The average person in the United States is responsible for producing 4.9 pounds of waste daily. We waste about 1.4 billion tons of food every year, which is taken to landfills. This landfill waste is hazardous to the environment and public health. In 2018, about 93.9 million tons of waste material were found in landfills. Garbage disposals are handy plumbing solutions for the safe disposal of this garbage and other waste materials.
What is a Garbage Disposal?
A garbage disposal is a machine installed below your sink and connected to the drain pipe. The device collects the food waste that you dispose of. The waste material is then broken down into fine particles and discharged with the wastewater.
How Do Garbage Disposals Work?
People often think that garbage disposals possess blender-like sharp blades that spin rapidly to break down waste material, but this is not the case. There are two metal teeth in the grinder, but they’re not sharp like a blender.
The machine collects solid food bits and moves them to the grinding chamber. When the garbage disposal is turned on, a disc called the impeller plate spins quickly and pushes the waste against the wall of the machine. The food is pulverized into little pieces, washed away by water and into the wastewater pipeline.
Issues with Garbage Disposal
Several issues can render garbage disposal ineffective. We’ve listed some of them below:
If It Doesn’t Turn On
If your garbage disposal isn’t turning on when you hit the power switch, there may be one of these three issues with the machine:
- Electrical issues involve an interrupted supply of power from the main source. Check if the machine is properly connected and you have sufficient voltage to turn the disposer on.
- Clogs can make garbage disposal ineffective. If you turn it on and the motor whirs, but it doesn’t break the waste into particles, then it means something has clogged the mechanism. Excessive food or larger objects can cause clogging.
- A damaged motor can result in an ineffective garbage disposal. The motor may have been damaged over time or burnt.
If You Hear a Strange Sound
If you hear a strange humming sound from the machine, the machine may be facing one of these issues:
- Overheating is a result of the continuous use of garbage disposal. It causes the blades to stop working.
- Grinders can become worn out over time and won’t work as effectively as before.
- A jammed flywheel is when waste particles get stuck in the impeller.
Garbage disposals are delicate and must be operated with extra care and precautions. If you’re looking to repair or replace your garbage disposal, contact a local plumber in Mountain View, California.
Smart Plumber is a team of licensed and qualified plumbers in Mountain View that’s completed hundreds of plumbing jobs. We can offer you reliable and affordable garbage disposal cleaning along with all kinds of other plumbing tasks.
Contact us and hire a plumber from a BBB-accredited company today!
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