Under the sink
Garbage disposal repair in Aurora
A disposal that hums, leaks, or will not turn is a small machine with a plumbing connection and an electrical one. This page will not tell you how to wire it. It will tell you which failure is which.
Jam, leak, or a dead unit
A hum with no spin is often a jam. Many units have a reset button on the bottom and a hex socket to turn the plate free. If you are comfortable using those, and the power is off at the switch, that is the manufacturer's own reset, not a wiring job. If the unit is silent, trips the breaker, or smells hot, stop. Replacing the electrical connection is not a home project described here.
A leak from the dishwasher hose or the sink flange is plumbing. A leak from a crack in the disposal body is a replacement. A new unit still has to match the sink opening and the dishwasher connection. Ask the quote to include the cord or the hardwired connection as a separate line so an electrician is not a surprise. This guide does not provide wiring steps.
What does not belong in a disposal
Aurora's service-line page tells people to keep grease and food scraps out of the drain. Lakewood's sewer graphic, for customers on the city's own sewer, says egg shells, coffee grounds, fat, and grease form a clog and do not belong in the disposal. A new disposal will not cure a grease clog further down the line. If the sink and the dishwasher both back up, read drain cleaning. If lower fixtures back up too, the problem may be the service line.
A dripping faucet above a working disposal is the faucet. Do not replace both because one quote bundled them without saying which part failed.
Questions to settle first
It hums and does not spin. Is it dead?
Not always. A jam can hum. The reset on the unit and a manual turn, with the switch off, are the checks the manufacturer expects. If it is hot, silent, or tripping a breaker, stop and have it replaced or repaired by someone who can deal with the wiring. This page will not walk through that wiring.
It leaks onto the cabinet floor.
Find the seam. The sink flange and the dishwasher hose are plumbing connections. A crack in the housing means a new unit. A quote should say which of those it saw. A new faucet does not fix a cracked disposal body.
Will a new disposal fix a slow drain?
Only if the blockage is inside the disposal. Grease and food further down the pipe remain. Aurora and Lakewood both warn against putting grease and heavy scraps into the drain. If several fixtures are slow, clean or camera the line instead of buying another disposal.
Who hooks up the power?
Ask before the day of the job. Some units plug in. Some are hardwired. Hardwiring is electrical work, and this guide does not describe it. Put that line on the quote so the plumber and the electrician are not each assuming the other will finish.
