How to Clean Garbage Disposal in 4 Simple Steps

For many, garbage disposals are a must-have in the kitchen. While they make the dishes a breeze, garbage disposal can quickly become a hotspot for germs and food debris. The disposal’s nooks and crannies can collect leftover food particles, which can eventually lead to a lingering mildew smell that stinks up your kitchen. To keep your sink in tip-top shape, it is essential to regularly clean your garbage disposal. 

Cleaning garbage disposals proves particularly challenging and dangerous. To avoid injury, you should always avoid sticking your hands or cleaning tools down the disposal—even if it’s turned off. That means that traditional scrubbing is off the table. Luckily, there are other ways to get your disposal sparkling clean. Here’s expert advice from Charlie’s Soap on how to do it. 

1. Apply a Powerful Deodorizing Cleaner

First off, you need a powerful cleaning agent to get rid of the lingering odor and breakthrough buildup. Chances are, your disposal is covered in built-up grime from continued use—so you need a product that can handle a tough mess. At the same time, you don’t want a cleaner stuffed with harsh chemicals that can cling to your sink and affect your kitchen air for days afterward. That’s where Charlie’s Soap comes in: our expertly designed formulas have serious cleaning power and are free of caustic chemicals, dyes, fragrances, and other harmful additives. 

To begin cleaning, add half a cup of Charlie’s Soap powder detergent to the mouth of the garbage disposal. This product will start breaking down the residue that is built up in the disposal, leaving it fresh and clean. 

2. Add White Vinegar

White vinegar’s acidic qualities make it effective for cleaning and deodorizing a heavily used area like the kitchen disposal. Pour a cup of white vinegar directly into the disposal and let it sit for 10 minutes. This step will allow ample time for the vinegar to react with Charlie’s detergent to break down the residue. After 10 minutes, you’re ready for step number 3. 

3. Wash and Rinse

After letting the cleaning products break through the residue in the disposal, it’s time to rinse the grime away. While running the garbage disposal, rinse the sink with several cups of hot water. To give it an extra kick of cleaning power, add a few drops of Charlie’s 1001 Degreaser, a water-based degreaser packed with cleaning power that can clean even the grimiest disposal. You only need a little bit to get a complete clean. Then, allow the disposal to run through, circulating the water in the drum of the sink, knocking out and washing away any residual food particles. 

4. Clean the Splash Guard

The splash guard is one of the most overlooked and under-cleaned areas in your kitchen. The rubber guard prevents the disposal from flinging water and residue into the sink. Since the splash guard is often up close and personal with the gunk and grime that your disposal deals with daily, its angle and position make it difficult to clean—especially the half that faces towards the disposal. 

Splash Guard Cleaning with Charlie’s 1001 Degreaser:

To get the best clean on your splash guard, you only need a few drops of Charlie’s 1001 Degreaser with a few cups of warm water. There are a couple of different splash guard types, here’s how to clean them:

• Removable Splash Guards:

To clean removable splash guards, remove them from the garbage disposal and scrub them thoroughly on both sides. Make sure no nook or cranny is missed while cleaning the guards. After you’ve removed all of the residue, rinse them thoroughly. 

• Non-Removable Splash Guards:

When dealing with non-removable guards, clean the outer layer using a sponge or a scrub brush dipped into the cleaning solution. Then, carefully turn the splash guard inside-out and gently scrub the residue from the underside. Rinse the guard and enjoy a completely clean garbage disposal. 

Enjoy a Trustworthy Clean with Charlie’s Soap 

Whether you’re tackling the underbelly of your kitchen or toddler-level laundry stains, you need powerful products. Charlie’s Soap offers all of the cleaning power you need. Our natural, gentle products help you get a sparkling, clean home, top to bottom. From our household cleaners to our stain solutions, we have what you need to get a truly deep clean. Explore more from Charlie’s Soap.