Not every project goes as well as planned. We would be happy to spend a few minutes answering your questions.
Current Articles | RSS Feed
A garbage disposal can easily get jammed if a coin drops into it. Most of the time we see this with children throwing coins into the sink. I don’t know what the fascination is with kids and garbage disposals…maybe it is that they are loud and make things disappear (yes, both kids and disposals).
Removing a coin usually means removing the disposal from the sink. Plenty of people though, will choose to just stick their hand down there and feel for it. Please, if you feel the need to do this, unplug the disposal and make sure it can’t start.
Removing the disposal means removing the discharge pipe on the side and probably removing the air gap hose just above the discharge pipe. Loosen the collar that holds the disposal to the underside of the sink and the disposal should drop right into your hands. Pull off the rubber splash guard and look into the disposal. A flashlight helps to find the coin but it usually gets wedged in between the wall and the bottom plate of the disposal. You may be able to reach in and grab it, or you can use an allen wrench in the bottom of the disposal and try to work it loose. Jiggle the allen wrench back and forth while you have the disposal turned upside down. When you hear the coin fall, you are done.
You can also try a large standard screwdriver. Turn the disposal on its side and wedge the screwdriver at the side wall to give enough clearance for the coin to drop out.
Allowed tags: <a> link, <b> bold, <i> italics