Garbage disposal is an invaluable appliance in the home. But, like any other appliance, you need to maintain and care for it. With the 7 garbage disposal tips we’ll share with you below, you can do exactly that – and with great ease! Continue reading to learn more about what it takes to keep your garbage disposal in ideal condition.
6 Essential Garbage Disposal Tips
Garbage disposals can be quite finicky units. They need to be operated in the right way, and it’s not like they can accept just any food that you can fit down the drain. Continue reading to learn more about caring for and using your garbage disposal.
1. Don’t Put the Wrong Things in the Disposal
This is the most essential of garbage disposal tips that we can offer you. Putting the wrong items down the disposal is a surefire way to cause it to malfunction and potentially cease working entirely. You should avoid putting anything down the disposal that isn’t a certain type of organic matter. Garbage disposal will not properly grind down anything too fibrous or anything that expands. Here’s a brief list of items that should never, ever go down your garbage disposal:
- Animal bones
- Grease and fat
- Banana peels
- Pasta noodles
- Oil
- Coffee grounds
- Anything that is not food
2. Keep it Down to Scraps
Your garbage disposal is designed to only handle small amounts of food scraps – never large food items or thick chunks. If you want to use your disposal to rid yourself of any larger amounts of food, you need to break it down into smaller pieces and portions before sending it down the drain. Large and thick pieces of food can become lodged in the disposal’s system and cause it damage.
3. Clean Your Disposal
After every use, you should run some cold water and dish soap down your disposal. This helps to clean the inside of the disposal – where you can’t see. Doing this every time will prevent food buildup from accumulating inside the pipe. Not only does this protect the functionality of your disposal, but it also gets rid of bad drain smells.
4. Grind Ice Cubes
Once every few weeks to a month, it helps to grind down some ice cubes in your garbage disposal. By doing this, you help the blades to remain sharp and the system to remain a little bit cleaner.
5. Run Cold Water Every Use
Whenever you use your garbage disposal, you should accompany the food with cold running water. The cold water prevents oil and grease from becoming solid inside of the garbage disposal unit. This helps the unit to remain functional and reduces bad smells.
6. Practice Safety
If you ever have to reach into your garbage disposal, you need to do so with the greatest caution. The unit should be unplugged entirely. And instead of using your hand, try reaching into the disposal with a pair of pliers or a bent coat hanger. It’s never worth it to injure yourself to retrieve something from your garbage disposal!
Taking care of your garbage disposal is important. Failure to do so can lead to breakage and failure, which nobody wants to deal with. Keep these garbage disposal tips in mind when caring for and maintaining your garbage disposal unit!