Garbage Disposal Repair for Jams, Leaks, and Dead Units
Garbage disposal repair usually starts with one of four complaints: it hums, it leaks, it grinds, or it does nothing at all. We find out which part failed, fix it when a fix makes sense, and replace the unit when it does not. You get the price before any work starts.
What the symptom usually means
A disposal is a motor under the sink with a spinning plate that throws food against a grinding ring. The sound it makes and where the water drips tell us a lot before we even open the cabinet. It is one of the everyday jobs our plumbing services crews handle.
Down the disposal or in the trash?
Most disposal jams and kitchen drain clogs come from the same short list of foods. Tap each one to see where it belongs and why.
Six of these seven belong in the trash. Tap each tile to see which one is safe for the disposal and what the others do to the pipe under your sink.
If the sink still drains slow after the disposal is cleared, the clog is past it in the line. That is a drain cleaning job, and for kitchen lines coated in grease, hydro jetting scours the pipe wall clean.
How we repair a garbage disposal
Which way it usually goes
We tell you which way your unit is headed and why. You decide.
What changes the cost of a disposal repair
We do not quote over the phone without knowing what failed. Here is what moves the number once we look.
The price comes first
We look at the unit, tell you what failed, and give you the price before any work starts. If a repair costs close to a new unit, we say so.
Hard water, older drains, and the main line
Hard water
Hard water in much of Ventura County leaves scale on the grinding ring and inside the drain. Cold water and the odd handful of ice cubes keep the chamber cleaner.
Older drain lines
In older homes, the pipe behind the sink may be galvanized steel or old cast iron that has narrowed inside. A new disposal will not fix a slow drain if the pipe behind it is half closed. And if water under the cabinet is not coming from the disposal at all, leak detection finds the real source.
The main sewer line
Everything the disposal grinds still has to reach the street. If the kitchen and other drains back up together, the problem is past the disposal, and a sewer camera shows what is sitting in the main line. Putting in a new sink at the same time? We handle the fixture installation too.
We have used Armor a few times and have been completely happy with the professional work and promptness of this company. These guys never disappoint.
Garbage disposal questions
What people ask us when the disposal stops, leaks, or starts making noise.
Most of the time it is a jam, a tripped reset button, or a tripped breaker. Less often the motor or the switch has failed. We check each one in order and tell you whether it is a quick garbage disposal repair or a replacement before any work starts.
Only with the power off. Turn off the wall switch and the breaker, then use the hex wrench that fits the bottom of most units to turn the plate back and forth. Never reach into the disposal with your hand. If it still hums and will not spin, call us.
Often, yes. Leaks at the sink flange, the dishwasher hose, or the drain connection can usually be fixed with new seals or clamps. A leak from the bottom of the housing means an inside seal has failed, and the unit needs to be replaced.
It can. Food and grease ground up at the sink still have to travel the whole drain to the street, and in an older clay or cast iron line they settle and catch on rough joints. Use the disposal for small plate scraps and put the rest in the trash or compost.
Both. When garbage disposal repair does not make sense, we remove the old unit, set the new one, reconnect the drain, the dishwasher hose, and the power, and test it with water running. Then we clean up under the sink.
Disposal jammed, leaking, or dead?
Call and tell us what it is doing. We will tell you whether it sounds like a repair or a replacement and give you the price before any work starts. Prefer to send a photo first? Use the form and we will call you back.