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What If My Garbage Disposal Jams?

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Garbage disposal maintenance

When a garbage disposer jams, switch off the unit and insert a dowel or the handle of a wooden spoon, and, pushing it against a flyweight, rotate the flywheel counterclockwise.  (The electric motor turns the impeller, a circular flywheel attached to freely rotating flyweights, in the grinding chamber).  If a small L- or Z-shaped wrench came with the unit, use it to clear a jam, following the owner’s manual.

Plumber Pro Tips to Share

Tip #1  Garbage disposers will get clogged because of the buildup of greasy food.

Tip #2  Try throwing ice cubes into the unit and running it.

Tip #3  The ice should congeal the fat, allowing the unit to grind the fat into disposable bits.

Tip #4  And to keep your garbage disposal smelling fresh, regularly cut up lemons and run them through the grinding process with some ice.

Tip #5  You will be able to smell the fresh citrus for an hour or more.

PLUMBING TRADE SECRETS:  If you have a septic tank, consider that it will need to be pumped out frequently since the byproduct of food grinding sometimes qualifies as semi-solid waste.