Stinky Garbage Disposal

well, I've had experiences w/stinky g. disposals & depending on what is causing it depends on the solution. Here are a few...lemon rind, orange rind, straight bleach, or there is an actual cleaner for disposals. If I remember right, they are tablets? You can get them @ wal-mart! Hope this helps!

Try Simple Green full strength. Let is sit in disposal for 20 minutes, then put on the grinder and run hot water into the disposal for a 1/2 minute.

Hi J.,

I used to use a product that cleaned and deodorized my disposal. You put it in and it foamed up and worked very well. Sorry but I can't remember the name but I believe I found it in the cleaning products area. Where I live now, I no longer have a garbage disposal. I hope I have helped.

Ice. Dump a large cup full of ice down it. Turn it on, but don't run any water until it sounds like it's all chopped up. The ice will clean the blades and move any large particles out. Then do some of the "good smell" techniques, like the orange or lemon.

Go to walmart, in the dishwashing dept they have a box of disposal cleaner, follow directions and it really works. A.

Freeze several ice cubes of white vinegar. Grind them in your garbage disposer. The vinegar helps clean the smell. Or grind 1/2 of a lemon, but be careful not to overdo your disposer because of the lemons tough skin. Hope this helps.

If you like limes, lemons or oranges, when you are done squeezing the juice out of them, put the peels in your sink and run your disposal. You don't have to run it until the peels are gone, just enough for a great aroma! Just remember to put your lime, lemon or orange peels in your sink and each time you run the disposal you will get a great citrus aroma!

I always like to throw in a bits of thin orange peels or lemon peels then turn the disposal on w/lots of hot running water.

The best thing I have done is to use lemons in it. We also grind our coffee grounds in it in order to remove some of the stuck on bits. Once a month or more if it is gross we run a cut lemon in the grinder with some ice cubes in order to sharpen the blades and remove the stuck on bits from the bottom. Also you may need to look at the rubber cover and make sure it isn't caked up with gunk. That stuff makes it smell even worse. I just wash it at the end of the dishes once a week.

If the lemons don't work try pouring approx 1/4 cup baking soda in the disposal and then pour approx 1/4 cup vinegar. After the bubbles die down run HOT water thru the disposal. This works for me when lemons don't. Safe & inexpensive.

I cut up lemons and then turn on the disposal w/ cold water. I usually do this once a month..........or you can use limes too.

I had the same problem so my husband started cutting up a lemon & running it thru the disposal. We do this 1 or 2 times a week. I know that lemons arent cheap but it is worth it to not have that rotten trash smell in my kitchen.

I have heard to grind up a lemon or lime or an orange to help with the smell. If that doesn't do it, there might be something stuck and needs to be cleaned out.

I use Spring again Garbage Disposal cleaner (you can get it at walmart). You could also try pieces of apple (apple will absorb the smell. Let them sit in there a couple of hours, then run your disposal with water running. When the apple is gone, the smell will be too. I also like to put pieces of lemon or lime in there periodically as a maintenance kind of thing (usually after I have juiced them). It keeps it smelling nice.

slice a lemmon, lime, or an orange put it in your disposal flip the switch and it should be good. Oh and if you put some ice in there also it will sharpen the blades

J., squeeze a lemon or lemon juice(you can use Lime too) into it pretty regularly and that will take care of it. There is also a specific cleaner in the dish soap aisle that works well too.

I had that problem until we replaced ours, but it was over 20 years old and finally "died".

Try Lemons, they seem to work for mine.

Lemons... either juice or even better cut a lemon up and grind it in the disposal.

At Walmart there is a product by the dishwasher cleaners, it comes in a box with 5 yellow packets. You put one packet in the dosposal with hot water and turn on the disposal. Blue foam will come up from the disposal and clean out anything stuck in the disposal. When you turn the disposal off it goes up the other side of the sink and cleans it out also. I use this once a week and it leaves a great smell at the same time.

Lemons - cut them up into small pieces and run them through. Good luck!

Citrus rinds are supposed to help - orange, lemon, or lime as long as you have a good disposal that can handle the peels.

There are several things you can do really. Here is the best one.

Step 1:
Inspect the black rubber cover that fits in the disposal. Sometimes bits of garbage collect under the flaps and create a smell.

Step 2:
Clean the rubber cover, if necessary. If yours lifts out, remove it and clean away debris with a scrub brush and warm, soapy water. If your rubber cover is installed permanently, lift up each flap and clean it with soapy water and an old toothbrush.

