Kitchen Waste Disposal Units
kitchen waste disposal units are usually fitted under your kitchen sink and grind food waste such as vegetable peelings before it enters the sewerage system. The waste disposal unit grinds food waste down into small particles and turns into a liquid pulp when mixed with running water to wash away safely into your drain. The most popular models are the Insinkerator and Franke food waste disposers
How Kitchen Waste Disposal Units Work
The food waste sits on a turntable inside the unit and spins at high speed creating a centrifugal force through which the waste is forced to its perimeter and through a shredding ring. Most of the waste disposer units available on the market today do not have any sharp blades or scissors. They have a steel-shredding ring a bit like your cheese grater inside the unit.
Most waste disposal units available in the UK nowadays are of the continuous-feed type, allowing waste to be disposed of continuously as the unit runs.
Alternatively there are Batch-feed models available which as it suggests deal with batches of waste at a time, rather than continuously. They are filled then locked before operation, making it impossible to run the machine until the lid is closed.
The size of the chamber and power of the motor determine the amount and time waste is processed.
Use Cold Water
Before using the waste disposal unit turn the cold tap on and let a good flow of water pass through the waste disposal unit. This helps food pulp easier and also acts as a lubricant through the unit to help save any blockages occurring.
The use of cold water also acts as a coolant to the unit when in use, so Hot water isn’t recommended as this may overheat the unit and also make foodstuffs become stickier.
I can remember once a customer putting gravy granules down a waste unit the switching the hot tap on. The unit made a nice gravy mixture but blocked the unit and a plumber had to be called to fix it.
It is also beneficial to keep the water running through the unit for 5-10 seconds after to make sure all the food waste has been washed away. This will help food building up and smelling.
The use of running water acting, as lubrication will add to the life of your unit.
What to Grind and What Not to Grind
Most soft foods are safe to grind a few examples are:
Vegetable peel, apple or pear cores, food left over’s boiled rice, tea leaves, cooked meats, pastries, bread, cakes, nuts, porridge, left over cereals and baby food. All will pass through as long as you’re cold water is running. Always read the manufactures instructions for more food waste guides.
You can grind harder materials for instance:
Chicken bones, ice cubes, eggshells, and small fruit pips and small stones.
Large stones aren’t recommended like avocado stones - anything up to the size of a hazelnut should be fine for household units, and any bones larger than a chicken thigh should be chopped up.
As a general rule, don’t put anything other than foodstuffs into a waste disposal unit.
Don’t grind fibrous materials either such as celery, artichokes or asparagus. The have fibres that act like string inside the unit and can get caught up and block the unit.
The same is applied to uncooked meat that can wrap itself around the internal parts of the waste disposal unit and block it.
Lastly don’t pour anything down that you wouldn’t put down your normal kitchen sink like fat or grease. This will block the drain and ultimately your waste disposal unit.
Don't pour undiluted bleach or caustic cleaners into it.
More powerful units will shred items as large as a chicken carcass. Generally, the more powerful the unit, the greater the range of waste food you can put down it.
If you have a septic tank using a food waste disposer is equivalent to having one extra person in the household.
Fitting a Waste Disposal Unit
Most waste disposal units connect to a 38mm (approx 1½") waste trap and pipe work - generally. Depending on the model purchased, and the type of waste trap already fitted, it may be possible to connect to the existing waste pipe with only minor changes.
Most Waste disposal units have a range of accessories that allow the customer to adapt their unit to their existing sinkhole.
For example InsinkErator supply a waste reducer to help fit a unit to a sink with a 60mm sink hole or an extended flange to use with ceramic Belfast sinks.
Lastly a Cleaning Tip!
Grinding a lemon or citrus skins in your waste disposer unit will help reduce any build up of foul odours which sometimes come from foods that have accumulated inside the unit.
Also Another Tip from The Tap Store
Nothing to do with Waste Disposal units now but a drop of lemon juice and water can be used to clean out most things. I use this inside my steam oven after steaming fish. A quick wipe around the stainless steel interior of the steam oven with the lemon water removes that fishy smell and leaves it fresh for next time.
The Environmental Benefit of a Waste Disposal Unit
Approximately 20% of our weekly waste is foodstuffs that could be put down a waste disposal unit rather than in landfill.
A waste disposal unit gives an environmental net gain because the small amounts of energy and water used to run it are far outweighed by the amount of methane producing food waste which is now no longer going to landfill.
Councils in England have recognised this and have started to encourage the installation of waste disposal units. Worcestershire County Council for example offers a grant of up to £80.00 if you fit a waste disposal unit.
The Tap Store Team