Why You Might Actually Want to Buy This "As Seen on TV” Drain Hair Catcher

"Your hair/ it's everywhere"—Dashboard Confessional; “Screaming Infidelities”, 2001.

Who remembers this little screamo ditty from the early aughts? (The video included clips of baby, pre-Breaking Bad Aaron Paul from an MTV movie called Wasted.) Whenever the song comes on, my husband claims it was written for me because my hair indeed is everywhere. It’s pretty thick to begin with, and since I have a hair-pulling disorder I’m also usually wearing some type of hairpiece or extensions. What I’m trying to say is, I shed. A LOT. I mean, I shed like an English Sheepdog in a wind tunnel. I watch hairball tumbleweeds roll across my hardwood floor every day, though I constantly sweep. Each time I wash my hair, I’m convinced I’ll be bald when I get out of the shower—how can one person have enough hair to sustain all the giant merkins that get caught in the drain?

So when I saw a Kickstarter video of the TubShroom drain hair catcher on my Facebook feed one day, I ordered it—and it was the best $12.99 investment I’ve made. So here I am, preaching to the unconverted.

BEFORE TUBSHROOM:

My husband and I had graduated to a standard metal drain hair catcher in our tub after way too much hair and pomade residue (my husband’s fault) was getting around the stopper, forming an impenetrable barrier of grossness. TBH it’s pretty nasty to see that wet hairball in the trap every time you shower, and even nastier to pick it up to toss it in the trash after you’re all nice and clean. Worse, if you let it dry, it just forms a drain-cover-shaped cup made of matted strands, which you then have to peel off. Not only does it look gross, it doesn’t even work. We went through the same monthly ritual—my husband slipping our building’s handyman Cesar $20 every month to snake our clogged drain.

Sorry, dry heaving right now.

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A look at more infomercial beauty products:

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AFTER TUBSHROOM:

I picked the white one, which looks minimalist and not at all goofy (some of the colors available—orange, blue, lime green—are more Cartoon Network than Kohler). Installation was literally just plopping the flexible silicone plug into the drain and leaving the top quarter-inch sticking out. That gives the hair somewhere to go, and the best part is you don’t have to look at it. Spool-like grooves below the surface coil stray hair around the plug, while holes on the top allow water to flow through even when there’s a ton of hair caught in there. What you get when you pop out the plug (which is super-easy, since it’s super bendy) is a hair donut that’s very nearly cute. Wet or dry, it’s no hassle to snatch and dispose of.

It works on humans and pets—inventors Elena Karnegie and her husband Serge live with a shaggy German Shepherd and a fluffy cat who loves to shower, go figure—and it fits in any standard bathtub drain. I’ve had mine for six months, which means I’ve saved over $100 in handyman bribes!

The mom-and-pop have been hard at work on the new SinkShroom (same idea, but for the sink), which is scheduled to debut later this month. I’ve already pre-ordered it for $12 on their Indiegogo site.

How to save a broken powder compact: