Even with a garbage disposal, certain foods should never go down the kitchen sink. To prevent difficult clogs, resist the temptation of sending the following items down drain.
- Potato Peels, Rice and Pasta : Avoid putting starchy foods down the kitchen sink. These items begin decomposing and turning into mush. Instead, drain excess water and place in the garbage or compost bin.
- Oil: Oil may be good for the car, but is is terrible on the pipes in your home. Oil quickly solidifies creating blockages in your pipe that restrict flow and can cause a back up. In 2013 Thames Water in west London found a 15 ton “fatberg” made up of oil and wet wipes. It was a $500,000 cost to remove this clog. To eliminate this problem, pour waste oil into a tin and allow it to solidify, then throw it in the garbage.
- Coffee grounds and Egg shells.: Though these items may be small, but they can cause significant issues on your pipes. The problem is that these small particles don’t break down easily and lodge into areas that will over time cause restricted flow and blockage.
- Grain and Seeds: Grains are small and do not break down easily allowing them to accumulate and lead to blockage. Instead of using the sink drain, throw them out in your waste bin.
- Stringy Foods: Lastly, a general rule of thumb is to not put anything down your garbage disposal that is stringy. This would include stringy / pulp type foods like celery and asparagus. (In our honest opinion, better yet… don’t even cook asparagus, just throw it out.) Put these vegetable food scraps in a compost or the garbage.
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