Here at Magnolia Plumbing, we’re getting our things together – not for the holidays, but for the busy holiday season! Winter is the biggest season for plumbers everywhere, as holiday guests pour in from out of town and plumbing systems are taxed more than any time of year. You wouldn’t believe how many calls we get from people whose garbage disposals are broken, or who can suddenly, a week later, smell food that didn’t go down all the way the first time! Fortunately, holiday plumbing disasters are fairly easy to avoid – if you follow our holiday plumbing tips!
One of the most common post-holiday plumbing problems many people have to face is a broken garbage disposal. And it’s no wonder – between the pumpkin seeds and pulp, the potato peels and all that leftover turkey going down the drain at Thanksgiving, it’s a wonder any garbage disposal gets out alive!
But aren’t garbage disposals designed to handle whatever you put down them?
Yes, but to a point. Think about it this way: garbage disposals work by turning small chunks of food into liquid so they can easily slide down the pipes. If you put too much food down there, the disposal will create basically a huge, sludgy mess that can stick to the sides of your pipes, resulting in clogging and foul odors.
The best way to avoid garbage disposal repair is to treat your garbage disposal the way you would treat it any other day. This means not putting tons and tons of food down it at once. You can avoid 90% of garbage disposal breakdowns if you’re careful to not put too much food down them at once. In addition, you should never put pumpkin anything down your garbage disposal. Pumpkin pulp is extremely fibrous, and all those fibers can get caught up and wind around your disposal, causing it to jam up pretty severely.
This year, before you put anything down the drain, scrape large pieces of food into the trashcan before rinsing them off. Also, don’t forget to run the disposal with plenty of cold water and do your best not to let any fats or grease go down.
If you need more plumbing tips, or if you find yourself needing DC garbage disposal repair this holiday season, call Magnolia Plumbing!