Step 3:
Deodorize the disposal. Cut a lemon in half and drop the fruit and a handful of baking soda into the disposal. Turn on the cold water faucet and then the disposal. The unit will clean itself as it grinds up the mixture.

lemon rinds, orange rinds or run the disposal and pour some dishwashing liquid in with the water running; preferably lemon or orange dishwashing liquid.

Put Orange peels in the disposal to get rid of the smell and to sharpen the blades

First, look inside and make sure nothing is caught under the blades and rotting in there. If not, then pour a cup or so of laundry bleach in, let it set for 30 minutes, then run hot water in and turn the disposer on. That works for me every time!

Hi, my name is K. W. - I live in Ft. Worth. Turn the disposal on and run the water. Then pour bleach down the sink
(about 3 cups). It works for me everytime!

Apple cider vinigar!

I use a product called Spring Again Garbage Disposal Cleaner, and it works pretty good. You can get it at Wal-Mart.

Have you tried cutting up a lemon into about four pieces and sending it down there to grind up? that's what I use to do, I don't have a garbage disposal any more, but it use to work for me.

Put grapefruit, lemon, orange rinds into garbage disposal after tearing up smaller and it will smell better. They also sell things at Linens and Things and Bed bath and beyond to help with garbage disposals. A.

You might try putting lemons in it.
M

I like to grind up citrus peels!!

When my garbage disposal starts to stink I use soda and finish with orange or lemon piles down it. I would also see if I have any that are getting to old and I will cut them in half and run them down also.

Ihave found that the rind of any citrus fruit will work just peel an orange and put the peel in the disposal and trun it on it gets rid of all that gunk in & around the thing but makes it smell nice too. orange gratefruit lemon or lime all work because the orange and gratefruit have the biggest rind they work best. sldo try baking soda.

Hi J.,

Easy fix, cut a lemon or lime in half, throw it in running cold water, enjoy the clean!

D. H

Try cutting up a lemon and running in through the disposal.
Hope this helps
M.

I have always ground up lemons like everyone else, but when I had an extra-old, nasty disposal that required constant care I had to get this product (from Bed, Bath & Beyond) that foamed up in the disposal. I'll try to figure out what it was because running bleach didn't work on that disposal for me because a lot of the smell was from the top of the unit where bleach wouldn't reach. This stuff would foam up and you'd leave it there for awhile and then flush it with lots of hot water.

Here's a link: http://www.summitbrands.com/brands/DisposerCare.aspx

Try cutting a lemon in half and dropping it into your disposal and turn the disposal on and run it for a few seconds. If you do this at least twice a week, this should help solve the stinky disposal problem. It has worked for both I and my mother for years.

Rinse it with bleach and then drop orange peel into it, and run it. Works every time for me! :)

They have some packages of powder I think it is, I have used it and still have some downstairs, You put the whole package(packaging and all) in the disposal and run water and turn on the disposal it disinfects your disposal and cleans it too. It works :)

Pour about l/2 cup of white vinegar overnight a good time to throughly do it. A daughter of mine suggests fruit peel as a run through...

Let baking soda sit for awhile and then pour white vinegar on top. This will foam up. The mixture is a natural drain cleaner. You will probably need to repeat several times.
You might also try putting lemon peel, orange pel, or grapefruit peel down and turning on the disposal.

Try grinding up some ice & salt to clean it. Then grind up any kind of citrus peel.

chop up lemons, or baking sodaand vinegar

I would try putting lemons or oranges down and grinding them up and if that doesn't work pour some bleach down it.

Grind lemons (no seeds) or an orange (no seeds)
I read in hints from Heloise to grind ice every so often to keep it 'sharp' =) and to run water for at least 1 minute after grinding stuff so that it makes it all the way to the street. ~C~

Hi!

You might try to cut up a lemon, it might work with just a lemon rind,then run you garbage disposal with it. Also, I am not sure, but I think it is a mixture of vinegar and baking soda. It should bubble up and let it sit there for a while then wash it down the sink. I don't have a garbage disposal anymore, but I think I probably put about 2 tbsp. of baking soda in it first, then add about the same of vinegar. It has been a while and I have kinda forgotten, but both of those should freshen it up.

put ice and baking soda down the disposal and grind it--should help a lot.

cut a lemon, lime or orange into quarters and drop it in ... also a bit of dishsoap at the end of running it will help too

Slice up an orange and put it down the disposal with the peel. Then turn on the disposal and let it clean it out.

Put a cup of baking soda down the disposal, followed by a cup of vinegar.

