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How Do I Clean the Garbage Disposal?

If you prefer the commercial route, there are professional garbage disposal cleaners on the market that can be purchased at major home centers.  There are plenty of alternative methods to clean your disposer as well.  For routine weekly cleaning, try baking soda and warm water. Simply plug your sink with the sink stopper and fill it halfway with warm water. Add ¼-1/2 cup of baking soda.  Turn your disposer on and remove the sink stopper to allow the baking soda water to flow in. 

More Quick Tips

Grind citrus fruit peels to keep your disposer smelling fresh.

Boil a kettle of water and pour down the drain to loosen or melt any grease buildup.

Grind ice cubes to help loosen food lodged in the grinding chamber.

Garbage Disposal Cleaning Maintenance 

To keep your garbage disposal clean always run a strong stream of cold water directly into the drain before you begin inserting your food scraps.  When grinding is complete and you hear only the motor running, shut of the disposer, but continue to run the cold water for a full fifteen seconds to ensure that all food scraps are fully flushed through the system.

Smelly Odor Solutions 

If you have lingering odors that you can't remove with routine cleaning, you may have a grease and food buildup problem. For this problem, Maytag instructs its customers to first turn off disposer and disconnect power supply. They then advise to reach through the sink opening to clean the underside of the splash baffle and the inside upper lid of the grind chamber.