Sink Food Waste Disposer: Choosing a Disposer

Recommendation points

• When it makes sense to install a disposer
• What are the grinders
• Knife and basket material
• Pneumatic switch or auto-on
• Diy disposer installation
• Model cost

For many people, the under-sink shredder has not only become an excellent way to dispose of food waste, but also relieved them of the problem of clogging up sewer pipes forever. We will tell you about the types of dispensers, their design features and self-assembly in this article..

When it makes sense to install a disposer

This is not to say that a food waste shredder is an indispensable attribute of any kitchen, but the housewives who have used it for some time no longer know how they used to do without it. There are a lot of reasons for this: organic residues in the trash can is very impractical, you need to get rid of them immediately, because their storage for more than a day is completely unhygienic. And even if you go to the chute or containers several times a day, leaking garbage bags and unpleasant odors are unlikely to disappear from life forever..

It is worth noting that it makes little sense to install disposers in country houses with their own vegetable garden and compost pit, but a certain amount of unprocessed organic matter in the effluent has the most beneficial effect on the operation of the septic tank. The rationality of buying such an expensive device directly depends on the number of people living in the house and their general household culture.

What are the grinders

There are two main types of disposers, differing in the method of activating the working body. In the classic version, this role is played by an electric motor, while a more modern technology uses the pressure of tap water. Electric dispensers are less expensive, but their power limit is slightly lower, and a point of connection to the mains is also required.

Hydraulic shredders are more economical, they are able to cope with larger fragments and practically do not fail: there is simply nothing to break. But their high cost and low popularity in the domestic market do not allow the use of such equipment everywhere. Moreover, there is not always a stable pressure above 4 bar in the water supply network..

There are also small design features that define additional functionality. This may be the presence of a dishwasher drain, an automatic start system, or a special shape of the grinder grater. Thus, of the two devices that are identical in appearance, one copes better with solid particles, the other is designed for a large volume of soft waste..

Knife and basket material

Almost all shredders, with the exception of the frankly cheap Chinese fakes, have a stainless steel basket and wheel, but there are some peculiarities. The quality and hardness of the steel determines the crushing efficiency and durability of the device. If the device has an ISO 9001 mark on the nameplate, you can be sure of the appropriate material quality. Manufacturers also often indicate some features of their products, such as self-sharpening cutting edges, their laser sharpening or special additives in steel. Such statements should be heeded.

As for the device of the chopper drum, it is the same for all manufacturers. A disc with several hammers is located at the bottom. They coarsely crush food waste and scatter it evenly along the walls of the basket, made in the form of a grid with pointed teeth. Large particles about them are finally abraded and washed away by a stream of water. The design is completely safe for humans, the rapidly rotating disc is located at such a height where fingers simply cannot reach.

Pneumatic switch or auto-on

The power button in dispensers is also safe, has no electrical contacts, so you can even touch it with wet hands. You push the piston, which creates air pressure in the tube that runs up to the switch in the engine housing. The pressure is strong enough for small children to turn on the chopper.

An alternative is an automatic way of switching on when waste gets into the basket. Devices of this kind are more expensive, electronic automation is quite reliable. Some models turn on when installed in the neck of the magnetic plug. With their absolute safety, such shredders cannot receive waste continuously..

Diy disposer installation

The disposer can be easily mounted alone, two main conditions are a sink with a drain hole of 90 mm and enough free space under the sink for the device of your choice.

First you need to install the stainless steel neck. It consists of two halves: a sleeve and a lock. Use a screwdriver to unscrew the three screws almost completely to loosen the lock, then remove the snap ring and separate the neck portions. The sleeve with the rubber seal put on it is inserted into the sink drain hole from above, the second sealing ring must be put on it from below, then the lock and the spring ring. Tightening the screws, you need to achieve uniform and tight pressing of the flange.

To install the pneumatic switch, a through hole with a diameter of 32–33 mm must be made in the worktop. The button with the air hose connected to the fitting is inserted into the hole and pressed from below with a nut and washer. The opposite end of the hose must be put on the switch fitting, as a rule, it is located at the bottom of the disposer body.

The chopper block is connected to the throat with a Quick-Lock. Supporting the body with your knee, align the grooves of the lock fastener with the three tabs on the neck and turn the sleeve slightly clockwise. Using the supplied hex wrench, tighten the lock for a secure connection.

The connection of the disposer to the drain is made by a flange connection with two screws or by a flexible branch pipe with a spring clamp. Most shredders are designed to be connected to a rigid drain line, but you can always use a flexible, reinforced PVC pipe. To connect to the mains, you will have to purchase an adapter or a special socket of the US or EU standard, or replace the plug on the cord. In the latter case, connect the yellow-green wire to the grounding terminals.

If the disposer is hydraulic, you will need a flexible water hose “nut-nut” with a 1/2 “sanitary thread. Through it, the disposer is connected to the cold water supply, through the return pipe, the water enters the mixer.

Model cost

Only a few disposer manufacturers presented their products on the Russian market, the most interesting are InSinkErator, Status and BoneCrusher. The latter represent a class of very budget devices, while the InSinkErator and Status shredders have more sophisticated ergonomics and are characterized by an almost complete absence of noise during operation..

The cost of the device is determined by the engine power in the range from 1/3 to 3 liters. sec., which corresponds to 0.25-2.2 kW. BoneCrusher choppers will cost 10-25 thousand rubles for models with a power of 400 to 800 watts. Disposers InSinkErator with the same power range 16-44 thousand rubles, their high cost is due to the almost complete absence of noise during operation and a very large crushing chamber.