After the end of the year’s feasting, celebrations, and general busy times for your kitchen, you may find yourself in January with a disposal that, well, isn’t smelling all that great. This can happen at any time of the year, however, and there are a few different sources for it. Depending on the root of the problem, there are different ways you can go about remedying it.
There are a number of simple home solutions. But if you have a more serious problem with the disposal or the plumbing system, you’ll need to contact a professional plumber in Clovis, NM or the surrounding areas.
Dealing With the Clogged, Dirty Disposal
If your disposal has come out of the holiday season smelling of rotten food, the problem is likely that there is food waste caught in parts of it. It can be stuck in corners or on the impellers, and if it begins to rot it can lead to bacteria creating many unpleasant smells. If too much food was put down the disposal at once, there’s a higher chance that some of it didn’t wash down well.
(To help prevent these problems in the first place, always run water down the disposal when you have it turned on, and then leave the water running afterward for a few seconds to give time to remove the remaining chopped-up food waste).
To deodorize bad-smelling disposal, there are a few different homespun methods. Pouring baking soda and vinegar down the disposal is a standard method and often helpful. You can also put sliced lemons down into the hopper, although make sure you don’t dump too many into it at once.
For thorough cleaning, you may need to call a plumber to handle it—we recommend having full drain cleaning done if this is the case since it will give all your drains a fresh start for the new year.
The Garbage Disposal Is Too Old
It’s possible that the reason your disposal has caught so much food waste in it is that it’s too old to adequately do its job. It just isn’t grinding down the food the way it used to. Ask a plumber if it’s better to have the disposal replaced with a new one because repairs aren’t cost-effective any more.
Deeper Drain and Sewer Line Problems
Does the odor coming from your sewer not smell like rotten food, but more like sewage smells? If this is the case, then you probably don’t have trouble with the disposal itself. The issue may be with buildup along the drain walls or even clogging or other problems in the sewer line. These are serious plumbing concerns that will soon lead to backed-up drains all around the house and possibly even sewage backing up into the lower parts of the building.
Should you notice odors from other drains as well as the disposal, call for a professional plumber right away to find the source of the problem and have it fixed.
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