Maintaining Your Kitchen Disposal

Garbage disposals are designed to break up foods before they enter your home’s plumbing pipes. A disposal allows for easy cleanup after meals by preventing clogs and backups that can occur if organic matter builds up inside your pipes. However, improper usage of a disposal can lead to numerous plumbing problems and the need for repairs. Keep reading to learn how to care for your disposal and maintain your home’s plumbing system.

Use It Properly

A large part of maintaining your disposal is using it properly. Misuse can lead to wear and other damage that affects the appliance’s function and causes clogs to form in your plumbing. Although your disposal may seem quite resilient, it is only designed to dispose of certain types of foods. Many types of waste can cause problems for a kitchen disposal and should be thrown away in the trashcan rather than flushed down your sink. Hard items such as corncobs, animal bones, and melon rinds should not be placed down your disposal. Eggshells and coffee grounds can also be problematic, and should go in the trash with your solid wastes as well. Never pour hot grease or fats—including gravy—down your disposal. These liquids cool into solids quickly, sticking to the blades and sealing off your drain to cause plumbing backups. Even if they make it through your plumbing system, grease and fat can still cause problems in public sewers and drains. Instead, dispose of cooking grease in a tin or other container that can be thrown away with your trash. Whenever you do use your disposal, make sure to run the cold water in your sink at the same time. Cold water will cause any fat or grease that does make it down your drain to congeal, where is can be broken up by the blades. Running water will also help to flush food wastes through your plumbing system so they will not collect and cause clogs or a foul odor in your kitchen.

Clean It Regularly

Regular cleaning will keep the blades of your disposal sharp and the drain line leading away from your sink clear. Every few weeks, place two cups of ice cubes followed by one cup of rock salt down your drain. Turn on the cold water and run your disposal for five to ten seconds. Next, plug your sink and fill it with a few inches of cold water. Remove the plug and run your disposal; the water should quickly drain from the sink, washing away any food remnants at the same time. You can keep your disposal smelling fresh by placing a few lemon or orange peels into the drain and running the disposal with cold water. When you wash your sink, make sure to clean the rubber lips of the disposal as well to prevent the growth of bacteria.  

Proper care of your plumbing and appliances can help you prevent many common home plumbing issues. You can find more information about how your home’s plumbing works and proper maintenance for problem-free performance on our blog. Visit our website to contact a plumber or learn more about our wide range of plumbing services in the Santa Rosa area.