Why Does My Garbage Disposal Smells like Rotten Eggs and What Can I Do About It? 

It has to be your garbage disposal unit!

Garbage disposals, ever since their invention in the 1940s, are a source of major convenience for the residents in the United States. They can reduce the quantity of waste that gets deposited in the garbage cans and ultimately to the landfills. Garbage disposals have proficiently served in making the cooking process more time effective.

They have lessened the worries about what goes down the drain and how it will impact the plumbing. The blades process the waste and crush them into small particles before flushing them out through the drain into the sewer. This substantially reduces the possibility of pipes getting blocked due to solid trash that passes through the drain.

However, where garbage disposal has eased up the lives of Americans, the probability of entering into the kitchen every once in a few days is a done deal where you question yourself that why does my garbage disposal smell like rotten eggs? Even if your trash is regularly fixed and you don’t leave dishes around in the sink, you will still encounter foul stink arising from your garbage disposal. The reason why your garbage disposal smells lies in the garbage disposal itself.

Garbage disposals can be convenient to have in your kitchen as they speed up the cooking and cleaning process. Conversely, they can be repugnant too when they become the source of tarnishing the appeal of your overall magnificent kitchen. This odor is essentially due to the food particles that are left behind in your garbage disposal and skip getting flushed out with the rest of the waste. To understand the process better, the following discussion presents why garbage disposal smells like rotten eggs.

How Does a Garbage Disposal Work?

Garbage disposal serves in crushing the waste that is drained down the sink along with the flow of heavy water. The disposal that is installed underside of the sink drain has an electric motor that requires a 120-volt box for energy supply. Garbage disposals can be hardwired too.

The garbage disposal constitutes a grinding chamber that has blades required in shredding the food particles. An impeller arm and plate are present in the grinding chamber of the garbage disposal serving the function to push down the waste and flush them out into the drain.

The flow of water running through the sink allows the large particles of food to ground up before they are flushed into the drain. The water flow also ensures that the trash is exempted from the chamber completely and no particle is left behind.

There are two main kinds of garbage disposal: the continuous feed type and the batch feed type. The continuous feed type is a garbage disposal that is activated by a switch as you start with the washing. The other kind, the batch feed type is activated by turning a stopper one the disposal is loaded with garbage.

Garbage disposals help keep the kitchen clean and reduce the potential for harmful bacteria prevailing in the kitchen. They help in cleaning up after meals and take little effort in maintenance and cleaning.

The garbage disposal can be a real lifesaver when you have a massive amount of dishes to do or you are cleaning your kitchen in a hurry. They can be a nightmare too when they start smelling like rotten eggs and the odor makes is unbearable for you to even stand close. The reasons why garbage disposals smell at times are discussed in the following section.

The Causes of Why Your Garbage Disposal Smells

Well, essentially the garbage disposal isn’t supposed to smell flowery because it deals with all the trash and food remains. However, when a stinking odor begins to arise from your garbage disposal it means you need to give it your attention.

The reasons that make your garbage disposal smell like rotten eggs will surprise you. It can be things as mundane as garlic. Who would have thought disposing garlic could have been the reason that made your garbage disposal stench? It could also be the blockage that your drain pipe is suffering due to the piling of solid waste along with the plumbing. The possibilities are countless that pile up to make your garbage disposal smell.

Essentially, garbage disposals are designed in a manner that would reduce human effort and time. They help you drain off the waste that you throw into the sink for your convenience while doing dishes or cleaning up. Bearing into consideration its effectiveness and convenience, garbage disposal for homeowners as well as commercialized users see extensive consumption. Its colossal use makes frequent cleanliness and maintenance a mandatory thing.

Without cleaning, the grinding chamber and the drain ducts in the garbage disposal can get piled up with a considerable amount of food particles and trash that can impact not only the functioning of the system but can also provide an optimal condition to bacteria to grow on the food remains and instigate foul odor. Here are a few reasons why your garbage disposal smells: 

1. Malfunctioning of the Garbage Disposal Unit

The purpose of your garbage disposal is to crush the waste you have drained into it and flush it out into the sewage. When your garbage disposal starts smelling like rotten eggs, take the clue that your disposal unit is not serving the purpose it is installed for. You are either running the unit improperly or the unit is malfunctioning.

When the garbage disposal unit is run inappropriately, it leaves behind the trash and food particles in the grinding chamber and drains. This consequently piles up the residue in the unit. The residue, constituting of food particles, starts to spoil and as a result, the foul odor begins to emanate from it. So if you are wondering why your garbage disposal stinks, one of the reasons can be your improper usage of the disposal unit.

2. Disposal Unit is Overdue for Cleaning

Lack of cleaning of the unit is an imperative reason why garbage disposal smells. If you want to keep your disposal unit from smelling like rotten eggs, you need to ensure that regular cleaning is executed for the system. The cleaner your garbage disposal unit is, the lesser possibility there is that you will have to encounter foul odor.

