Before you shove those potato skins or eggshells down the kitchen sink drain and assume that your garbage disposal system will take care of it, we urge you to read this blog post. Although it’s very convenient and simple to use, your garbage disposal system does have it’s limits, and those limits are quite often found during the holiday season. In fact, this is the time of year that our plumbers get the most plumbing repair calls–and they’re usually in regards to a clogged kitchen sink drain that’s causing a backup, and/or a jammed up and damaged garbage disposal system.
So before you cook that holiday meal, let’s talk about some prep work that doesn’t get a lot of attention–taking care of your plumbing system. Read on as we uncover what shouldn’t go down your kitchen sink drain this holiday season.
For a Happier Holiday, Leave These Items Out of the Kitchen Sink
The first thing we’re going to talk about is FOG. No, we aren’t talking about the fog you’ll drive through going to Grandma’s house for your holiday meal. In fact, share this tip with her, too! We’re talking about fats, oils, and grease. These are common cooking byproducts that seem harmless enough, but they actually do a lot of harm. The problem with FOG is that as it cools down, it hardens. So if it’s sticking to the inside of your kitchen sink drain, and you’re continuing to dump other cooking byproducts down the sink, you’re going to end up with a stubborn clog and backup eventually.
Next, let’s talk about the foods you shouldn’t put down the sink drain. “What?!” you might be wondering, “Isn’t that what my garbage disposal is for?” Look, we get it. We’re big proponents of the kitchen sink garbage disposal. It’s great for things like non-fibrous fruit or veggie scraps leftover from cooking a simple dish, citrus peels, soft foods… things like that. What it’s not great for is other food items, such as:
- Fruit Pits and Meat Bones: Garbage disposals are powerful, but the impeller blades on these systems aren’t actually blades. In fact, they can become easily damages by food that’s too hard for it to break up. Plus, if these items do make it through the garbage disposal system, they can get lodged in the kitchen sink drainpipe and still cause issues.
- Rice, Pasta, and Coffee Grounds: These items seem so benign, right? True, there’s nothing to worry about with your garbage disposal system with these items, but the problem with them is that they expand with water. So if you want to wash them down the drain in large amounts, you’re going to end up with a problem.
- Excess Potato Skins or Eggshells: A few eggshells or the shavings from a single potato probably aren’t going to hurt your garbage disposal system or your kitchen sink drain. The problem occurs when people are cooking large holiday meals and put a dozen eggshells or the potato skins from an entire bag of potatoes down the drain. The garbage disposal can’t handle all that, and you end up with clogs and blockages.
Avoid putting these items down your kitchen sink drain and it should stay in good shape for you!
For a professional Palatine, IL plumber you can rely on, contact Reliance Plumbing Sewer & Drainage, Inc.