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Does anyone have any good tips to prevent garbage disposal clogging? Ours clogged for the 3rd time this year. This time it was so bad, evdn the plumber couldn’t fix it, so we needed to get a new one. $$$. Any tips on prevention would be greatly appreciated.
Don't use it as a substitute for your trash can. A garbage disposal can't overcome the laws of physics. It's not there for you to stuff bushels of garbage down. It's there to take care of the inevitable small amounts of food waste that fall into the sink during cooking, cleaning, and washing dishes.
We have one that came with the house. I run it every time I do dishes but that's just to keep it clear. I never, ever, put things down it on purpose. I use one of these instead.
Does anyone have any good tips to prevent garbage disposal clogging? Ours clogged for the 3rd time this year. This time it was so bad, evdn the plumber couldn’t fix it, so we needed to get a new one. $$$. Any tips on prevention would be greatly appreciated.
Dont overstuffed it
Run cold water before and after you run it
Dont put too many potato peels in it at one time.
If your dishwasher empties into the disposal, scrape food from the dishes before putting into dishwasher.
Some foods are more likely to clog the disposal than others: onion and garlic skins, big pieces of leafy greens, banana peels (!), potato peels in large quantity, tea leaves, egg shells. Avoiding sending grease down the disposal is a no brainer.
Clean it out once a week with baking soda and vinegar. Let it sit for a few minutes, then flush with hot water. Grind a couple handfuls of ice cubes every couple of weeks.
We have one that came with the house. I run it every time I do dishes but that's just to keep it clear. I never, ever, put things down it on purpose. I use one of these instead.
Definitely good to pre-screen and be sure to read up and understand what’s acceptable waste and what’s not and it’s for small quantities, not a carcass.
Anything larger or in question goes into a container in our freezer until garbage pickup day!
It's also worth pointing out that the power of the disposal also counts. Most that "come with" a house are the weakest 1/4hp models. When I replaced the garbage disposal in one house, I replaced it with a 3/4hp model that made a world of difference.
Even then, there are things that should not go into your drain, such as eggshells and coffee grounds, even if the disposal can handle them. They can cause problems further down the line.
I generally don't put anything down the disposal that I would not put into a septic tank.
I recently had my counter tops changed. As part of this they had to remove the sink and garbage disposable. I got to see the pipe going from the sink with the garbage disposal to the main discharge. I was amazed at the "crap" in the pipe (plastic) in a 10 year old home. It was nearly blocked.
I do not use my garbage disposal any longer. I bought a removeable "sink screen" so I catch all the stuff I would have put through the disposal and I trash it.
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