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Service

Garbage Disposal Replacement

Replacing a failed disposal, including the ones that leak from the body, where no repair exists and the unit has to come out.

  • Licensed and insured
  • Price agreed before work
  • A plumber who works your area

Where the leak is decides everything

Water in the cabinet under a disposal comes from one of three places, and only one of them means replacement.

At the top, where the unit meets the sink. The flange seal. Renewable.

At the discharge, where the waste pipe connects. A gasket or a loose connection. Renewable.

From the body of the unit itself. The internal shell has corroded through. There is no repair, and no sealant applied outside will do anything, because the water is coming from inside a grinding chamber.

Wipe the unit completely dry, run water for thirty seconds, and look at where the first drop appears. That is the whole diagnosis.

A hum is not a death sentence

A disposal that hums without turning has power and a jammed plate, and that is often recoverable.

Most units have a hex socket in the base for turning the grinding plate by hand and breaking whatever has wedged it. Free it, retrieve the obstruction from inside, then press the reset button on the underside, which will have tripped.

If it runs normally after that, nothing is wrong with the unit.

If it jams again straight away, or will not turn at all with the wrench, the bearing or the motor has failed and it is time for a replacement rather than more attempts.

Does this sound familiar?

Problems this service solves

  • A disposal leaking from the body rather than a connection
  • A motor that hums but will not turn, and will not free
  • A unit that has seized and cannot be reset
  • An old disposal that has become very loud
  • A disposal too small for how the kitchen is used

Signs you need garbage disposal replacement

If more than one of these is true, the problem is usually past the point a plunger or a store-bought cleaner will fix.

A technician performing a plumbing inspection
  • Water is dripping from the middle of the unit
  • The reset button no longer does anything
  • It hums without turning even after being freed
  • It has become noticeably louder over time

What to expect

How the visit works

  1. Confirm the unit is the source

    Leaks at the sink flange or the discharge connection are repairs. A leak from the body shell is not, and the two look identical from a cabinet floor.

  2. Check the mounting

    Many disposals share a common mount, so a matching replacement fits the existing ring and the swap is quick. Where it does not, the mount is replaced too.

  3. Remove and fit

    The old unit comes out, the sink flange is inspected and resealed if needed, and the new unit is mounted and connected.

  4. Reconnect and test

    Dishwasher inlet handled correctly, discharge reconnected, and the unit run with water to check for leaks before the cabinet is closed.

What's included

What you get on every job, whoever we send.

A plumber servicing a garbage disposal under a sink
  • Body leaks distinguished from connection leaks
  • Existing mount reused where it is compatible
  • Sink flange reinspected while the unit is off
  • Tested under running water before closing up

Questions

Garbage Disposal Replacement questions

My disposal is leaking. Can it be repaired?

It depends entirely on where from, and the difference is decisive. A leak at the top, where the unit meets the sink flange, is a seal that can be renewed. A leak at the discharge connection is a gasket. But a leak from the body of the unit itself means the internal shell has corroded through, and there is no repair for that. The unit has to be replaced. Wiping it dry and watching for a minute usually shows which you have.

It hums but does not turn. Is it finished?

Not necessarily. A hum means the motor has power but the grinding plate is jammed, and that is often clearable. There is a hex fitting underneath most units for turning the plate by hand and freeing the obstruction, and a reset button that needs pressing afterwards. If it frees and runs, the unit is fine. If it jams again immediately, or will not free at all, then the bearing or motor has gone and it is a replacement.

Will a new disposal fit my existing mount?

Often yes. Several manufacturers use a common three-bolt mounting system, so a replacement from the same family fits the ring already attached to the sink and the swap takes very little time. Some brands use their own mount, in which case the ring at the sink is replaced too, which means resealing the flange. It is worth checking before buying, since a compatible unit can turn an hour into twenty minutes.

A plumbing technician on a residential service call

Get it fixed

Garbage Disposal Replacement, handled locally

Call with your ZIP code and what you are seeing. We route you to a licensed plumber in your area who does garbage disposal replacement every week.

  • Licensed and insured
  • Answered 24/7
  • Price before work
(844) 644-7731