How To Get Broken Glass Out Of A Garbage Disposal

Removing a broken glass out of garbage disposal is not a difficult task, you just need a few tools and equipment to complete the task. But be careful while removing the broken glass as you do not want to get cut yourself or get injured during the process. Just follow our step by step process and you will be fine.

Tools And Equipment’s Needed To Get Broken Glass Out Of A Garbage Disposal

• Needle-nose Pliers
• Shop Vacuum
• Hex Key

Steps To Get Broken Glass Out Of A Garbage Disposal

Step 1 – First thing we will do is to cut off the power. Unplug the garbage disposal and to be safe, disconnect the garbage disposal from the circuit breaker as well. The first step is extremely important because if garbage disposal turns on suddenly, the small pieces of glass can fly out and could injure you.

Step 2 – Now we will remove the glass. Before starting the process, please do not make the mistake of taking out the broken glass by sticking your bare hands in the garbage disposal, you may get seriously hurt.

For this process grab your needle-nose pliers. Some people often get lazy and use tongs which is not recommended because it does not provide enough grip to hold the glass and will make removing glass difficult and time-consuming.

With the help of needle-nose pliers, pull out the large pieces of glass that are visible. You can also use a flashlight or a lamp to look inside the garbage disposal and remove the easily accessible pieces. Just give your best and remove as many pieces as possible.

Step 3 – Now it is time to grab your Shop Vacuum. If you do not have a shop vacuum, then we will suggest you get one. They are very handy in these situations and in such cases, you cannot use your normal vacuum cleaner.

Before running the shop vacuum make sure the garbage disposal is unplugged and no water is running. Use the little attachment that comes with the shop vacuum and use it to remove all the little pieces out of garbage disposal. In case you get big pieces stuck at the mouth of the vacuum then remove them one by one very carefully.

Now peek inside the garbage disposal with a flashlight to check if anything is left. If not, then you can move to the next step.

Step 4 – After removing the small pieces with the shop vacuum, we will manually move the blades of the garbage disposal with the hex key to unjam the blades.

Now, get down under the sink to reach the bottom side of the garbage disposal. Get underneath the garbage disposal, right in the center of it you will see a hole, put a hex key inside it, and turn it. If there is anything stuck in the blades, it will be difficult to move blades with the key.

You can use your shop vacuum again to pull out the pieces till it gets easy to move the blades with the hex key. Manually moving the blades will remove all the stuck pieces and it will free up your garbage disposal.

Step 5 – Now carefully pick up the glass pieces which you have removed with help of cloth and discard them safely. Clear the sink area and plug in your garbage disposal. Turn on the water and let it run for a few minutes. The water will wash away any remaining small pieces that may have stayed behind. Switch on the garbage disposal and check if everything is working fine.

If everything is good, then your work is done.