{"id":2517,"date":"2020-07-06T11:00:24","date_gmt":"2020-07-06T15:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.daltonphc.com\/blog\/?p=2517"},"modified":"2021-11-22T13:53:03","modified_gmt":"2021-11-22T19:53:03","slug":"what-should-you-avoid-putting-down-your-garbage-disposal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.daltonphc.com\/blog\/plumbing-service\/what-should-you-avoid-putting-down-your-garbage-disposal\/","title":{"rendered":"What Should You Avoid Putting Down Your Garbage Disposal?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"hands-washing-head-of-lettuce-over-drain-in-kitchen-sink\"If you\u2019ve been using a garbage disposal in your kitchen sink, you likely can\u2019t picture cooking and cleaning up without it, right? Whether it\u2019s an unfinished meal, cooking scraps, or spoiling leftovers, it\u2019s so convenient to just swoosh it down the drain instead of throwing it in the trash and risking a smelly kitchen until you or another member of your household get around to dumping the bag.<\/p>\n

However, some homeowners are often over-dependent on these devices and that attitude can lead to unpleasant surprises, such as an urgent need for garbage disposal repair in Waterloo, IA<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Homeowners may sometimes find themselves getting frustrated by a garbage disposal that keeps getting jammed up or the fact that they\u2019ve had to call a plumber more than once to get something out of the mechanisms. Read on as we uncover some of the problems garbage disposals and kitchen sink drains face due to what people put down them.<\/p>\n

Avoid Putting Anything Down That Isn\u2019t Food!<\/h2>\n

As professional plumbers, we understand that not everyone realizes that disposal systems shouldn\u2019t be used for non-food items. After all, they\u2019re called garbage <\/em>disposals, right? This indicates a misunderstanding of how garbage disposal systems actually work.<\/p>\n

Perhaps you envision your garbage disposal being something like a blender, with sharp blades that rotate around to chop up anything you need to dispose of before sending it down the drain. This isn\u2019t quite right though.<\/p>\n

Garbage disposals use motors that power impellers. At the end of an impeller, the \u201cblades\u201d aren\u2019t actually sharp like that of a blender or food processor. In combination with a grind ring, the impeller blades use centrifugal force to break down smaller food items.<\/p>\n

Things like plastic, food wrappers, and paper shouldn\u2019t be put down the garbage disposal and can actually jam it up. Even if the garbage disposal does <\/em>break this debris down, it can get lodged in the pipes and lead to drain clogs.<\/p>\n

Also, Avoid Hard Food Items or Food with Tough Textures<\/h2>\n

When we say hard foods, we\u2019re referring to scraps like meat bones and fruit pits. Since your garbage disposal system grinds down food before sending it down the drain, it won\u2019t be very effective on those types of materials. Think of it like this\u2014if you\u2019re not able to chew it with your teeth, it doesn\u2019t belong in your garbage disposal.<\/p>\n

Foods with a tough texture are rough on garbage disposals as well. Here, we\u2019re talking about stringy, fibrous foods, like asparagus or celery. These can potentially get wrapped up around the motor and cause it to jam up. Anything papery will act like this in the disposal system too\u2014things like onion skins and corn husks, or even too many eggshells or potato skins.<\/p>\n

Protecting Your Kitchen Sink Drain<\/h3>\n

There are some <\/em>food items that won\u2019t hurt your garbage disposal system at all, but still shouldn\u2019t be thrown down your kitchen sink drain. These include:<\/p>\n