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Many people don’t think about what they put down the kitchen sink. They just scrape all of their food waste into the sink, turn on the garbage disposal, and watch it all disappear. But many things can damage your garbage disposal or plumbing.
Here are 15 things you should never put down the kitchen sink if you want to avoid a huge repair bill.
Coffee Grounds
Coffee grounds aren’t completely water soluble. So, if you put them down the kitchen sink and mix them with buildup that’s already in the pipes, like butter, oil, or grease, the coffee grounds will stick to the buildup and cause a clog.
Pasta
When you put pasta down the sink, it absorbs liquid and swells. This eventually takes up the entire width of the drainpipe and causes a clog.
Flushable Cat Litter
It may say flushable in the name, but you really shouldn’t put flushable cat litter down the kitchen sink or in the toilet. Even flushable litter can cause a clog. It also picks up bacteria from your cat’s feces, which is typically resistant to chemicals used to treat water.
Grease
Grease can quickly build up in your pipes and cause a clog. Running hot water may help a little, but all it really does is push the grease further down the pipes. Always let the grease cool and put it in the trash can to avoid expensive plumbing bills.
Raw Flour
When flour mixes with water, it expands and forms a thick paste-like substance that can coat the inside of your pipes. If you have spilled flour, brush it into a dustpan, throw it in the trash, or vacuum it up.
Unused Medication
Yes, you should dispose of any unused medication safely. No, the kitchen sink isn’t the place to do it. Medication can clog the pipes, but more importantly, it can react with other substances you put down the sink and create a dangerous chemical reaction.
Eggshells
Eggshells have adhesive membranes that can wrap around the grinding teeth of your garbage disposal. Even when ground up, tiny pieces of shell can increase the risk of blockage in the pipes.
Margarine & Butter
Margarine and butter are awful for your drain and plumbing even if you melt it first. Both will harden and stick to the sides of your pipes, creating buildup and blockages over time.
Rice
Much like pasta, rice expands if exposed to fluid. It also gets really sticky and adheres to the inside of your pipes, eventually causing a clog.
Potato Peels
Potato peelings are well known to clog a sink because they contain a lot of starch. Instead, throw them away in the trash can. Or, if you are a gardener, throw them in the compost pile.
Seafood Shells
Just like eggshells, seafood shells are hard on your garbage disposal. They can also get lodged in your pipes and cause a clog. Just throw them in the trash can instead.
Stickers
Those small stickers you often find on fruit and veggies are usually made of plastic. They can stick to the sides of your drain and your pipes. If they get through your plumbing system, they can also stick to filters in waste treatment centers and even pollute oceans and rivers.
Bones
Even if you have the best garbage disposal money can buy, you’ll still not be able to grind bones up enough to fully flush them down the drain. The trash can is the correct place for bones.
Fruit Pits
Much like bones, your garbage disposal can’t break down fruit pits enough to flush them down the drain fully. However, you can put them in your compost pile or the trash can.
Household Fluids
Used car fluids and household cleaners should never be put down the kitchen sink. They probably won’t clog your pipes, but they can release harmful chemicals into the water supply.
