Senior handypeople: What do you do to unclog a garbage disposal?

Put a bucket under the P-trap. Now disconnect the trap. The stoppage is probably in the trap Need anymore help doing this--email me.

I have this happen in the last 2 houses I lived in. First take a plumbers friend ( plunger) and with the disposal side stoppered (you may have to hold the stopper in place doing this) work the plunger in the other side and see is it will unstop the drain. If not, there should be an access drain plug outside the kitchen in the outside wall.

Use a 'fish tape' and go down the line and see if that works. If you don't find a drain access, there will be a vent on top of the house close to the kitchen that you can also use to clean out the line with a fish tape. PS never put chopped up vegetables down the sink or anything left over from juicing.

And when using the disposal, always use lots of water. And most of the time, the clog won't be under the sink, but in the line itself.

I was at one time, a maintenance engineer in the Hotel Utah. They had several kitchens including the huge main kitchen with many sinks and huge disposals under each sink. I was forever having to work on those things.

Plus I have worked on many others in homes and motor homes. If the blades in your disposal are turning, the problem is not the disposal. And I have never seen a 'P' trap on the drain of a sink with a disposal.

If you have one your drain is set up wrong. However, if you do have one, it is most likely the culprit, Follow mrwizard's instructions to clean it out. If it is not your problem.

The clog is somewhere further down your drain.....probably. If you have a 'P' trap with a disposal, then I haven't a clue how your drain is set up, and it could be anywhere but if you've used a snake down through your disposal and the blades in it are turning, it is not your disposal.

You're going to get wet - but here's what you do. You get your toilet plunger. You stick an orange in the other drain, assuming it's a double sink.

One person holds the orange down and the other person creates both positive and negative pressure in the garbage disposal with the plunger. This will loosen the stuck stuff which is stuck in the pipe between the garbage disposal and the main drain, or it's stuck in the trap.

If so tried something dry down there, like some baking soda etc..hope this will help if not you will have to call the plumber unless you know someone that can take it apart and fix it....I've learned the hard way, so for now on only stuff from the plates goes down there..nothing else..=).

If the impellers are working,the problem isn't the garbage disposal. The drain after the disposal is stopped up. Try the snake from the other side of the sink.

You might need to use Draino.

Try ice. It's a good way to clean the debris out of the disposal but not sure if it'll do the trick. Can't hurt I guess.

Good luck.

And did not add Mayonnaise!.....No wonder its not working!...

I think you need to unclog the pipes, the disposal appears as though its OK.

I think the drain is backed up, and for that you might have to call Roto Rooter....and away go troubles down the drain!

Instructions Things You'll Need Long-nose Pliers Short Broomstick 1/4-inch (6-mm) Allen (hex) Wrench: handy wrench specific to the garbage disposal 1 Turn the garbage disposal on and off quickly and check to see if it has power. If it hums, the power is on but the impeller is jammed. Move on to step 3.

If it doesn't hum, it may have overheated and tripped a circuit breaker. Move on to step 2. 2 Restore power to the machine.

Most disposals have an overload switch that trips when the motor starts to overheat. To reset the switch, look for a small red button on the bottom of the housing, and if it's there, push it in (see A). If your disposal doesn't have an overload switch or the machine still won't run after you reset the switch, reset the circuit breaker that serves the disposal.3 Clear the jam from underneath.

On many disposals, you can insert a 1/4-inch (6-mm) Allen (hex) wrench into the bottom of the housing and manually move the motor shaft and flywheel to dislodge the jam. If your disposal has an opening for an Allen (hex) wrench, insert the wrench and move it back and forth until the motor and flywheel turn freely.4 Clear the jam from above. Press the end of a short broomstick against one of the impellers, and jab in one direction and then the other until the jam breaks loose (see B).5 Remove the debris.

Turn off the circuit breaker that controls the garbage disposal. Reach inside with a pair of long-nose pliers and pull out whatever jammed the machine.6 Turn on the cold water--this hardens any grease inside and helps the disposal chop it up--and run the disposal until all the remaining garbage is gone. Here is a video, that shows each step!

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