Can I Put…Down the Garbage Disposal?

Your garbage disposal may seem indestructible and like it can handle anything.  I mean, it sure does a number on the accidental fork and spoon that end up in it- how could it not destroy any food that heads down it?  It is important to be careful, however, because there a few things that should never go down the garbage disposal.  They can end up causing problems and creating damage in the long run.

Courtesy of the article, “Thing You Should Never Put Down Your Garbage Disposal” from the Huffington Post, here are few food items that should not make their way down your disposal:

• Grease, Oil or Fat
• Starchy or Stringy Vegetables
• Pasta
• Egg Shells
• Rice
• Coffee Grounds
• Fruit Pits or Seeds
• Bones

Some of these items may seem obvious- bones and fruit pits are too tough for the garbage disposal, but others like rice and pasta may seem a little confusing. Foods such as rice and pasta expand and can clog the garbage disposal.  Coffee grounds can get in the garbage disposal trap, and egg shells have a thin membrane that can wrap around the blade while stringy vegetables can do that as well.  Grease and fat hardens when it cools, and it can clog the space (Information from Things You Should Never Put Down Your Garbage Disposal by Joseph Erdos, Huffington Post).

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