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Garbage Disposal Is Jammed

  
  
  

jammed garbage disposalMy friend decided to try some home repair on his day off. He had a garbage disposal that was humming, but not working. He called me up and I told him it was jammed. I told him to use an allen wrench and place it in the hole underneath the disposal, and try to work the blades free by jiggling it back and forth. No luck.

I asked him if he knew what could be jamming the disposal.He said that he had broken a glass in the sink and that some of the broken glass may have fallen into the disposal.

There are only a couple of things that would prompt me to remove the disposal from the sink to unclog it. One is broken glass and the other is a coin, and both of these are commonly associated with children.

To remove the disposal from the sink, first unplug it and then remove the drain pipe jutting from the side of the disposal.This is held in place with a retaining ring that is screwed into the side of the disposal. You may also need to remove the dishwasher drain line (if you have a dishwasher). You might have enough slack in the drain line to be able to look inside, but if not remove the hose clamp and the disposal will pull free.

Set the disposal down and remove the rubber splash guard to see inside. You can use needle nose pliers to remove the obstruction. Most commonly the obstruction will be in between the blade and the wall of the disposal. Try using needle nose pliers or wedge a standard screwdriver in there to free the obstruction. You will probably want to have the disposal laying on its side so that the obstruction doesn't fall further into the unit.

Once the disposal spins freely just reinstall it back into place then reconnect the piping back to it.

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