J.,
The smell is caused by bacteria. Sometimes no mater how long you allow the unit to run, food debris remain. Try this, first, start the water, turn on the disposal and feed in ice as fast as you can. Really pile in in. This will usually dislodge any waste that is still in the unit. Next, shut the water off and immediately poor in one to two cups of bleach. Be cautious of splatter. Turn off the disposal and let the bleach do its thing. After about 30 minuets rinse the disposal out. If the smell remains you may have a drain vent misrouted and you may be smelling sewer gas.
I hope this helps.
Grand Pop Bart

Grind up an orange peel. Or vinegar and baking soda work well too.

Put half a lemon (peel and all) through the garbage disposal.

Sometimes you have to put something rough into it to clean it out a bit.....I like citrus rinds the best, lemon or orange cut into smaller pieces works good. Also you need to run the thing a little bit after it grinds whatever you put in there so it's just running hot water for maybe 30 seconds to make sure everything runs down. If that doesn't do it there is a product made for cleaning the disposal you just let it sit in there for a bit and it sanitizes it which is probably a great idea to do regularly. Good Luck, hope this works.

Cut up a lemon and throw it in, you can also put some ice in to sharpen the blades. SK

I usually use orange peels/lemon peels - or they have,i believe they are called plunko - they are at bed bath adn beyond or lowes - little yellow balls to put in there. There is also a disposal cleaner that is a foam at lowes...hope that helps!

I always use a smal chunk of citrus. I prefer a lemon or lime wedge fruit and rind. Stick it in the diposal and let the blades run until you think that it has torn the piece of fruit. Also you may want to wipe up and under the rubber stoppers into your disposal, this part of the sink never gets "cleaned" the way everything else does.

Sprinkle baking soad down the drain and pour in vinegar. The chemical reaction will cause a volcano like bubbling but it will help clean the stink!

Any kind of citrus fruit (lemon, orange, grapefruit, lime) put a small wedge or even just the rine down the disposal. Run the water while grinding it up for a minute. It will smell great!

Lemons. limes, oranges....cut them up into chuncks with the rhine and all and put them in there and turn it on, the citrus kills any smell you have. I usually do it once a week just to keep it fresh.

J., with an old sponge, that has a scratchy side, use scouring powder & stick your whole hand in there & get every nook & cranny. In between times, grind up a lemon, or sprinkle baking soda down the hole, or a little bleach! That's always kept mine really fresh smelling! S. :)

Grind orange and lemons peels in there. The acid helps disolve yucky stuff in there.

R.

J., mine does that from time to time and I use a small box of baking soda, pour it into the disposal hole then I follow it with 1/2 cup of vinegar (any kind). This creates a reaction and it will bubble up but leave it alone for several hours. Then rinse with hot water and the disposal on. Sometimes I will peel very thin strips of lemon peel and grind them up. My sink kept getting stopped up and a plumber told me to use a whole jug of bleach every 3 months and that would help the odor too. It definitely!! Hope this helps.

J.:

use some lemon slices or lemon rine to give you a fresh smell. Works great

J.

Have you tryed lemons or oranges. Put them not at the same time in the garbage disposal and turn it on and see if that help you might have to do it a couple of time. Try lemons first.

I use the Disposer Care that another mom mentioned in her post. I get it at Walmart. It works really well!

Citrus. Lemons are the best. Cut one up in quarters or thirds and grind it up with lots of water. Use a couple of extra pots of water filled up ahead of time. Grind the rind and eveything.

Pour bleach down it, let it sit for a while, then run hot water down in with the disposal on.

Albertson's carries a brand by Spring and it's called Garbage Disposal Cleaner. Also when you clean your sink with cleanser, also clean the ring area above the rubber. It helps and the same for the other side where the stopper is on the left side . Most people probably clean the sink and don't do these areas and that is where I have found odors start.

S.

Bleach works for me. Sometimes I use vinegar. Just run some down the drain. With either bleach/vinegar, I leave the sink unused overnight to let the effect "sink" :) The next morning is when i actually run hot water and it works for me!
All the best - know how you feel. I detest smelly sinks in my house 8-)

Hi J....Wal-Mart or any grocery store in the laundry soap area will have things for the garbage disposal. You also might try running really hot water for a while with the garbage disposal on and pour vinegar in with the running water. Hope this helps.

Yeah, that happens to us alot! Cut a lemon or orange in kinda narrow wedges. About 1/2 wide. Place them in the disposal with running water and turn switch on and then right back off again and pulse it so to speak. Turn water back off and let the pieces sit in there for a bit. Then repeat the process. If you just pulse it instead of leaving it on, little pieces will remain in there to rid the smell. Also, you can pour 1/2 cup of bleach OR 1/2 cup vinegar into the drain without the water running and don't run water for at least 5 min. Hope this helps!
L.

