Pro Handyman Blog

When installing a garbage disposal, you will have to make electrical connections underneath the unit. You certainly want to do this prior to installing the disposal after flipping it upside down. There is a small metal door that is held in place with one screw.

After removing the small door, you will thread the cord through the access hole and out the opening so that you can twist the connections together with wire nuts. Once the connections are made, the wire nuts get pushed back into the unit and the door gets replaced. However, the opening for the cord to exit the bottom of the unit has sharp edges and the concern is that these sharp edges over time may cut into the cord and cause a short or spark. This could be problematic. The fix is to add a grommet or cable clamp to protect the cord and prohibit any movement against the sharp edges.

A rubber grommet grips the perimeter of the opening, while a cable clamp is held on to the opening by screwing on a nut from behind it. It will need to be installed prior to installing the cord as the cord will be threaded through the clamp. After you make the wiring connections, tighten the clamp screws so that the cord is held in place firmly, but don’t over tighten.