A garbage disposal is a great household appliance that most people today cannot live without. It is so handy when you are trying to get rid of some unwanted food without smelling up the entire home. The only thing is that there are many things that can cause the so called blades to become dull or clogged. By the way, these blades are not actually blades; it is actually a ring with teeth like shredders that break up the food put down it. Now that you know that, you will need to keep these teeth clean and sharp in order for it to keep working like you want it to. Let our professional residential plumbers here at Oklahoma City Plumbing educate you in how to keep your blades from getting dull and how to clean them correctly.
Let us go over how to keep your blades sharp. There is really no way to actually sharpen the blades in your garbage disposal. Instead, you want to try preventing the blades from getting dulled or clogged. The way to go about this is by making sure you are only putting the right type of foods down the disposal. Here is a short list of foods that you should keep out of your garbage disposal: celery, lettuce, banana peels, potato skins, bones, pasta, and pits of fruits. One thing to stay away from is fibrous foods. These foods will become tangled on the blades and clog them immediately. Another type of food you want to stay away from are greasy ones. They will create a residue on the blades causing them to become dull and not able to break up other foods. Also, stay away from hard foods. These things are too hard to be broken up and may cause the blades to actually break.
Besides trying to keep the blades sharp, you will want to keep them clean as well. Most people have no idea that you are able to clean the blades of your garbage disposal. There is actually a very easy trick you can do that will not only clean the blades, but also make your kitchen smell fresh. When the disposal is off you will want to drip in a handful of ice cubes. After then you should add a few slices of some type of citrus fruit with the skin still on. We usually recommend using an orange, lemon, or a lime for this part. Once it is all in there you should turn cold water on and turn the garbage disposal on. You should keep it going for at least one minute of time. The acid in the fruit and the water from the ice will clean off the blades. And the fruit will give off a very fragrant smell so if the disposal is starting to smell it will now smell very fresh and clean.
For more advice on plumbing services contact your local professional plumbing company.