The regular cleaning of the unit only takes you to let the faucet of cold water running in the sink for an extra couple of minutes after you are done the cleaning. This will ensure that all the particles of the food are flushed out of the system and nothing is left behind that can become a source of odor in your drain pipe of the unit itself.

3. Bacteria Housing in Your Disposal Unit

The odor that accrues from the disposal unit is due to the bacteria that start growing on the remaining food particles that are left behind. As you sense that a stronger smell is coming out of your garbage disposal, rest assured that it is because bacteria have started feeding on the spoiled food particles that are in your disposal unit.

Garbage disposal has all the elements that are favorable for the growth of harmful agents like bacteria. It is moist, warm, and dark. With improper cleaning and lack of disinfecting measures, bacteria and fungus growth is promoted.

This is a highly concerning issue that requires your immediate addressing because it can easily contaminate the water you wash your dishes in and can also affect the air you breathe in. Bacteria-borne illness can be readily disseminated throughout your house and infect you and other residents if the problem is not fixed immediately.

4. Blocked Pipes

It often occurs that the waste you throw in the disposal unit, despite getting processed and crushed, can still pile up in your drain pipeline. These piled up food particles harden over time, serve in blocking the pipeline.

The dirt and debris coming their way engage the pipe completely and make it difficult for the waste to pass through. This blockage radiates foul smell from the pipe that emerges out from the sink and discharges into your kitchen.

 So at times, it is not your garbage disposal smelling but the drainage pipeline that is associated with it. This requires you to indulge in deep cleaning frequently so that any blocked pipe is identified timely and the trash is taken care of before it contaminates your home and causes a foul odor.

If you are wondering why your garbage disposal smells like rotten eggs and cannot grasp the reason because you have a freshly cleaned unit, then you need to look deeper. It could be a blocked pipe causing the trouble.

Having identified the source of the foul odor that arises from your garbage disposal, it is imperative to know the techniques to eliminate it. The following section entails how garbage disposal smells can be eliminated.

What to Do About Your Garbage Disposal Smell?

The primary source of foul odor stemming from your garbage disposal unit is the bacteria that have homed in your disposal unit. Considering that garbage disposal units are warm and moist, with remains of food, they easily become a preferred place for bacteria to grow.

It is imperative that as soon as you sense your disposal unit smelling anything close to rotten eggs, you take measures that would ensure that your disposal unit remains clean and free from any infectious bacteria. Here are a few tips that will help you maintain an odor-free disposal unit.

1. Use Citrus Chunks

Citrus fruits like lemon and orange can effectively function as natural deodorizers due to their fragrance. What you can do is to take a lemon or orange of medium size and slice them into fourths. Hurl these chunks down the drain while the faucet running. Citrus scents can an effective armor against foul smells. They can nullify the unpleasant odors and serve as natural fresheners.

2. Ice Cubes and Salt

Your garbage disposal blades are the primary component of the unit. They process the particles before flushing the waste out into the sewage pipeline. The pipeline is likely to get blocked and discharge foul smell if the waste is not properly processed or crushed. The extensive use of the disposal unit reduces the efficiency of the blades.

Pouring ice cube down the disposal unit will sharpen the blades and improve their functioning. Ice cubes also remove the odor from the garbage disposal directly. If you dispense some ice cubes with salt, it will not only remove the displeasing odor but will also serve as a disinfectant.

3. Regular Flushing

The initial reason why your garbage disposal smells like rotten eggs is due to the leftover food particles in the disposal unit. What you can do to ensure that no remains of waste are left in the unit is to make flushing a regular practice when you are done using the garbage disposal.

Flushing requires you to let the cold water tap running at a high flow for a couple of minutes while the garbage disposal unit is still running. This will ensure that your drain and the grinding chamber both are thoroughly cleaned and no waste particle is left behind. This small practice can keep from taking massive measures later when you will encounter a rotten egg-like smell from your garbage disposal.

4. Use XionLab Garbage Disposal Cleaner And Deodorizer

Our drain deodorizer doesn’t use artificial fragrances to cover smells. Our garbage disposal cleaner attack the smell at the source by creating a bio-film to keep grease, oil & fat, the stinky culprits, from adhering your pipes, which means bye-bye rotten egg odor & clogging.

Why Is It Important?

Now you know why your garbage disposal smells like rotten eggs and what measures you can take to eliminate the foul odor rising from your disposal unit. Another thing that is essential for you to know is that why eliminating this odor is important.

Yes, it is obvious that no one wants a smelly kitchen but the significance goes a little deeper than just the image of your kitchen. The garbage that is rotting in your disposal unit is the bacteria that are homing there. If you do not take immediate and effective measures to eradicate the smell, you are exposing yourself and other residents of your home towards bacteria-borne diseases.

So when you question yourself that why does my garbage disposal smell like rotten eggs, you should also inquire what I should be doing about it? Now that you have all the necessary information about why your garbage disposal smells and how you can get rid of it, you can effectively implement the provided tips and ensure a healthy environment.

Xion Lab can help you clean and eliminate bad odors from your garbage disposal.