The garbage disposal is a very simple machine. It consists of a heavy duty electric motor, a few gears, the housing, flanges, and of course, the teeth and blades which do the work. Despite being quite robust, garbage disposals can and do get clogged or jammed from time to time. Since they generally are attached to a very important part of the house that being the kitchen sink, downtime is something one likes to keep at a minimum. Here are some tips to keep handy for when the disposal is in need of repairs.

Garbage Disposal Repair

Of the range of issues that can hit a garbage disposal, some are easily fixed, while others will need some advanced training. It will be up to you to decide what you are and are not capable of dealing with, but for the sake of safety, you should never take on any unnecessary risk if you do not need to. Here are a few of the more common issues you may run into:

Overheating - If you flip your switch and the garbage disposal simply will not even hum, then you are probably dealing with an overheating problem because of overfilling, and it has probably tripped itself off. Check under the unit and press the red "reset" button. If this doesn't work, then check the circuit breaker box - Has anything been tripped? This is a common problem so check it out first.

Jamming - If the unit is giving you a humming noise but it still simply is not working, then the most likely culprit is that the unit has become jammed, meaning that the impellers have become stuck. The first step is to never, ever, ever put your hand down into the grinding chamber. Do not reach down there hoping for the best, it's not going to work and you'll likely get hurt in the process.

Turn the circuit breakers off to make sure that the unit is completely stopped. Remove the bottom housing and dislodge whatever blockage has occurred from underneath. This really is not a difficult fix to do on your own. If you are not sure about what you are doing however, it might be wise for you to consult a professional to make sure that you get the job done right the first time without getting hurt.

Final Option - If neither of these two options seems to be doing the trick, then the fix at hand is something more serious than you are going to be able to handle on your own. At this point the cheapest option is simply going to be to buy a brand new garbage disposal unit. Fixing a broken garbage disposal can be costly, so if its in your budget to simply buy a new one, do so and you will be saving yourself time and money in the process.

Photo credits: jsgphoto

Related Posts

• Keep Your Home Safe with a Maintenance Check List Every home has certain requirements, and a seasonal maintenance checklist can help you remember when you last did something, and when it needs to be done again. We all know to replace a light bulb when it burns out and to repair grout when it cracks. But those things that......
• Review of the Complete Photo Guide to Home Repair Black and Decker are known for the terrific DIY guides and this title is no exception. As the name suggests, you’re getting step by step photo instructions that make it easy for anyone to fix up their own home without having to be a professional handy person. You’ll get......
• Dealing with Moisture in the Basement Moisture in general can cause all kinds of problems in the basement, including mold and the destruction of flooring and wall materials. But how do you prevent moisture or flooding in the first place? There are a few simple steps to stop this problem in its tracks, as well as......
• Simple Ways to Unclog a Drain When a drain gets clogged, it can be frustrating to have to deal with. You don’t want to call a plumber because that can get expensive, and sometimes the problem seems like it should be simple enough for you to deal with. You can unclog the drain yourself with a......
• Budget Fixes For Your House Fixing up the home is a task all of us have on our lists, but they never get done due to high costs for materials and labor. Home improvements do not have to blow the budget, however, and by doing it yourself, you can save even more. Here are seven......

Related Websites

• Wood Stoves For Sale Beautiful Plus Efficient Wood Stoves For Sale Beautiful Plus Efficient There's nothing like the comforting heat on a cold winter day from a wood burning stove. The actual cracking and snap from the wood the way it catches fire plus the tranquilizing aroma from the coffee pot simmering on the stovetop. wood stoves......
• Buy a huge gift card with your rebate? Retailers are lining up with carrots to help you put your economic stimulus check to good use. For large gift card purchases at stores like Kroger, Sears, KMart, and others, the retailers will kick in extra value on the gift card: up to 10% above what you pay for. Is......
• How To Take Care Of Your Laptop /caption] So you’ve just bought a new laptop and you have no idea how to properly maintain it? Laptops are foreign to most people as they’re seen as unreliable and have simply not caught on as the standard due to pricing and overheating. They’re very popular though because of their......
• Antique Tube Radio Collectibles -> Radio, Phonograph, TV, Phone -> Radios -> Tube Radios: Pre 1930, 1930-49, 1950-59, 1960-Now If you are in the market for an antique tube radio to restore, or you are looking for a working model, there are a few things that you will need to know before making......
• Money Questions to Ask before the Wedding Getting married soon?  Take the time before the marriage begins to ask some serious questions about money and financial management.  If you both know the answers to these questions, then you will be in a better position to handle situations that arise by using the strengths of the partner who......

Online Stores

• Work Womens Shoes

If you liked this article, vote for it on del.icio.us and stumbleupon.


Categories:

Garbage Disposal, Handy Man, Repair

Tags:

circuit breaker, circuit breakers, downtime, flanges, garbage disposal repair, garbage disposals, gears, heavy duty, impellers, kitchen sink, likely culprit, reset button, sake, teeth, unnecessary risk