Garbage disposals are one of the greatest modern inventions. They allow us to avoid compost piles and dealing with foul smelling trash cans until the garbage man comes. They’re also great for getting rid of expired food and unwanted leftovers.
But most of us take our garbage disposals for granted. We don’t realize how much we rely on these simple, but handy inventions until they become clogged or stop working.
Follow these simple, yet effective tips for preventing clogs and jams to prolong the life of your garbage disposal.
Tip #1. Run the disposal to prevent freezes.
Even if you don’t use your disposal that often, it’s important to run it on a regular basis. If you don’t have anything to grind up, just turn on the water and run the disposal every few days.
This gets the parts moving otherwise they can freeze up, rust, or corrode and any leftover food that is in the unit can harden, leading to unpleasant odors and clogs.
Tip #2. Run cold water, not hot.
You may have thought that you should run hot water because it melts grease, but when you’re using the garbage disposal, you want to run cold water instead. Hot water is great for cleaning sticky food off dishes, but it does bad things for disposals.
Hot water can melt the food in the disposal, causing the food waste to stick to the sides. On the other hand, cold water helps the garbage disposal grind up the food and push it down the drain pipe.
Tip #3. Run the unit a little longer.
After you’ve finished grinding up the food, keep the garbage disposal running a little longer as you run cold water. By doing this, you’re ensuring that the food is flushed out of the drain pipe so clogs can be prevented.
You can also run cold water and a little dish soap down the drain after you’ve finished grinding up the food. This cleans the disposal while ensuring nothing’s left behind or clinging to the sides.
Tip #4. Cut the food into smaller pieces.
Like our teeth, the blades of a garbage disposal are only so big. By cutting the waste down into smaller pieces, the disposal will do a better job, and it will do it more efficiently. If you put down big chunks of meat or fruit, you can’t expect miracles.
We recommend that you DON’T put these foods in the garbage disposal: grease, potato peels, large bones, seeds, pits, glass, plastic, metal, paper, or expandable foods such as pasta or rice since they contain starch that clings to the disposal which leads to clogging.
Need your garbage disposal fixed? Call a Kansas City plumber!
If you have run into problems with your garbage disposal, call a qualified Kansas City plumber from A-1 Sewer & Septic Service Inc. We can gladly offer same-day and weekend service!
