The powerful sound of a kitchen garbage disposal can make one think that the device is unstoppable. Your average disposal is pretty powerful. But be careful what you put down the drain. All is not fair game. Even the best garbage disposals cannot handle certain types of things.
What a Garbage Disposal Does
Before getting to some of the items you should never put down in garbage disposal, let us talk about what a disposal actually does. In my humble opinion, the garbage disposal is poorly named. It actually doesn’t dispose of anything. Furthermore, your garbage consists of plenty of things you should never put in the sink.
At any rate, a garbage disposal is essentially an electric motor with sharp teeth attached. Those teeth shred up food and other debris so that water can rinse it down the drain. They are fairly effective at dealing with table scraps with some possible exceptions, like bones for example.
Things You Should Never Put Down a Disposal
Now that you know what a garbage disposal actually does, it’s time to discuss things you should never put down one. For that, we turn to Utah’s Superior Water & Air. Superior provides plumbing and HVAC services throughout Utah. Here are the top six items they say should never go in a garbage disposal:
1. Fats, Oils, And Grease
The #1 enemy of the kitchen garbage disposal is grease. Fats and oils are a close second. None should ever be put down a disposal. And in fact, none should ever be poured down the drain of any sink. Fats, oils, and grease should always be disposed of in the trash.
The problem is that the substances, while they may be in liquid form at the time you are doing the dishes, solidify when they cool. Nearly all of the clogs found in kitchen sinks have some element of grease, fats, and oils in them.
2. Potato Peels
Potato peels are deadly to garbage disposals because they can jam them up and burn out the motors. Potato peels should always be disposed of in the trash. Never, ever put them down your garbage disposal – even with the water running and the motor churning.
3. Starchy and Fibrous Foods
Starchy foods are bad for garbage disposals because they easily turn into a pasty muck that clogs up the works. Likewise, stringy foods can wrap around they garbage disposals moving parts. Certain types of stringy foods can also dull disposal blades.
4. Bones
Bones are too hard for garbage disposals. Putting bones, or even shells, into the garbage disposal could lead to broken motor parts or blades. And even if parts aren’t broken directly, bone and shell fragments can jam up a garbage disposal without much effort.
5. Eggshells
Eggshells may seem fairly innocuous to a typical garbage disposal, but they are not. Garbage disposal blades tend to make quick work of eggshells. The problem is that they turn shells into fine particles the don’t easily move through the pipes. Instead, they accumulate on pipe walls where they impede water flow.
6. Coffee Grounds
Coffee grounds will not necessarily harm a garbage disposal directly. But they can get stuck in already compromised pipes. The combination of grease and coffee grounds can completely stop up kitchen plumbing.
There are even more items you should never put down a garbage disposal. The six listed in this post are enough to give you a good idea of what is and is not appropriate. Just remember one thing: all is not fair game when it comes to the garbage disposal.
