Most people give little thought to the convenience that an operating garbage disposal offers until it breaks. At that point, food scraps have to be carefully discarded to prevent a foul odor in the trash can indoors or they need to be protected in a specific way when taken outside to keep wild animals away. While the function of the disposal may be simple, it offers a number of specific purposes such as making time spent in the kitchen prepping and cooking easier and more enjoyable but also maintaining a fresh, sanitary room. The following are the steps you would need to follow for a DIY garbage disposal installation.
• Use 120-volt, 20-amp circuit breaker to ensure the disposal operates safely, as designed. Be sure to use a standard electrical outlet, not a GFCI.
• Gather the necessary tools to include putty knife, plumber’s putty, either a Phillips and/or flat head screwdriver, hammer, wire stripper, electrical tape, wire nuts, pipe wrench, old rags, and a bucket.
• After removing everything from under the sink, remove the old disposal. Then, place the bucket under the “J”-shaped pipe, which is called the “J” trap. With the pipe wrench, turn the slip nuts counterclockwise to loosen. Slip the “J” trap off, allowing any water in the pipe to drip into the bucket, as well as any water left in the trap itself.
• With the trap removed, the larger nut that holds the strainer in position would be removed, followed by the strainer. Any old putty should be removed before proceeding.
• Remove the new garbage disposal from the box along with instructions for the DIY garbage disposal installation.
• Install the mounting assembly according to the directions, being generous with the plumber’s putty so a ring around the drain could be formed.
• Use a small amount of putty when installing the sink flange, and then use a little pressure so it will stay in place.
• Slide the gasket and mounting ring onto the flange and while holding it firmly in place, use the included snap ring to finish connecting the flange.
• Next, tighten the mounting bolts. For this, tighten each of the three bolts a small amount, continuing until all are completely tight. This will ensure the disposal is installed level. More than likely, a small amount of putty will ooze out as these are tightened, which is fine.
• Wiring would be next for the DIY garbage disposal installation. Turning the new disposal unit over, you would see a red reset button, a small hole where a small wrench is used to turn the flywheel if the disposal were to become stuck during operation, and the cover plate that protects the wiring. After removing the plate, you would see black, green, and white wiring although some disposal manufacturer’s use bare copper. The wiring should already be stripped but if not, strip the sheath down three-quarter of an inch using the wire strippers.
• Slide the black cord through a hole found on the side of the disposal, keeping the wire sheath under the connector’s metal.
• Tighten the romex connector bolts while holding the wiring in place.
• Then with the wire nuts, connect black wire to black wire, green wire to green wire, and white wire to white wire. After twisting the exposed copper wire together, use electrical tape or wire protectors to secure then and when done, the wires would be pushed under the chamber and the protective plate cover put back on.
• With all the above done, the new unit for your DIY garbage disposal installation would be completed. The disposal unit would be lined up with the mounting assembly and then turned to lock it into place.
• If you have a dishwasher, look for the closed-ended tube on the side of the garbage disposal. At this point, the inlet line for the dishwasher would be connected by removing the plug.
• Once the dishwasher has been connected, check the “J” trap in that it might have moved slightly. You want the disposal and PVC pipes of the dishwasher to be aligned.
• For connecting the pipes, use only nylon washers for each of the locking nuts but slide the nut onto the pipe before the washer. With the lock nuts tight and the disposal properly aligned, rotate the cam collar located near the mounting assembly. If needed, you could use a screwdriver to tighten the collar down, which would lock the garbage disposal into place.
• Now, turn the water on and let it run while watching for leaks. If necessary, make adjustments and tighten anything loose.
• As the final step for the DIY garbage disposal installation, turn the power back on at the breaker, plug the disposal into the dedicated outlet, and while running the water, turn the disposal on to confirm operation.
