Plumbing

Garbage Disposals in the home are nice to have but can be confusing on how to properly use them. To assure that your garbage disposal will last throughout the years, here are some tips on how to care for them.

Critical Garbage Disposal Tips

Garbage Disposals were created to make it easier to throw out unwanted waste that you do not want sitting in your trash can. Because of how these machines operate you would think that you could put anything down the garbage disposal and it will all be well and fine. But this is a common misconception, because there are many foods that may be harmful to your garbage disposal and can dull out your blades, causing you to have to replace them.

These items are examples of what you should never put down your garbage disposal as they do more harm than good:

  • Celery, bones, eggshells, pasta, rice, potato peels etc.

It is easy to assume that after a meal, you can wash your plate off in the sink and let the leftovers collect in your garbage disposal and that running it will rid of all evidence. But sadly, this is false. You should rid of leftovers in your trash can instead of down the drain. Foods and oils can collect on the walls and blades of the disposal and can build up over time which will result in a clogged motor or drain.

You will not always be able to avoid cleaning your disposal as build up is inevitable over time and can lead to odor. To clean your garbage disposal you can use a half of a cup of baking soda and one cup of vinegar and pour it down your drain and let it sit for five minutes, running cold water after to wash it all away. If you have a clog or something stuck in your disposal you should always remember to completely cut off all power to the disposal before putting your hand or utensil down to fix the problem.

If you are to put something down your garbage disposal here is how you should do it:

  1. 1. Turn on cold water and let it run for twenty seconds
  2. 2. Put your waste down the drain
  3. 3. Let the cold water run for twenty seconds more to ensure that nothing is left behind, then turn it all off.
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