Legality of garbage disposals
We had no problem with ours in SO two years ago. No inspection issues.
You may want to call your code enforcement office to verify whether new installations are currently permitted. Older units may be grandfathered if such a ban exists on new installations. Therefore, if someone says they have had one for years, that doesn't necessarily mean that new installations are allowed.
I know someone that did major renovations about 10 years ago in Livingston, they have a disposal.
When I had work done (just updates, not actual major renovations, I was told I legally had to add hard wired smoke detectors. When I looked it up, it said they were NOT required and I could continue to use battery. Hard wired was only required if i were to be doing something like adding a room.....all I did was swap out the bathroom and kitchen fixtures in the exact same foot print as well as replace plumbing and update the electric in the bathroom to GFCI.
so yeah, contractors can be wrong...or lie...
Since I don’t care much either way, I’ll just ask the inspector what the code is and be ruled by the answer.
susan1014 said:
Since I don’t care much either way, I’ll just ask the inspector what the code is and be ruled by the answer.
Interesting question. Let us know what you find.
From research I've done, they are not allowed in certain towns within NJ but I haven't found any state law that bans them. I think it comes down to the local code.
Interesting question, I'd like to know what you find. I've had a disposal in three houses around here, and dislike the thought of cooking without one.
assuming they are allowed, and your contractor won't do it....can you hire a new contractor or just leave it unfinished and add it in after the fact? i would guess a handyman can add it it....
jmitw said:
assuming they are allowed, and your contractor won't do it....can you hire a new contractor or just leave it unfinished and add it in after the fact? i would guess a handyman can add it it....
Our contractor would happily add it after inspections, but I don’t like playing that game. Our ancient drains don’t handle disposer output well, so I only use it lightly, and would mainly be putting it in in case a next buyer cares someday.
susan1014 said:
jmitw said:
assuming they are allowed, and your contractor won't do it....can you hire a new contractor or just leave it unfinished and add it in after the fact? i would guess a handyman can add it it....
Our contractor would happily add it after inspections, but I don’t like playing that game. Our ancient drains don’t handle disposer output well, so I only use it lightly, and would mainly be putting it in in case a next buyer cares someday.
FWIW: I wouldn't put a disposal in just for a potential buyer. Although some may like it, I do not. When we had one in a rental, too often we had to fish things out that accidentally fell in. Or it would clog if someone over-filled it. And ours had an odor. I suggest skipping it unless it's something you want.
sprout said:
susan1014 said:
jmitw said:
assuming they are allowed, and your contractor won't do it....can you hire a new contractor or just leave it unfinished and add it in after the fact? i would guess a handyman can add it it....
Our contractor would happily add it after inspections, but I don’t like playing that game. Our ancient drains don’t handle disposer output well, so I only use it lightly, and would mainly be putting it in in case a next buyer cares someday.
FWIW: I wouldn't put a disposal in just for a potential buyer. Although some may like it, I do not. When we had one in a rental, too often we had to fish thing out that accidentally fell in. Or it would clog if someone over-filled it. And ours had an odor. I suggest skipping it unless it's something you want.
Even though I'm pretty certain tht they are legal, as I had one inspected two years ago, I agree with this. They are not hard to retrofit if there is an outlet under the sink, which there will probably be for the dishwasher. Don't do it if you don't want one.
susan1014 said:
jmitw said:
assuming they are allowed, and your contractor won't do it....can you hire a new contractor or just leave it unfinished and add it in after the fact? i would guess a handyman can add it it....
Our contractor would happily add it after inspections, but I don’t like playing that game. Our ancient drains don’t handle disposer output well, so I only use it lightly, and would mainly be putting it in in case a next buyer cares someday.
This would be the concern in my house. I don't think my sewer line would handle it well.
conandrob240 said:
I don’t get the attraction. I find them so gross.
Neither do I. Isn't easier, more convenient, to simply drop garbage into the garbage bag?
Plus there’s a whole bunch of stuff you aren’t supposed to put in there like bones, egg shells, coffee and more.
