaners and toxins to unclog your drains. Wouldn't it be nice to make residential and commercial property maintenance chemical-free and avoid any untoward side effects of toxic drain cleaners? Over time, drain-cleaning chemicals cause damage to the plumbing and drain pipes, which results in additional repair costs. And even more significantly, drain-cleaning chemicals contaminate the water system, costing the community and our society an exorbitant amount of money in treatment costs.

PermaFLOW™ can reduce or eliminate all of these issues at a fraction of the cost. So why wouldn't you install it as soon as possible to avoid future frustration, save money, and help keep environment clean. PermaFLOW works in conjunction with environmentally-friendly Low Flow Rate Faucets, further enhancing the environment by conserving water.

PermaFLOW™ has a unique patented design and several features that lead to its great success.

PermaFLOW™ is the World’s First Self-Cleaning ‘GREEN’ Drain System (P-Trap Replacement) with the patented SELFClean™ feature. This feature increases flow turbulence, minimizes deposition, breaks and propels debris, and cleans itself. It simply does not allow the sink to get clogged in the first place. The PermaFLOW patented EZClean™ feature helps clean the build-up that leads to clogs without the hassles of plumbing snakes, plungers, opening P-Trap and using harmful drain-cleaning chemicals. It does this via an external knob with a spindle and wiper inside for clean-up.