How To Remove A Garbage Disposal And Replace With Pipe [Step by Step]

People love garbage disposal for the value it adds to the kitchen. But sometimes it turns into a burden when it causes bad odor in your kitchen room. If you are in this type of situation then removing the garbage disposal and replacing it could be an easy solution.

But the problem arises when you cannot figure out how to remove a garbage disposal from sink and then replace it with regular pipes properly. Eventually, you might be tempted to call a plumber. But the problem with that is, you have to pay an extra 200 bucks to get a service.

However, in most cases, removing an old garbage disposal is not difficult at all. With a proper guide, you can replace garbage disposal with pipe yourself using a few handy tools.

And that brings us the chance to give you simple and effective instructions on how to remove a garbage disposal and replace with pipe today. With a proper blend of personal experience and hours of research, this guide will help make things easier for you. 

Necessary Tools for Removing a Garbage Disposal Unit

Before starting the actual work process, you need to have all the required tools close to your hand. It will help you to perform your work without any distractions. Here is a list of required instruments:

• Plumber’s putty
• Basket Strainer
• Channel type pliers
• Screwdriver

How To Remove A Garbage Disposal And Replace With Pipe?

Now we want to break and discuss the entire process into two sections.

1. Removing the garbage disposal, and
2. Replace the sink drain with regular piping

How To Remove A Garbage Disposal From Sink?

To make the removal process easy and quick, I will break down the whole process in five simple steps.

Step 1: Disconnect the power supply

Turn off the power switch of the disposal from the circuit breaker. Now gently unplug your garbage disposal from the socket. If the unit is hard wired to the wall then first you have to remove the plate using a screwdriver. Then cut off the wire nuts from the disposal by twisting it. And finally, disconnect the circuit and remove the electrical wire.

Step 2: Remove the drain trap

The drain trap connects the garbage disposal with the drain pipe. To detach it, first, you need to put a bucket beneath the trap to catch the liquid leftover flow out from the pipes. Now use a screwdriver to drive out the trap nuts and pull down the trap pipe. That will encourage the drainage of continuous waste.

Step 3: Detach the dishwasher hose

If there is a dishwasher in the house then it’s most likely attached to the garbage disposal. Now, before removing your garbage disposal you have to disconnect your dishwasher drain line using piler.

Step 4: Take out the garbage disposal

Some garbage models can be simply unscrewed from the sink. But some models have a snap ring. You will require a flat head screwdriver to go into the ring and turn counterclockwise to loosen. Thus you can release the garbage disposal off the flange.

Don’t forget to hold the underside of your garbage disposal with your hand as it is quite heavy. If you wish, you can keep rags beneath your cabinet while removing the garbage disposal unit for protection. Accidently, if the disposal drops, it will protect your floor from damage.

Step 5: Disassemble the garbage disposal mounting

To remove the existing mounting hardware loosen the three mounting screws which hold the upper and lower rings together into their position. Now detach the groove ring from the sink sleeve and then take aside the flange, fiber gasket and sink slave. Now clean up the residual plumber’s putty, debris, and gaskets from the sink. You can skip the mounting assembly if you are replacing your existing disposal with another disposal.

How To Replace Garbage Disposal With Regular Piping/ Drain?

Now that you have successfully removed your garbage disposal from your kitchen sink, let’s take a look at how to replace a garbage disposal with regular piping.

Step 1: Remove the sink drain

For replacing a garbage disposal with a regular drain, firstly you need to remove the nuts that are holding the drain flange. To perform this, use a pipe wrench and unbolt the nuts. Now complete the removal process by pushing up the drain through the sink.

Step 2: Clean the putty around the drain

Use a putty knife to scratch the putty off. Use a razor to perform clean up if the putty is stiff and troublesome to remove. Now that you have cleaned up the shreds of putty, it’s time to scrub clean the area using a scrubbing pad and water. You might use spirits or rubbing alcohol if the putty is too hard to clean.

Step 3: Install the sink basket

When you are replacing garbage disposal with straight pipe, you need to install the sink basket first. Be sure to give a thorough look at the manufacturer’s instructions to follow it along the installation process.

Now begin the process by applying plumber putty underneath the sink flange all the way around.

Then insert flange (the sink basket) onto the sink opening and push it hard. Go underneath and position the rubber washer first.

Then take the friction ring to put it second. Now snag the bottom mounting nut and use piler to tighten it. Finally, end the process by shaving off the excess putty around it.

Step 4: Reconnect the drain pipe and dishwasher

In case the drain is being run from the dishwasher through the disposal then you have to reconnect it with the disposal. Now find the inlet into the sink tailpiece and use piler to connect the dishwasher pipe (PVC pipe recommended) underneath it. You should apply a bit of plumber putty around to prevent future leakage.

Step 5: Install waste pipe

At this stage, you have to connect the drain with the elbow pipe. Make sure that the pipe is well in size so that it can connect properly. Now use your hand to tighten the tailpiece with the sink drain. Then attach the elbow pipe pieces together to create a bend in the pipe which is towards the adjoined sink.

Next, attach the connector pipe with the adjacent sink. The connector pipe may require cutting down to reach the perfect length and match your sink. Then carefully replace garbage disposal with pipe.

How to unjam Garbage Disposal?

Step 6: Install the trap and the trap rim

Finally, it is time to install the trap and the trap rim. You might need to connect it with a tailpiece extension if it doesn’t line up correctly.

Now cut the pipe to the length and secure it bolting the nuts.  Check whether the slip joint washers are positioned in the recommended direction or not. You will not require a slip joint washer where the trap and trap rim join together. Now hand tightens all the nuts and look for leakage on both sides of the sink by filling up the sink and then draining the water. By this, you will detect leak nuts to fix them up using pliers.

And that ends our guideline on how to replace garbage disposal with regular plumbing efficiently.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can you remove garbage disposal?

Yes, you can. With proper guidelines and required tools available close to your hand, you can remove the garbage disposal from the sink. You can complete the entire removal process for less than around 2 hours.

2. How do you remove InSinkErator garbage disposal?

Start the process by turning off the switch and unplugging the disposal. Next disconnect the hoses. After that, loosen the mounting ring using a wrench and screwdriver. Once you have done that, now simply disengage the disposal from the sink.

3. How much does it cost to remove garbage disposal?

The cost of removing the garbage disposal permanently falls among $45 to $75 depending on the time spend severity and time spent on the project.

4. How do I empty my garbage disposal? 

To do this, first, you need to turn off the disposal switch from the wall. Then remove the rubber fitting from the sink. Then using a plier or tong, get rid of the visible dirt and junks. Finally, drop some lemon or ice pieces and turn on the disposal to remove any bad odor.

To Sum It Up…

Garbage disposal is useful and a frequently used appliance for our kitchen. But times come when we need to remove it permanently.

In this article, we tried to provide you a step by step guideline on removing a garbage disposal permanently and then set up regular drain pipes in there instead.

We hope this article has helped you perform the task yourself and saved some money to spend on other meaningful causes.