The last three months of the year pack in the holidays close to each other, and parties and feasts are a big part of all of them. You’ll probably do a good share of entertaining at your home during the end of the year, and we want to remind you about how to best treat your garbage disposal during the festive season. One tough Thanksgiving dinner can wipe out a sink disposal that’s already has a few years behind it. But if you’re careful, there’s no reason you shouldn’t have a disposal that keeps pace with you through to the New Year—and beyond.
Here’s what you should keep away from the disposal
(Aside from your hand, of course.)
- Fats, oils, and grease – These are the big enemies during the holiday season. If you are going to be doing a great deal of cooking at this time of year, you’ll have plenty of cooking liquids you’ll want to simply pour down the drain. But these “liquids” turn to solids when they cool, and this can gum up a disposal fast!
- Chicken and turkey bones – Well, any bones, but these are the ones we expect you’ll have to deal with. A garbage disposal doesn’t “chop” down food, it instead grinds it so it can go down the drains. This grinding action can’t handle something like meat bones!
- Fibrous vegetables – This includes anything that’s “stringy,” like asparagus and celery. Onion skins are a problem as well. The fibers can easily become entangled in the mechanisms of the disposal.
- Any non-organic material – We understand that during the holidays in the kitchen you’re often in a hurry, so maybe you just want to throw some plastic pieces from a food container or other bits of trash into the disposal and forget about it. But the disposal isn’t designed for non-organic waste. Use the actual trash for that!
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Ken Neyer Plumbing, Inc. has 24-hour emergency service available.