How to Reset a Garbage Disposal: Before Replacing the Machine

Garbage disposal is one of the most useful inventions to help you doing house chores. It simply allows you to easily throw out meal remnants without needing to scrape them to the bin.

Only by turning the switch on and the machine will be ready to help you with its powerful shredding feature. As a result, the food remnants can pass through.

However, garbage disposal sometimes does not work well. Usually, people will look upon the internet what to do with that. Pushing the reset button is one of the solutions. However, some of you might not know how to reset a garbage disposal.

How to Reset a Garbage Disposal

How to Reset a Garbage Disposal

1. Resetting a garbage disposal

It’s practically simple to reset a garbage disposal. Below is how to reset a garbage disposal.

  • First, turn off the machine. Never reach the opening with your bare hands even if you’re turning it off or unplugged it;
  • Open the lower cabinet and find a protruding reset button located outside the garbage disposal; then, press it.
  • Run the water faucet, then turn on the machine. If it works properly, you’re done there. If it still doesn’t work or sounds humming, find out below how to reset garbage disposal with Allen wrench.

2. What conditions can cause the disposal to stop working

Some factors can stop the garbage disposal from running properly. For example:

  • Running the garbage disposal on without any water
  • There are objects not ground well, probably some strings, dropping flatware, or bones.
  • It is jammed

In the last case, that can lead the machine to stop working. Then, the popping of the reset button happens.

3. Other options to reset the garbage disposal

You can opt to use the Allen wrench while resetting the machine. Doing these steps can also be done if your garbage disposal reset button gets stuck and not working properly.

  • Turn off the disposal and free the machine from any electric current;
  • Get your Allen wrench and find the socket on the center of your garbage disposal underside.
  • Insert it, and then move your wrench back and forth to loosen the object jammed on the disposal.
  • If you feel it doesn’t work, try to look for what’s causing the impeller to get stuck. Find the object and grab it with pliers. Then, do the second and third steps.
  • Press the reset button and do the steps as shown in point (2).

4. Other conditions that may happen

If the garbage disposal reset button is pushed in too far, you can try pinching and pulling it slowly down, although it may be tricky. It’s a good thing if you still manage to pull it off, and the machine still works well after that.

However, if you cannot pull the button or even after the button has been successfully pulled off, but the machine cannot work, there’s no other option left.

In that case, you’ll need to replace the machine as there are no spare parts are available. If you’re still in the warranty period, you can claim the warranty.

Those are a little information regarding how to reset a garbage disposal. To prevent such bad things from happening, make sure you don’t make your garbage disposal overwork.

Also, prevent string objects, bones, and grease from going through the garbage disposal as those things can make the machine work harder. Hence making it overheated or even any damage.

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