Usually running citrus peels thru the disposal works for me (or the whole fruit, cut in quarters or so). Lemons probably work better, but I've used oranges, too. This might work better for maintaining a clean one. I run the peels down everytime I have them. There is a product for cleaning garbage disposals; I've seen it at Wal-mart. I don't know if it works or not.

Try grinding a lemon in it.

I use bleach. It kills the germs that are causing the odors. Just pour a little in the disposal and let it sit for about 10 minutes then run water through it. After that I place cut pieces of LEMON in it and RUN the disposal until they are gone. This will take out the smell of the bleach and leave you with a nice lemony smell. Good luck!

put ice cubes in the drain and then run the disposal for a few seconds at a time. Also, you can pour bleach down the drain.

I usually just fill basin with a strong bleach/water mix and add Ice. Then I just run the disposal untill empty. The ice help physically loosen any "stuff" that might be stuck and the bleach...well you know... good luck:)

Hi there!
I use something called "Disposal Care" that is available in the dishwasher soap isle at the grocery store.
It works for me...you may have to do it a couple times if you have a super stinky disposal.
I hope this helps.

Lemons work the best for me! Good Luck!

A good way is to cut up some limes and throw down there and then run your garbage disposal to cut them up. It has worked like a charm every time I've done it.

YES! All you need is baking soda and vinager!! First poor the baking soda, then the vinager. I don't know why but the combination of the two get's the stick out. Good Luck!

Try cut up lemons or limes. Also, ice cubes keep the blades sharp.

You can put a citrus fruit into the disposal and chop it up (lemon, lime, orange). I will help or I have heard that white vinegar works as well. I have tried the vinegar yet.

I heard you should cut up a lemon and grind it in the disposal. Good for odor and disinfecting. I haven't tried it yet, though.

Hi, I have tried many of the solutions you've read here. The newest, least costly and best that I found (on the net) is. Fill your sink with very hot water, and pump in some of your grease cutting DW soap (I use the Dawn Pump). Then turn on the disposal and take the stopper out. This worked the first time for me. HTH, Nana

Cut a lemon in quarters and run in disposal, has always worked for me.

V. C

I always put my lemons in the disposal and never have odor. You can also try running an orange or lemon powdered drink in your dishwasher and disposal to eliminate odor. In your dishwasher, just run in in your soap tray without any dishes.

Walmart carries a cleaner for the garbage disposal. It is in with the dish soaps. You just pour some into the disposal while the water is running, run it for a few seconds and the smell is gone. I'm sorry that I can't think of what the name is.

ditto on the citrus.

Put ice and baking soda in it. Good Luck!

Yes, you put lemon peels or lime peels down the disposal which refreshes the disposal.

I don't know if your disposal is like mine, but I pulled out the black splash guard and almost got sick. I purchased a new splash guard because I didn't want to try to clean it. Less than $5 smell is gone.

put a lemon or orange in your disposal

Try oranges or lemon rinds and ice cubes.

Run ice cubes and citrus peels through it.

Completely fill your disposal with ice and let it sit for 5 minutes or so. Then turn on your garbage disposal. The disposal will finely crush the ice. Let the disposal run and the ice will remove all of the debris that has formed on the walls of the disposal (causeing the smell). You will be surprised at what will surface. After all of the ice has been crushed - run cold water in the sink for a minute or two.
It sounds crazy but it works.

For our garbage disposal I use about a cup of ice once a week while running the water and the disposal. So far it's kept it odor free.

Cut up some lemons and limes and let the garbage disposal have at them.

It looks like you have gotten a ton of responses on this already, but one thing to try thats natural is. Pour some baking soda down the drain and then some white vinegar. It will start fizzing and will clean it. then you can take either orange or lemon peels and put in the drain and turn it on and your kitchen will smell like either orange or lemon... Hope it helps!

Yes I recommend lemon or orange peels. Put the pieces of peel in the disposal and turn it on. As it grinds the peels up, I think the acid in the peel kills the bacteria and it smells pretty good. My Mom taught me this several years ago.

Throw in orange or lemon peel and grind it up for a wonderful citrus smell. Grapefruit peel works well too. Plus we all love to eat fresh citrus!

Put bleach in it and let it sit overnight.

I'm told putting a lemon down the disposal works. Just let the blades grind it.