Garbage Disposal Odor

pommom · ‎03-10-2010

I use a garbage disposal foam cleaner & brush weekly, but every time I'm at the sink, I a sour smell still emits from it.

I've sprinkled baking soda in it a few times a day and yet that hasn't helped.

I used vinegar once. It kept the odor at bay for about 1/2 day.

Running out of ideas. Can someone give me a solution?

BTW - I flip on the switch every time I empty food/drink into it.

If your face brightens when you meet a friend, you have struck gold. - unknown

OCGurl · ‎03-10-2010

I use Lysol All purpose in the pour container (not the spray bottle) a couple times a wk to keep it fresh. It sounds however like their might be something stuck if it keeps smelling. It might just need to air out. If it never let up I would probably replace it. Also grind up lemons in there. I've read Kosher salt & ice will scour the inside as well.

Caffeina · ‎03-09-2010

Try cleaning the underside of the rubber at the opening. It can get stinky muck there.

pommom · ‎03-10-2010

Wow! I forgot about the lemons! Yes, and orange peels are great, too. Gotta stock up then. Thanks for the (reminder) tips.

If your face brightens when you meet a friend, you have struck gold. - unknown

pommom · ‎03-10-2010

On 7/3/2014 Caffeina said:
Try cleaning the underside of the rubber at the opening. It can get stinky muck there.

Caffeina, I do yank it out (yuk) and clean it as part of the process.

If your face brightens when you meet a friend, you have struck gold. - unknown

Classique · ‎09-07-2010

You can use any citrus fruit.....limes and grapefruit, oranges and lemons!

gazelle77 · ‎03-01-2013

Yes- I use those packets and they work for a while. What I have found helpful is NOT to dispose of "stinky" things... onions, radishes, broccoli etc. I just throw them in either the compost container or garbage.

When I have lemon rinds... I microwave them about 2 minutes to soften them and then dispose of them in the disposer. Microwaving the rinds allows the grinder to do a better job.

pommom · ‎03-10-2010

gazelle - another wonderful idea. Thanks.

If your face brightens when you meet a friend, you have struck gold. - unknown

Nightowlz · ‎03-11-2010

On 7/3/2014 pommom said:
Wow! I forgot about the lemons! Yes, and orange peels are great, too. Gotta stock up then. Thanks for the (reminder) tips.

We did that & DH had to remove part of the plumbing to clean out the lemon peels so I would not use those even though it does smell good. While he was at it he cleaned out all the build up he could get to.

You might try Lemi-Shine garbage disposal cleaner. If cleaning does not work you may need a digestive enzyme drain cleaner like Bio Clean to eat the gunk build up in the plumbing. It will stink when you first put it in the drain but the smell will go away the next day. Eventually after you get the build up in the plumbing clean it should not smell. We put Bio Clean in our shower drains once per week & have no problem with clogs.

chickenbutt · ‎03-09-2010

Thanks for the advice about microwaving the lemons first. I never would have thought of that. Whenever I have zested/juiced some lemons I always toss one of the lemon halves into the garbage disposal.

I use the blue packets from time to time.

I also like to pour a bunch of baking soda down all my drains, including the garbage disposal, and then chase it with some distilled white vinegar. It foams up and cleans to some degree.

The black rubber thing on mine doesn't come off. It was never a thought of mine that the underside of it would be - ugh, I don't want to think about it - until one time I dropped something in there and had to reach in and get it. My hand came up with this black stuff on it (that I also don't even like to think about).

Silly me, I thought the cleaning lady was keeping all that clean. Guess not. One time, years ago, QVC had this kit of stuff for cleaning the garbage disposal. It included this brush thing that is wider at the bottom and you push it down in, then raise it to the degree that the wide part is against the underside of the rubber ring. Then you can rotate it to clean it.

Anyway, since I learned about what happens on the underside of that I really make sure it's kept clean. Between that brush, the packets, and the baking soda/white vinegar, it seems to be kept pretty clean. I also told the cleaning lady about the rubber thing. She said that, on most peoples' garbage disposal, it comes out. Um, ok - even if it doesn't come out methinks it needs to be cleaned underneath.

I've never had persistent (or any) odors, though. If it is being kept properly clean, I can only imagine that something is stuck somewhere causing the problem.