When it comes to your kitchen sink, it sees a lot of traffic...especially during the current shelter-in-place orders. With added time on all of our hands, the chefs within all of us have begun to emerge. As cookbooks make their way from our attics to our kitchen countertops, our garbage disposals are getting the brunt of it. With more kitchen time comes an increased opportunity for plumbing breakdowns.
So, to ensure your new-found-hobby does not jeopardize your kitchen systems, we here at Performance Plumbing, Inc. are providing preventative tips that will keep your garbage disposal up and running without malfunction. Here’s how to stop misusing, overworking, and clogging your kitchen drains.
It’s actually quite simple: stop rinsing these food items down your drains:
Food Packaging
Although the word “garbage” is in its name, your disposal system should not be treated like a trash can. When unwrapping food items covered in plastic, paper, wax, or foil, make sure all casings end up in your actual kitchen trash can. These products are not manufactured to be rinsed down your drains and will cause clogs. So, be mindful when preparing your meals to make sure no packaging particles make it down your disposal.
Poultry & Meat Bones
Any poultry or meat bones should be kept far away from your garbage disposal, as these can get lodged between your disposal’s blades, breaking your system’s motor. If this does occur, you will need a new motor part to avoid slow drainage and habitual clogging.
Coffee Grounds
When brewing your morning coffee, make sure you do not rinse your used coffee grounds or any spilled beans down your disposal. When grounds become wet, they clump together and will block your pipes up. So, after brewing your morning pot of coffee, place your used filter full of grounds into your kitchen trash. Otherwise, you’ll be facing some major clogs.
Fibrous Vegetables
Fibrous vegetables should not be thrown down your drains. Celery, asparagus, broccoli, and brussel sprouts, for example, will all become stringy when shredded by your disposal blades, which will only lead to… you guessed it… clogs. Shredded strands of food become tumble-weed-like blockages, and you’ll be contacting your local plumbers for drain cleaning ASAP.
Oils & Grease
Coating your pipes, oil is extremely hard to clear. When poured down your drains, oil adheres to the circumference of your plumbing and becomes sticky over time. Consequently, food particles coming down your disposal will become stuck. If you are experiencing consecutive clogging, this may be your source. Keep all leftover dressings, oils, and grease from entering your plumbing network.
Nuts
Placing this healthy snack down your disposal will prove detrimental to your plumbing. When nuts are chopped and spun, they form a thick, sticky paste—just think about how peanut butter is made. Nuts will pose a serious threat to your plumbing function.
Starches
Complex carbohydrates will block your pipes right up. When water is added to pasta, rice, and other starches, they expand. And, when this happens within your plumbing system, you will end up with restricted water flow. This can lead to slow drainage and backflow, compromising your water quality. To ensure your water supply remains unaffected, keep these items out of your drains.
For your kitchen plumbing maintenance, cleaning, and repairs, contact Performance Plumbing, Inc. at (757) 300-0212. We are here to ensure your cooking efforts are not impeded by consecutive clogging. Our technicians are continuing to practice CDC recommended protocols to ensure our services are safe, with client health as a priority. For more information on our pandemic protocols do not hesitate to reach out.
