ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Foods Not to Put in Sink Garbage Disposal

Updated on August 9, 2012

A kitchen sink disposal can be a great tool and appliance to have in your kitchen, but you can't put everything down the drain.

Never put anything in your sink disposal that won't leak through a paper bag, and avoid stringy foods.

Replacing a garbage disposal or fixing a sink disposal can be expensive, so it's better to follow a few simple tips and rules about using them.

Never use hot water when running water when the disposal is running. Always use cold water. Cold water will help grease and oil solidify so that it can flow through the pipes harmlessly. (Never poor grease down the sink, but small portions cannot be avoided.)

Never pack the disposal. Make sure that anything you put down the sink is loose. If you pack foods in the pipes, the disposal will jam.

Run ice down the sink disposal to help keep the blades sharpened.

Never Put Pasta Down the Drain

  • Grease and Oil- Both can congeal and slime on the inside of the garbage disposal. Grease and hot water can case the pipes to melt.
  • Meat- Raw meat can become stringy and can wrap around the blades. Gristle can dull the blades.
  • Pasta and Rice- the starch can cause them to become slimy and wrap around the blades. You cannot break down rice or pasta (cooked or raw), as it will just swell when in contact with water, causing a clog.
  • Potatoes and Potato Skin- The starch in the potato can become a glue, wrapping around the moving parts of the garbage disposal, clogging the pipes.
  • Flour- When wet, the flour becomes glue-like. It will thicken and harden when dried.
  • Stringy, Fibrous Foods- Corn husks, celery, lettuce, asparagus, onion peels, and garlic ends, as well as other foods with stringy parts or paper skins can wrap around the blades and moving parts of the garbage disposal.
  • Fruit peels and Rinds- Thick, tough skin does not break down easily in a garbage disposal. Banana peels can actually cause your disposer to seize up and stop working.
  • Eggshells- Eggshells can be iffy. Some people do not have any problems, whereas others have had horror stories after putting eggshells down the sink disposal. Some have seen eggshell parts trapped under the sink, causing water pressure issues
  • Non-Food Items- Glass, metal, paper, plastic, string, rubber bands, rocks, cigarette butts, and bones can break a sink garbage disposal.

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)