Spoon Stuck in Garbage Disposal | Learn to Remove in 5 Steps

The nighttime kitchen cleaning always takes a toll on me. I toss everything from the countertop into the garbage disposal without looking here and there. One such night, when a spoon got stuck in the garbage disposal due to my negligence. The situation was familiar to me, and I did the task of removing it in a nick of time.

A spoon stuck in a disposal is not a situation to leave until the time when you plan its healthy maintenance. You must know that garbage disposal is not designed to handle it and eventually results in producing heavy clattering noise with the motor giving up when try running in full swing. 

In this article, I will mention what you should do to get the spoon out of the garbage disposal. In addition, you need to know how it impacts your disposal unit to decrease its normal functioning. 

What Happens If a Spoon Gets Stuck in a Garbage Disposal?

No matter whether it is a plastic or a metal material, the stuck spoon directly affects the health of the disposal and may lead to permanent replacement. Also, the biggest disadvantage of cutlery entering the garbage disposal is that it puts other food items at risk of incomplete processing.

• The disposal unit generates strange noises.
• Chances of motor burning increase with an uninterrupted power supply.
• A stuck spoon instantly freezes the blades.
• It may trigger unnecessary clogging. 

You must keep in mind that garbage disposal shreds food waste into bits and pieces so that the amount of trash going to landfills go less. Also, the design of the garbage disposal cannot handle unimportant things like silverware, cutlery, or toiletries. 

How to Get a Spoon Out of the Garbage Disposal?

Garbage disposal with a spoon stuck demands you to remove it as soon as you notice it inside. The blessing is that you do not need to put your hands inside and hand over the duty to efficient garbage disposal tools to do the job for you. 

1. Disconnect the Garbage Disposal

You must make initial preparation of switching off the disposal to eliminate a stuck spoon from the disposal. Yes, you cannot initiate troubleshooting while it consumes power from the outlet as the chances of injury or electrocution increase. 

2. Locate the Spoon

The next step is to locate the spoon, without which you cannot be able to remove it. For this, grab a flashlight and shine it through the disposer parts nearby or inside the canister. Sometimes, it does not take you much time in finding it and you easily remove it using pliers. 

3. Press Reset Button

The next step is the confirmation test to discover whether your garbage disposal behaves normally like before. However, if it is not even after removing the spoon, press the reset button below the garbage disposal body sharing the space beside the Allen wrench hole. Press the garbage disposal reset button until you hear a clicking sound and try running the machine with plenty of water. 

4. Use Allen Wrench

Suppose you turn on the machine, and a clattering noise again hits your ears. It means the spoon becomes unreachable sitting next to the impellers, and pressing the reset button at this stage is useless. 

What should you do is pick an Allen wrench to rotate the blades manually. So, insert the wrench into the hole and rotate it with some force. You have full freedom to rotate in either direction unless the stuck wheel turns. Use a flashlight to know the exact location of the spoon and hold it using tongs. 

5. Turn on the Garbage Disposal

Flush cold water down the garbage disposal and switch it on. Check for noise, if any, or proper spinning by dumping regular food waste inside that it can design to handle. You are good to go if it works normally. 

Garbage Disposal Maintenance Tips

Maintaining garbage disposal is not only important for its longevity but also for adequate functioning. If you want that your disposal unit workaholic till its expiry date, there are several things you can adopt. 

Summing Up

Turning a deaf ear toward garbage disposal does not make it work for you. Whenever you plan to use it, remain careful about what goes inside the garbage disposal, for it can only save you from major problems like a stuck spoon, metal, or likes. My article clears your query regarding removing a spoon from the disposal unit. So, you now know how to deal with the situation, keeping calm and asking for a favor from troubleshooting tools.