Haha, true enough—garbage disposals are pretty forgiving compared to other plumbing stuff. Still, ever had something weird stuck down there? I once fished out a spoon handle... no clue how that even happened.
Garbage disposals forgiving? Ehh, depends. Seen plenty of units jammed up by stuff you'd think they'd handle easily—like potato peels or eggshells. Had one customer swear their disposal was broken... turned out their kid had dropped a tiny Hot Wheels car down there. Spoon handles aren't even the weirdest thing I've pulled out, trust me. They're handy, sure, but definitely not bulletproof.
Had something similar happen last summer—disposal making this awful clunky sound and barely grinding. Finally got fed up and took it apart. Turned out my nephew had tossed a plastic bottle cap down there (kids, right?). Anyway, just unplugged it, reached in with some pliers, and fished the cap out. Ran fine after that. So before you replace it, definitely worth checking if there's something stuck inside...
Good call on checking for foreign objects first—saved me from replacing mine last year. A few things I'd suggest:
- First, unplug or kill the breaker (obviously).
- Shine a flashlight down there—you'd be surprised what sneaks in. Found a teaspoon once... still no idea how.
- If it's clear, try manually turning the blades from underneath with an Allen wrench. Sometimes debris jams it up just enough to cause noise without being visible from above.
Worth a quick check before dropping cash on a new unit.
"Found a teaspoon once... still no idea how."
Ha, teaspoons are sneaky little devils. Last month I dug out a bottle cap—no clue how it got there either. Quick tip: citrus peels freshen things up nicely after clearing jams. Anyone else ever toss lemon wedges down there, or is that just my eco-friendly wishful thinking?
