It’s the beginning of Spring Cleaning Season! It’s a time when we pay a little extra attention to the deep cleaning needed around the home.
Like any appliance, your garbage disposal needs a good cleaning every once in a while, or you could end up with a breeding ground for harmful bacteria or mold.
Most of the food you send through your garbage disposal is ground up and sent on its way. Sometimes, though, small pieces can get stuck in the splash guard and grinding chamber and eventually decay.
Grease and vegetables can leave behind substances that the disposal can’t grind all the way, and this residue can make bacteria to develop.
Good news is, you probably already have the cleaning components in your home to clean and disinfect your garbage disposal!
You will need some baking soda, vinegar, ice, table salt, and lemon peels. Using natural ingredients is the best way to clean your garbage disposal, as chemical cleaners can corrode its metal parts.
For starters, the rubber splash guard likely has a lot of small food particles and grease trapped underneath it. Clean it with an old toothbrush or scrubbing brush and lots of dish detergent. Scrub vigorously, paying particular attention to the underside, to remove any debris or slime.
To get the inside of the disposal clean, measure half a cup of baking soda and pour it into the disposal. Let it sit for half an hour, letting it work on deodorizing the disposal. Then pour in one cup of vinegar, which will cause a foamy liquid to bubble up into your sink. Let these bubbles sit in your disposal for three minutes, then rinse with hot tap water.
To clean the blades of the disposal and loosen up any buildup, pour in two cups of ice then add a cup of salt to the ice. Next, run the cold water, and turn on the disposal. Let it run until all the ice has been ground up.
Lastly an optional step is to freshen it up with some lemon peel. Just put the peel of one lemon into the disposal, run water from the tap, and turn it on. The peel’s aroma will refresh the whole sink.