Can an odor come from the actual disposal?

[PonyMom]

I can't figure out what's making a garbage-y odor from my kitchen sink drain. One side has an Insinkerator disposal, and the other (the main drain) is a regular one. We don't have a dishwasher.


When the odor first appeared, I checked the disposal for slime and grunge, and there wasn't any.


There are no clogs, and the drains are running normally.


At this point, everything in and around the sink has been scrubbed, including the dish draining racks, even though the odor wasn't really coming from them.


The odor isn't coming from under the sink. It can't be smelled there, and the area is dry.


Could the odor be coming from the actual disposal?

 

[Twowaxhack]

Yes, disposals strain any food particles that happen to make there way into them.

Run the disposal and wash it out regularly, or remove the disposal and pipe the drain in.

 

[PonyMom]

Yes, disposals strain any food particles that happen to make there way into them.

Run the disposal and wash it out regularly, or remove the disposal and pipe the drain in.

What do you mean by "pipe the drain in"? Are you suggesting that the only way to clean that part of the disposal drain is to remove it, and install a new pipe?

 

[havasu]

Throw some ice cubes in the disposal, followed by the juice of a lemon. The ice cleans off the gunky food and the lemon juice makes it smell great.

 

[PonyMom]

Throw some ice cubes in the disposal, followed by the juice of a lemon. The ice cleans off the gunky food and the lemon juice makes it smell great.

I've never tried ice cubes before! I'll let you know if it works!

 

[havasu]

I do it weekly. It also keeps the blades sharp. Just run cold water as you add the ice cubes.

 

[Twowaxhack]

What do you mean by "pipe the drain in"? Are you suggesting that the only way to clean that part of the disposal drain is to remove it, and install a new pipe?

No, I was suggesting you may want to remove the disposal completely and throw it in the trash. Then pipe the drain in with pipe.

 

[Bird Doo Head]

First check that the p-trap isn't dry. That would indicate a venting problem. If the trap is A-OK:

It's important to wipe the underside of the drain flaps. They get a lot of stinky goo on them.

At home, if Havasu's ice method ice doesn't get rid of all of the odor, I'll pour a cup of sodium carbonate (Sold as Washing Soda or Soda Ash) & run the disposer with cold water. Next, I'll run hot to make sure that all of the crystals are dissolved & rinsed. Washing Soda does a very good job of removing the nasty film-of-stink. (I also mix it with hot water and pour it in the bathtub drain to dissolve soap residue.)

Ice also helps with grease residue in the disposer. Where I used to work, the plumbers would dump 100 or more pounds of ice into the giant disposers and emulsifiers, then run the machines. It is a great scrubber

 

[havasu]

Another way I get my pipes smelling fresh is to pour a 1/4 cup of baking soda down the drains, followed by a cup of white vinegar. It will foam up quite a bit, then I'll let it sit for 5 minutes, then follow with running hot water down the drains for a few minutes. I've been doing this for years.

 

[install4you]

Regarding the rubber drain flaps: if that rubber piece comes out, take it out & turn it over. Use a cleaning brush & liquid dish soap. Flex it every which way to access all the books & crannies. Keep it low in the sink or the brush will flip that goo everywhere.
This may not apply, but if that disposal ever had a dishwasher attached then removed, the connection probably got plugged from the outside of the unit. That would create a little nipple that would catch all manner of food particles & never get rinsed out. Cut 2/3 of the handle off an old toothbrush & use the brush to clean out that tube.
I've had to use a long skinny tubing brush to feed down the non-disposal side to clean crud out.
I've also used effervescent powder/tablets that create mounds of foam. If I clean inside the disposal first with a brush the foam finished it well.
This is not professional advice. I'm just a long-time homeowner & creative problem solver. Good luck.

 

[PonyMom]

At home, if Havasu's ice method ice doesn't get rid of all of the odor, I'll pour a cup of sodium carbonate (Sold as Washing Soda or Soda Ash) & run the disposer with cold water. Next, I'll run hot to make sure that all of the crystals are dissolved & rinsed. Washing Soda does a very good job of removing the nasty film-of-stink. (I also mix it with hot water and pour it in the bathtub drain to dissolve soap residue.)

The ice only helped a little (maybe I didn't use enough, or I need to do it again and again?) My laundry powder has sodium carbonate, but it has other things, too. Will that work for your method, or should I buy 100% washing soda?

The ingredients are Sodium Carbonate (497-19-8) [water softener]; C12-16 Pareth-9 (68551-12-2) [surfactant]; C10-14 Alcohol Ethoxylate (66455-15-0) [surfactant]; Sodium Metasilicate (6834-92-0) [drying agent]

 

[PonyMom]

I've had to use a long skinny tubing brush to feed down the non-disposal side to clean crud out.

