Down the Drain? Not so fast

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Published Date 12/3/2024

Just dump them. As you clear the table from those holiday feasts, it’s easy to simply scrape food scraps into your sink. But when you put them down your garbage disposal, it’s a whole new ball game. Now you have to get picky.

Realtor’s Charlie Lanskton reports how a plumbing expert has issued a warning to all homeowners about the dangers of putting common food items down their garbage disposal, revealing how easily popular ingredients can clog the sink and lead to a nightmare drainage problem.

The Texas-based master plumber who goes by the moniker “The Plumbers Plunger,” shared the warning while posting a video of himself clearing out a completely clogged sink caused by a homeowner who threw rice down the garbage disposal. He then attempts to clear the blockage with a plunger, but doesn’t have high hopes it will work. In his experience, most customers will have tried that method themselves before calling him.

As predicted, plunging the sink does little to shift the blockage, so he moves on to the pipes underneath it, which he begins to take apart in the hopes of locating the issue.

“I’m going to take apart this P-trap so I can remove all of the rice that I assume is stuck inside it,” he says while unscrewing a circular part of the pipe to reveal the interior is packed with grains of rice.

As he removes the rice from the pipe, the plumber issues a warning to all homeowners to be mindful of what foods they throw into the kitchen sink as certain items could cause blockage. “Remember to be careful with what you’re putting down your kitchen sink drain,” he advises. “Even if you have a disposal, it’s not a good idea to put too much down it. If it doesn’t immediately back up like it did in this situation, over time you’re going to get enough food buildup and grease in the drain line that it’s going to back up.”

He noted that some homeowners use their garbage disposals like a food scrap bin, but said they should be incredibly careful about four specific items: rice, coffee grounds, eggshells, and grease, all of which will usually back it up. As for non-food scraps, do you think it’s fun to simply grind them up? Don’t do it. A garbage disposal is supposed to grind food waste, not man made materials. Plumbers have found everything from cigarette butts to metal scraps in their customers’ disposals.

Animal bones, fish bones, and seafood scraps are also big no-nos. It’s an old wives’ tale that these items will “clean” a garbage disposal’s walls when they’re being ground up. Absolutely not the case. Most will simply spin in the unit until they slip past the blades and clog the drain.

And a final word: Garbage disposals do require regular maintenance. Lankston warns that disposals should be cleaned monthly with a mixture of vinegar and baking soda to help remove buildup and bacteria issues. Regular degreasing should also be performed using a few chunks of lemon, while cold water should be run through an empty garbage disposal on a regular basis to ensure the “safe operation” of the device.

The message is clear, whether it’s you or your visiting guests who want to help with the holiday food aftermath: Your garbage disposal may be tough, but it's not invincible. Treating it with respect and understanding its limitations can save you from that dreaded call to the plumber – and the shock of discovering just how much rice can fit in a P-trap.

Realtor,TBWS

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