How to fix clogged garbage disposal

Clogged sink and clogged garbage disposal are some of the worst things that can happen in your kitchen. We will not try to teach you how to take care of your drain or how to maintain your garbage disposal. The presumption is that you have clogged garbage disposal and therefore you want to know how to fix it yourself. The good thing is that clogged garbage disposals can be fixed rather easily and with almost no cost at all. There are two main reasons why your garbage disposal isn’t working properly. The first one is stuck flywheel and the second one is clogged drain pipe on garbage disposal.

clogged kitchen sink

If the garbage disposal won’t turn on but makes a humming sound when you flip the switch, it won’t do that for long. That means you have a stuck flywheel and the reset button on the unit itself or the fuse or circuit breaker in your electrical service panel will trip and turn off very quickly. The flywheel is stuck because something is lodged between it or the impeller(s) and the shredder ring.

garbage disposal

The solution to this problem is very simple, all you need is 1/4 inch allen wrench or/and wooden stick.

The second reason for clogged garbage disposal is clogged drain pipe. This repair is also very simple and all you need is joint pliers and eventually a screwdriver.

It can get a little messy, depending how clogged the pipe really is, but the main thing is that you can repair it yourself with no cost at all. Refer to video below on how to disassemble and clean clogged garbage disposal drain pipe.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59b5vyk-BRc

Video sources: About, Howtodostuff



2 thoughts on “How to fix clogged garbage disposal”

  1. Handyman Tips

    Thanks for a suggestion Michael! Installing a P-trap is another way of dealing with the problem but it costs some money and you have to know how and where to install it! In this article we presented a completely free fix which doesn’t cost anything!

  2. I am a maintenance supervisor with a large complex, I say that to say to you ideally you should have a p-trap directly from the disposer. I do these all the time it is easier to remove a P-trap then the way you are having to do it. It isnt hard to install a p-trap

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