difficulty? any issues I should be aware of?

seems like it shouldn't be that hard but I typically avoid doing anything with plumbing

5/25/2011 9:58:38 PM

I used to be a bootleg garbage disposal peddler back during prohibition.

5/25/2011 9:59:24 PM

I need to, mine's been broken for like 2 years, but I've been too lazy and cheap.

5/25/2011 9:59:38 PM

No, but it doesn't seem like it should be a difficult task. Make sure and open the breaker so we don't have a "anyone have a finger transplant" thread.

5/25/2011 10:00:40 PM

haha yeah first thing I was going to do was to cut the power

damn thing has a pencil sized hole in the side somehow

5/25/2011 10:07:26 PM

not too difficult, but old ones can be really nasty on the drain lines.

No harder than changing a faucet or installing a new drain.

5/25/2011 10:17:32 PM

if you have a dishwasher hooked into it, remember to break the plastic cap off of the inside of the disposal or the dishwasher will backup, not fun coming from personal experience

5/25/2011 10:20:29 PM

I did mine.

Just make sure that your existing plumbing is going to line up properly with the new drain line. Had a friend whose old disposal was so old, the drains didn't line up and he basically had to re-plumb his entire kitchen sink.

Other than that, just make sure you have all of the right gaskets, seals, and Plumber's putty/caulk or some sealant

Is the brand you're replacing the same as the one you're taking out? If so, yours literally might just unscrew and screw right back in. In Sink-Erators have a 'quick change' thing like that. Mine wasnt, however. I had do a full install...next time should be a breeze.

If you're at all handy, there's really nothing to it.

5/25/2011 10:21:46 PM

This should be as easy as changing a starter on a car.

5/25/2011 10:22:49 PM

depending on the age, it's probably best to replace all the parts even if they are the same brand. I replaced a 20 year old disposal and the quick change flange was all rusted to crap.

5/25/2011 10:23:47 PM

Quote :

"if you have a dishwasher hooked into it, remember to break the plastic cap off of the inside of the disposal or the dishwasher will backup, not fun coming from personal experience"

My folks had a really nice disposal that had only been installed about 6 months, then they re-did their kitchen and replaced it. Mine was an old piece of crap that worked half the time and not well at that, so I took their old disposal to upgrade.

Their disposal had that cap opened. At my house, the dishwasher does not drain into the disposal...has it's own separate drain.

When I installed it, I made sure I had all of teh same connections and drains lined up. First time the disposal drained, it went ALL OVER my freakin cabinets. I wound up having to jury rig a cap for that outlet. I never thought to look and see if the cover in it was broken becuase I didn't know what it was used for....


[Edited on May 25, 2011 at 10:27 PM. Reason : ]

5/25/2011 10:24:38 PM

Quote :

"If you're at all handy, there's really nothing to it."

But all joking aside current model is an InSinkerator at least 10 years old was looking on consumer reports and they recommend the Waste King brand pretty hard but if replacing with the same brand is easier might go that path.

5/25/2011 10:28:56 PM

all the time

5/25/2011 10:33:35 PM

Quote :

"But all joking aside current model is an InSinkerator at least 10 years old was looking on consumer reports and they recommend the Waste King brand pretty hard but if replacing with the same brand is easier might go that path."

1) See if your InSinkErator just screws off. If so, it's likely that it'll fit a new system and the new InSinkErator will just literally screw right on. You literally have to unscrew teh drain pipe, unhook the electrical to the old one, unscrew the old one, screw on the new one, rehook up drain pipe, and rewire electrical. I'm not 100% sure how to tell if the newer ones would be compatible with that same 10 year old system...they may not even have done this back in the day

2) Inspect all of the gaskets...like someone said, if they're shot or look like shit, the quick change thing may do you no good as you'll likely need to replace the drain seal apparatus anyways. You can get everything you need from the hardware store. Various gaskets, a disposal skirt thingie, and some plumbers putty. They sell kits that have it all I believe

3) If you want to go with waste king instead, it's really not that hard to switch everything out AS LONG AS YOUR PLUMBING LINES UP (i.e. existing drain pipe will line up with the new drain). For the first timer, a quick change system will probably turn a 2 hour job into a 30 minute or 1 hour job. It's not a 'must do' thing, though.

[Edited on May 25, 2011 at 11:20 PM. Reason : ]

5/25/2011 11:11:51 PM

Yeah two things I don't normally fuck with are plumbing and electrical so I think I've been talked into going with the InSinkerator just for the potential ease of install. All the seals look fine, theres just a fucking hole in the body of the unit.

Thanks for all the advice all, I'm sure I would have not realized about the cap for the dishwasher .

5/25/2011 11:22:50 PM

If it's a new one, it won't have to be capped.

The 'extra drain' designed for the dishwasher drain (if applicable) comes sealed, but if your dishwasher drains into your disposal...as many do... you have to actually punch a hole in the 'extra drain' (If you buy a new unit and look over it, this will make sense, i promise. There's a sealed drain. Open it if you need it, leave it alone if you don't). Mine caused a problem because I was installing a 2nd hand disposal that already had that hole punched out, but I didn't use the hole in my plumbing setup...thus, it just shot water everywhere when I ran the disposal.

That shouldn't be an issue with the new unit.

Just leave the old unit in until you are ready to install the new one. Make a mental note or draw out the hookups.... recreate this hookup scheme on the new one and you shouldn't have any issues

[Edited on May 25, 2011 at 11:31 PM. Reason : ]

5/25/2011 11:28:11 PM

difficulty... 3/10.

5/25/2011 11:33:04 PM

I took mine out....got tired of people dropping shot glasses and bottle caps and shit in it.

5/25/2011 11:34:40 PM

don't forget





don't forget to disconnect the power at the circuit breaker and label wires.

5/25/2011 11:35:00 PM

Quote :

"damn thing has a pencil sized hole in the side somehow"

Duct tape.

5/25/2011 11:35:58 PM

I wish I were there, I'd do it for you for free because it's fun.

5/25/2011 11:37:38 PM

He gets to bust out the plumber's crack.

5/25/2011 11:38:43 PM

Follow up here, replaced it last weekend no real issues. Hardest part was getting the damn snap ring on. Thanks for all the advice.

6/1/2011 3:10:04 PM