I’ve had rogue garbage disposals in SO and my new town. Both were easy and inexpensive to install. In my new house, we redid the kitchen and the plumbing inspector didn’t look at it. When I sold my house in SO, it wasn’t an issue. I grew up with them and think fishing stuff out of a drain with my fingers is much grosser than shoving it down the hole and liquefying it.
campbell29 said:
I’ve had rogue garbage disposals in SO and my new town. Both were easy and inexpensive to install. In my new house, we redid the kitchen and the plumbing inspector didn’t look at it. When I sold my house in SO, it wasn’t an issue. I grew up with them and think fishing stuff out of a drain with my fingers is much grosser than shoving it down the hole and liquefying it.
You pick the drain thingie up, you turn it over and hit it into the trash. Or your stuff just gets scraped into the trash to begin with. We rarely have large pieces of food in our sink that are all old and gross. We throw stuff away as we chop, grate, prepare. Then we scrape our plates into the trash. Any small residue that remains in the sink gets hit with the faucet nozzle and that’s it.
Ha! I have one piggy adult and 2 piggy children who, if I am lucky, get the dishes to the sink. They are not equipped to scrape the dish and rinse it. If they do get the dish to come in contact with water in the sink, they will stare in wonder at the accumulated sink water and walk away.
What is the best way to dispose of food if you don't have a disposal? I want to toss my post-Sandy survivalist canned food stash and recycle the cans and bottles, but how? The very liquid stuff goes right down the drain, but the chunky soups and stews not so much. Let the liquid go down the drain and squish the chunks through the strainer, or scoop out the chunks and toss in the trash? I can't bring myself to toss the full cans and bottles in the trash, although I'm reaching that point. Is it bad to send food down the drain?
kthnry said:
What is the best way to dispose of food if you don't have a disposal? I want to toss my post-Sandy survivalist canned food stash and recycle the cans and bottles, but how? The very liquid stuff goes right down the drain, but the chunky soups and stews not so much. Let the liquid go down the drain and squish the chunks through the strainer, or scoop out the chunks and toss in the trash? I can't bring myself to toss the full cans and bottles in the trash, although I'm reaching that point. Is it bad to send food down the drain?
After pouring off the liquid in the sink, I dump the leftover 'mush' in a non-recyclable plastic container or plastic bag, and toss in the trash.
I love my disposal. I didn’t grow up with one but have put one in each kitchen I renovated for myself.
Your pipes can get clogged resulting in the need to call a plumber to restore water flow out of the sink. Either dump the solid waste in a plastic bag/container and toss in the trash or just toss the cans without opening them.
shh said:
I love my disposal. I didn’t grow up with one but have put one in each kitchen I renovated for myself.
So funny. I’ve taken them out of every place we’ve renovated! They’re big down here in FL-everyone has them.
I have been told that they were not allowed in the past but that changed at some point and they are now legal. There are certainly plenty of recent Maplewood renovations that have them and I can't imagine that they weren't inspected.
ETA, we are about to embark on a kitchen renovation and a garbage disposal is on our list, so I will find out first-hand in the next few months.
Personally, I don't get the appeal. Animal waste in the garbage, vegetable in the compost. What is the loud messy disposal in the sink for?
I’ve always lived in houses with them, but now use only for the little bits that escape down the drain when the basket is too full. My constricted drains won’t allow more unless I jackhammer up the basement floor and replace. But enough people want one that I’ll probably install one if the code inspector says it is legal, even though it will be lightly used.
Susan, if you don’t want one I wouldn’t bother. If anything, as long as there is electrical below the sink it’s not a big deal. I don’t think it adds any value other than to someone who would use it.
max_weisenfeld said:
Personally, I don't get the appeal. Animal waste in the garbage, vegetable in the compost. What is the loud messy disposal in the sink for?
As used in my kitchen the disposal is nonmessy and preferable to cleaning up the raccoon/skunk wreckage that results from leaving food in outdoor trash cans for days. I agree that when possible, composting is the best option.
We are beginning a kitchen renovation and were told by our contractor that garbage disposals aren’t legal in NJ, and that saying we would install one would make us fail plumbing inspection.
Is this right? I haven’t bought one yet (and rarely used the old one, in deference to our old constricted drain). If they are against code, I’m ok skipping it rather than installing after inspection (as was recommended to me...).
I’ve been here 20 years, and had missed this.