I've also used effervescent powder/tablets that create mounds of foam. If I clean inside the disposal first with a brush the foam finished it well.

I got rid of that stupid rubber flap a long time ago! This disposer has never been attached to a dish washer.

I'm going to try your brush idea for the non-disposal side.

Have you ever compared whether the effervescent powder or tablets work any better than baking soda and vinegar?

 

[Twowaxhack]

Disposals are inherently nasty. They’re the equivalent to a human that doesn’t brush their teeth.

 

[install4you]

Regarding the effervescent stuff vs. vinegar & soda: the products I've used seem to stay foamed up longer than vinegar & soda. I think the expanding foam penetrates somewhat.

Before foaming, I clean inside the disposal with a kitchen brush made for cleaning drinking glasses. The rounded shape & a squirt of Dawn work well scrubbing the inside.

Note: the following comments are brainstorm level-not researched/tested. I think the ideal would an expanding foam with something like lye (that would dissolve organic matter) &/or an antibacterial. Also, there's a kid's science experiment called elephant toothpaste. It can create a massive amount of foam, so it would have to be scaled back from what you can find on Youtube. I think it uses (among other things) dish soap & hydrogen peroxide. I'm not sure if the foam has cleaning properties.

The skinny brushes I've used were in the aquarium department.

If you're a real tinkerer, here's something I've done. I made a rotary cleaner that works like a line trimmer. It cleans the crud off the inside of pipes. Just a little description to get you started with this idea-I used fishing line in the place of trimmer line, trimmer line as a drive shaft, aquarium or IV tubing like the metal tube on a line trimmer, & a drill to power it. It all depends on what you have lying around. If you can find a thin tube stiffer than the tubing I used, it would work better.

I hope my ramblings help someone.

 

[Freddy]

We had a kitchen redo and the plumbing newbie ran the sink drain line that was not compatible with the deep sink. The trap depth was a little over 4 inches and was perpetually stinky. We had to run cold water and add a little vinegar to the trap at night a couple of times weekly to keep the odor at bay. We sold the house and passed this situation to the new owner. Also I’ve used the ice trick in the disposal for many years.

 

[Twowaxhack]

A customer of mine, LaDishwasher SandwichMaker says that all disposals stink if you can smell well enough.

 

[PonyMom]

UPDATE: I think we're making some progress! Ice didn't work at first, but I realized I wasn't using enough. I bought more ice trays.

Today I did the vinegar-and-baking-soda thing in both drains, rinsing with very hot water while the disposer ran, and then I immediately switched to cold water and 4 trays of ice cubes. The water coming back up from the disposer was DARK GREY! Ick!

I think the kitchen smells better. The real test will be tomorrow morning. I'll update then!

 

[Twowaxhack]

If you have a dishwasher and it connects to the disposal, you should rinse the disposal out after every load of dishes.

Anytime food is introduced to the disposal side, intended or by accident the disposal should be turned on a rinsed clean.

Run enough water to at least replace the trap water with clean water.

Tips and tricks from my magic chest.

 

[PonyMom]

If you have a dishwasher and it connects to the disposal, you should rinse the disposal out after every load of dishes.

Anytime food is introduced to the disposal side, intended or by accident the disposal should be turned on a rinsed clean.

Run enough water to at least replace the trap water with clean water.

Tips and tricks from my magic chest.

Fortunately we don't have a dishwasher, so at least we don't have that problem!

 

[Bird Doo Head]

"My laundry powder has sodium carbonate, but it has other things, too. Will that work for your method, or should I buy 100% washing soda?
The ingredients are Sodium Carbonate (497-19-8) [water softener]; C12-16 Pareth-9 (68551-12-2) [surfactant]; C10-14 Alcohol Ethoxylate (66455-15-0) [surfactant]; Sodium Metasilicate (6834-92-0) [drying agent]"

On a search engine, type in the name of the product plus the letters MSDS and SDS. This will bring up the safety data sheet for the product. If the MSDS or SDS shows a high percentage of sodium carbonate, it'll work. Yours probably is. The sodium carbonate is the cheapest item on your ingredient list, above.

Paul

PS: It may help to mix up some enzymes with barely warm water into a paste and wipe it around inside the unplugged disposer. Let it sit for a few hours. Put the stopper in and fill the sink part way. Pull the stopper and turn on the disposer so a lot of water goes down the drain fast. When the enzymes get sent down the drain fast like that they will cling to the grease and soap residue on the pipes. They eat soap and grease. I do this on my bathroom sink & tub drains periodically to prevent build up. Crazy, but it works.

Septic tank enzymes are usually the cheapest source. Zep Septic Defense is one example.