Garbage Disposal Do's and Don'ts from Washington Plumbers

The do's

Run cold water before, during, and for fifteen seconds after grinding — cold keeps any fats solid so they chop and flush instead of coating the pipe. Feed scraps gradually rather than packing the chamber. Grind citrus peel occasionally; it cleans the chamber and freshens the drain. And use the disposal regularly — a disposal that sits idle for weeks corrodes and seizes faster than one used daily.

The don'ts — a.k.a. our service call generators

Grease, oils, and pan drippings are the worst offenders: liquid going in, concrete coming out, congealing on pipe walls downstream where the disposal can't help. Fibrous vegetables — celery, corn husks, artichokes, onion skins — wrap around the impellers like string. Starches are sneakier: potato peels, rice, and pasta grind fine, then swell into wallpaper paste in the trap. Coffee grounds settle into sludge. Eggshells and bones add grit that wears the machine. When in doubt: compost or trash, not the drain.

One more: never use chemical drain cleaner in a disposal. It sits in the chamber, attacks the seals and metal, and turns the next service call into a hazmat handshake for whoever opens the trap — usually us.

Simple fixes before you call

Dead silence when you flip the switch? Press the red reset button on the bottom of the unit — it's a thermal breaker, and it trips more often than people expect. A hum with no spinning means a jam: cut power at the switch, insert a 1/4-inch hex key into the socket on the unit's underside, and rock it back and forth to free the impellers. Never put your hand in the chamber, even with the power off.

If the disposal trips repeatedly, leaks from the body, or the drain still backs up after a jam is cleared, the problem has moved beyond DIY — body leaks in particular mean internal corrosion, and the fix is replacement. We install disposals across our Washington service area — Tacoma, Renton, Puyallup and beyond — usually same-week, and we'll match the unit's grind power to how your kitchen actually cooks.