Things to Avoid Putting in Your Garbage Disposal

Garbage disposals are great for easily getting rid of extra food after a big meal and make washing the dishes a breeze! However, you can’t just throw everything down the garbage disposal, or you might risk getting a clogged drain. There are certain items that should never go down your disposal. While you might think you know everything, some items on this list might surprise you! Save your drain by reading up on these 10 items to never put down your disposal.

1. Bones, fruit pits or other hard items – while this seems obvious, it’s a good reminder to not put these items down the disposal! Typically, a good rule of thumb is, if you personally can’t break an item, chances are, your garbage disposal probably can’t either.
2. Coffee Grounds – coffee grounds tend piling up at the bottom of your disposal, clogging your drain. Throw them in the trash instead of tossing them down the disposal.
3. Grease – grease coagulates when cold and will harden in the drain, clogging everything up. Pour your excess grease into a cup and let it harden. Then, throw it away.
4. Egg Shells – the membranes from eggshells wrap around the blades and stick to your disposal, which can cause problems. Put eggshells in your compost pile instead!
5. Celery or fibrous veggies – the stringy fibers in celery will often wrap around the blades of your disposal, creating a big knotted clog that is hard to untangle.
6. Pasta – when you put cooked pasta down your garbage disposal, it will continue to swell and absorb the water from your sink, leading to a big clog.
7. Oatmeal – similar to pasta, oatmeal will also absorb water and turn into a big sticky blog.
8. Nuts – don’t make peanut butter by accident in your disposal and clog it up! When you put nuts down the disposal, they will form a stick paste and back up the drain.
9. Potato peels – like nuts, potato peels can get mashed up by your disposal and become a big blob. Also, potato peels are often covered with dirt, which is harmful for your disposal.
10. Chicken skin – fatty and greasy foods tend to coagulate in the drain. The stringiness of chicken skin makes it easier to wrap around the blade of your disposal, making it difficult to run.

As always, if you have a clogged-up garbage disposal – T.J. Huggard Plumbing is here for you! Our team of certified plumbers will get your disposal running again in no time. Contact us or give us a call today!