Is any of this false? Is any of this true?

[aemeijers]

I'll second that bigtime. Just like toilets, people treat disposals like they are a magic way to make stuff go away. If people would scrape the plates and cooking pots over the trash first, their disposals would last a whole lot longer. So what if you have to empty the kitchen trash more often because SWMBO says it stinks? Better that than replacing the disposal every couple of years. If you have a garden, most of what you put down disposal should be going in compost pile anyway.

I had a disposal growing up and in first 3 apartments after being out on my own. Only time they ever jammed is when I stupidly put something small and metal near sink, and it jumped in there. (a corollary of Murphy.) Bought this place almost 6 years ago- no disposal. Adding one was on my to-do list, but hesitated because I was on septic. I don't even miss it any more, and at this point, will let next owner worry about it.

[mm]

Thank you. I was hoping someone would say this, though I might well have done it even if no one did. I've been out since the last time I post

I'm pretty sure she'll cancel him even if pays.

It doesn't say "advertisement", on the border in small print. Is that required? Maybe one only sees it when an ad looks like news. I don't remember seeing it over a plumbing, etc. advice column. Maybe we are supposed to know that is advertising.

But my ex, who's very cynical and up on this sort of thing, didnt' realize how many questions on Jeopardy are paid advertising. They were too subtle for her.

Even if I finish the letter and write tonight, she's going to take some time to verify what I say, I'm sure. I'm going to suggest she look in her own garbaage disposal and her friends'. It's a monthly, and I have no idea when the deadline for the next issue is.

[mm]

Many of these things, like electric knives and hand held blenders were created for the industrial or commercial markets, and then cheaper versions were made for home use. I don't if disposals are in this category. The place to look would be on the webpage of the first maker, but sadly, many historic companies say nothing about their past on their webpages, even when afaik there is nothing to be ashamed of. (Others do give their history, but sometimes too short to be interesting, and a few tell really interesting stories.)

I only use mine when little dribs keep the sink from draining, dribs that are so small they would run right down the drain if the disposal weren't in the way. I never put grease in the sink or anything else I shouldn't or in the toilet, and I've never had a clog anywhere in the house, except IN the disposal, which I clear by turning on the disposal. Nor did my mother ever have a clog, when I lived with her and when I didn't. So that's about 108 years between the two of us.

Last time one broke, I thought about getting rid of mine, but I would need something to make the hole smaller, need to attach it so it didn't leak, need a pipe to got to the pipe that is there, and then when I sold the house, the real estate agent would tell me to put one in.

I also don't really scrape my dishes before the dishwasher. Anything that will fall off without scraping falls off, but the rest ends up in that strainer in the bottom, where it gets repeately washed and after

3 or 4 times I think to look there and remove what little I find. Once om 30 years the small drumstick bone did get past the strainer and clog the vacuum break which is mounted to the sink, and then the whole dishwasher wouldn't drain. Took 2 hours to find.

[mm]

Well, I would notice mine. I can here the water running in the pipe, and I visit every bathroom at least once a month and would hear and see the water running. My point was that there is need to replace the whole toilet just to stop it from leaking into the bowl. Even if you might not notice, all one needs to do is replace the --- I forget the name -- the black rubber thing that goes up, then flops back down and plugs the tanks and keeps the toilet from running.

This could help some people. Maybe me. The sound in my head sounds like water running in a pipe, so some day I may not be able to tell real water from the water in my head.

[DerbyDad03]

re: "My point was that there is need to replace the whole toilet just to stop it from leaking into the bowl."

I'm not defending the "plumber" in the article, but I think you may have missed the point.

I did not read what was written to mean that the plumber was going to replace the toilet regardless of what the problem was. I read it to mean that as part of the evaluation of the problem, the plumber might recommend replacing an older toilet with a water saving model instead of repairing the old one.

He comes in to determine the cause of the leak and finds that it's a simple fix - the flapper. He also notices a hairline, but not leaking, crack in the tank, or maybe more rust than he likes around the bolts that hold the tank to the bowl, or maybe the johnny bolts are so rusted he's afraid that the toilet might loosen up.

As it says, he will "assess the overall condition of your toilet and if it's an older model"..."give you options on replacing it with a lower consumption toilet."

It doesn't say he was going to walk in and rip it out, leaving you with no choice but to replace it. It even specifically says he would only offer you replacement options if it was an *older* model.

I see nothing wrong with those statements. In fact, I think a plumber would be remiss if he didn't suggest a water saving toilet as a option over the repair of an older model.

[DerbyDad03]

re: Think about the size of the drain pipe. Pretty hard to put anything big enough to clog it down there."

Shortly after I moved into my house, which was about 30 years old at the time, I decided to install a garbage disposal as a house-warming gift to the wife.

The kitchen drain was 2" galvanized pipe which went down into the basement and then ran about 6' to the main stack.

By the time I was done, I had replaced all of the galvanized pipe with PVC. The entire length of pipe from the trap and beyond had barely a

1/2" wide spiraling tunnel through a thick mass of gunk and grease.

I cut the longest section of pipe into 2 foot lengths and you couldn't see a speck of light through any of the sections.

I'm surprised the sink even drained and there was no way I was going to add ground-up foodstuff and not expect it to clog the pipe within a very short period of time.

YMMV

[Higgs Boson]

I'm with you, Jim. Our disposals last & last because we put very little down them. Periodically we grind up lemon rinds for "sterility". We put veg. waste in a crock and then out to the compost heap. Bones, meat & fat go in the garbage can.

I hadn't heard of cities encouraging GD use "to feed their green agendas". Sounds counter-intuitive. Do you have any real live city examples I could check out? Inquiring minds...

HB

[Robert Green]

[LSMFT]

Disposals are unnecessary.

[DerbyDad03]

So are cell phones, HD-TV's, pets, ice cream, my wife's flower gardens, and gas grills.

But you what? I'm glad I have at least one of each of those items.

[Robert Green]

[krw]

Wives aren't necessary, either.

Good thing you don't have more than one of each. Wives get cranky, particularly if they're all yours.

[DerbyDad03]

I was going to add that wives aren't necessary but in my case she is.