Your garbage disposal made it through Thanksgiving. That’s great! Now it has another series of holiday feasts to deal with. That means there’s a higher chance of something going wrong with it. Any plumber will tell you that one of the major calls they receive during the end of the year are repair calls for disposals. Although we are always glad to help you out when your plumbing is in trouble, we’d also like you to have a peaceful holiday season, so we’re offering you some advice about seeing your disposal get through the end of the year in great shape.
- Don’t pour ice down it to “sharpen the blades”: Here’s a piece of advice drifting around for years that has no basis in fact. Ice cubes will not sharpen the blades of a disposal and help it better chop food—because the disposal doesn’t have any blades! It uses dull impellers to push food into an outer grind ring. Hard ice cubes have a chance to damage the disposal.
- Run cold water down the disposal: Yes, hot water is better for cutting through grease, but grease shouldn’t go down the disposal either. (See the next point.) Hot water is more likely to cause parts of the disposal to overheat, so use cold water when it’s time to rinse out and run the disposal.
- Keep fats, oils, and grease out of the disposal: Collectively known as “FOG,” these byproducts of cooking are extremely hazardous to disposals—as well as the plumbing in general. In liquid form, they appear harmless. But they won’t stay in liquid form long. As they cool, they congeal into solids, and this can seriously clog up the disposal as well as the drain.
- Avoid putting fibrous foods in the disposal: This includes onions, asparagus, and anything else that’s “stringy.” The fibers of these foods can become entangled in the mechanical parts of the disposal and cause it to break down.
- Only call professional plumbers for repairs: If you do encounter trouble with the disposal, don’t tinker with it yourself (and don’t put your hand down it). Our licensed plumbers are here to see that the problem is fixed, fast and right.
Ken Neyer Plumbing, Inc. is ready to help you with all your plumbing needs in Cleves, OH this season. We’re on duty 24 hours a day!