The garbage disposal in your kitchen is a convenient way to remove scraps and leftovers, but when objects, such as glass, get stuck, the mechanism can become jammed and stop working properly. Read the following methods to find out how to clean out the glass stuck in the garbage disposal.

1) Disconnect your garbage disposal appliance from the main power source — This is to make sure that its not accidentally turned on while you remove the glass, which could cause serious injury.

2) Remove any large pieces of glass with pliers — Use needle-nose pliers to remove all the large pieces of glass that you can find.

3) Dislodge the glass — If you can’t move the glass, you’ll need to dislodge it first. Remove all pieces of glass you can easily reach with pliers.

4) Vacuum the garbage disposal — Use a wet-dry vacuum to remove smaller shards of glass. Simply hold the opening of the hose over the top of the garbage disposal and let the vacuum run until you can’t hear anything be sucked up anymore. If the sink isn’t wet, you can use a normal vacuum if you cover the end of the extension tube with a nylon stocking secured with a rubber band.

5) Reset the garbage disposal

a. Reconnect the garbage disposal to the power source.

b. Partially cover the drain with a plate.

c. Turn on the cold water.

d. Turn the garbage disposal on.

e. If the disposal still jams, there’s probably glass stuck in it. Turn it off, turn off the water, and repeat the process from the start.

6) Remove the garbage disposal from the sink

a. Use your product manual to remove the garbage disposal from the sink.

b. After you remove the disposal, carefully remove any remaining glass.

c. Reinstall the garbage disposal following the instructions on your manual.

If you still have questions or problems with your garbage disposal, use TalkLocal to get in contact with a professional who can help you now.

This entry was updated on Thursday, June 11th, 2015 at 11:19 am. This entry was originally posted on Friday, September 28th, 2012 at 4:00 pm and is filed under Plumbers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.