Garbage disposals have been a very convenient method for getting rid of unwanted food and peels ever since the day they were introduced. Keeping them in working condition can make that convenience continue, but negligence can make it clog up or shut down entirely, making it very important to know how to make sure it lasts as long as possible. Here are six ways to extend the life of your garbage disposal.
- Run It Regularly
This is a bit of a given, but be sure to run your disposal regularly, even if you think there isn’t much to grind. Not running it can cause it to freeze up or rust from inside, and any food inside can go hard, leading to unpleasant odors and clogging. Also, try grinding up citrus peels from time to time to keep the drain smelling fresh at all times and kill off any bacteria that may be growing inside. Most importantly, make sure your garbage disposal is if good quality. You can check out some good reviews or disposals that an expert wrote on Down the Sink.
2. Use Cold Water
Using either cold or room temperature water will harden the food enough to let the disposal unit grind it up properly and push it out if the drain pipe. Hot water, on the other hand, will make the food melt, which in turn makes it stick to the sides of the pipe, thereby making it get clogged. So, hot water, although ideal for washing nearly everything else, should be kept far away from your disposal.
3. Run the Disposal for Longer Durations of Time
Running the disposal for longer periods of time has more than one benefit. First of all, it grinds up and pushed out most of the waste that is already in it. Second, running water through the drain gives you that extra rinse to get all the food out. Extra points if you also add some dish soap and give it an easy washing. All this will make sure that your disposal unit doesn’t clog up any time soon.
4. Do Not Overfeed Your Disposal
Your disposal unit is really small. So, it goes without saying that the things you put into it need to be small as well. Do not put far too much waste into the disposal than it can handle. As far as possible, cut up the waste into small pieces so that they can be ground up more easily. Putting in pieces that are far too big, or putting in too much waste at once can jam and clog the disposal, or worse, even break it.
5. Do Not Throw Hard Substances into The Unit
Items like glass shards, plastic, metal, paper, bones, seeds or pits should never be put in a disposal unit. Any hard items can make the grinding blades of the unit go blunt, causing difficulty in grinding your waste later. Throw these out in a regular dustbin instead. Or better yet, use them somewhere else. Seeds and pits can be used to plant more trees, bones can be fed to dogs and glass, metal and plastic can be given to recycling centers. Go green.
6. Do Not Put in Any Food Containing Starch or Oil
Oil and starch are two things that are seemingly harmless but can do a lot of harm to your disposal unit. Both these can stick to the sides of your unit and cause clogging. So, avoid putting in food like rice, potato peels, pasta or any oily or fried leftovers. If you think you already have put in these things, and can see a negative result because of it, repair your unit immediately.
These simple tips will help you keep your disposal unit going for really long periods of time. If you run into any problems in spite of following these tips, turn off the unit at the circuit breaker and then attempt to fix it. Otherwise, call a specialist to do the work for you.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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