Have you found a new home and want to change the kitchen a little bit? After all the splashback, counters, islands, and cabinets have been picked out, next on your list should be a new waste disposal.
Purchasing waste disposal can be quite confusing because of the various brands, models, and considerations you have to factor in. Plus, when you don’t really know what waste disposal is, confusion and annoyance might get the best of you.
What Are Waste Disposals For Anyway?
Waste disposals are a neatly hidden machine under your sink that grinds all the solid wastes into pieces to keep your sink from being clogged and throwing away your biowaste becomes an easy breezy task.
How Do I Choose My Waste Disposal?
The best waste disposals are those that have been screened and tested by authorities in the business. Rethority, a reputed review agency for anything that concerns homeowners, identified the 5 best waste disposals in the market today. They surmised that the best waste disposals should aid you in cleaning up quickly and deliver a long-lasting service for you and your family.
But before you indulge yourself in picking out garbage disposal, it’s better to know which actually would best suit your needs. Let’s start with the type of waste disposal for your home.
Types of Waste Disposal
There are only two types of waste disposals, continuous feed, and batch feed. Both would get the job done but the main difference is the mechanism and safety standards.
Continuous feeds are the most common of the two types and are hardwired into your kitchen with an on/off switch to control them. There is no stopper or cover required for continuous feeds and they readily grind your food scraps when switched on with cold water to flush them down your drain.
In contrast, batch feeds are rare and can be more expensive than their counterparts. It is safer since it won’t turn on when its cap or cover is not placed.
Features To Watch Out for in Your New Waste Disposal
Motor Size
The motor size of your waste disposal will determine the kind of food waste it can pulverize. You can choose between a ⅓ HP to 1HP motor. Here is a quick guide on the best motor size for your home.
- ⅓ HP – for grinding soft foods, vegetable scraps, and leftovers
- ½ HP – for grinding fruits, vegetable scraps, fish bones, cooked meat, and leftovers
- ¾ HP – for grinding chicken bones, fruit pits, raw and cooked meat, soft foods, vegetable scraps, and leftovers
- 1HP – grinding rib and chicken bones, fruit pits, raw and cooked meat, soft foods, vegetable scraps, fish bones, and leftovers
For a more comprehensive guide of the appropriate motor size for your kitchen, visit Consumer Reports Waste Disposal Buying Guide.
Auto Reverse Feature
Auto-reverse prevents or loosens jammed food inside your waste disposal. It turns in the opposite direction to unlatch any wedged scraps. With this feature, you can save a penny from not hiring a plumber to undo the havoc of clogged waste disposal.
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Stainless Steel Chamber and Components
This is one feature you shouldn’t compromise on. Stainless steel doesn’t rust easily and would give your waste disposal a longer shelf life. A benefit that anyone would want to jump into.
Sink Top Switches
You may want to have a sink top switch for safer waste disposal especially when you have kids at home. Instead of a switch at the wall, you will have to push the button on your sink.
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How to Child-Proof Your Important Belongings
Multiple Grind Feature
Some waste disposals boast a 3 stage grinding feature to completely pulverize your food waste so that it washes down the drain quite flawlessly.
Noise Reduction
There are waste disposals that have sound insulation around their disposer to minimize noise and reduce vibration. This might be enticing to you when it annoys you to hear machine grinding noise or for some other reason.
Now that you know what considerations to factor in when looking for your new waste disposal for your kitchen, it is time to think of ways on how to maintain it.
Tips and Tricks for Waste Disposal Maintenance
- Each month, concoct a solution of half a cup of vinegar and baking soda. Let it sit inside the hopper with the unit turned on for a couple of minutes and drain with hot water. This will prevent your disposal from being smelly.
- Occasionally grind in ice cubes and pieces of lemon or orange to clear the bacteria and avoid it from developing a pungent smell.
- Detergents are perfect for degreasing the pipes of your drain and your disposal. So sluice some of it diluted in water a few times every month.
- Don’t put into your waste disposal potato and banana peels including ground coffee or eggshells. These are very effective in clogging your drain and disposal.
- Don’t use hot water while the grinding process is in progress. It makes fats accumulate amongst each other and would eventually clog your disposal.
- Pasta, grease, and any fibrous wastes are also top candidates in clogging your garbage disposal so avoid grinding it into the machine.
- This might sound ridiculous but only grind food wastes and nothing else to your waste disposal. Some think that the disposal is like the office shredder that they put tissues, rags, plastic, and other non-bio waste into. This is a NO, NO guys.
Looking for the best waste disposal for your kitchen is easy as long as you take into consideration the factors outlined. The key is being patient and scouring your local home depot for your preferred kitchen equipment. Asking someone who knows a thing or two about waste disposals would give you insights into what waste disposal you need for your kitchen. Also, buying the most credible equipment is just half of the journey, you should also know how to maintain them to take advantage of their service for a long period of time.
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