Insinkerator Septic2000 Waste Disposal with Air Switch

6 Million Homes on a Septic Tank Have a Food Waste Disposer

You’ll find an InSinkErator food waste disposer in over 6 million American households with a septic tank. InSinkErator Food waste disposers have always been safe for properly sized septic systems. For example, if your system is sized for a dishwasher or clothes washer, it can handle a disposer. A disposer uses only about as much water per day as one flush of a toilet. No-fuss, no mess, no problem . . .

The Facts - I Can’t Use a Garbage Disposal Because I Have a Septic System.

Not true! Garbage disposals grind food scraps into a slurry that can easily be handled by your septic system. Food scraps decompose faster than other waste sent into the tank, and because food scraps are 75% to 90% water, they add very little to the solids that settle at the bottom. Studies show that septic systems attached to a garbage disposal don’t require more frequent pumping than those that aren’t.

The Facts - Water Usage With a Septic System

Food waste disposers use water to transport ground-up organic matter through internal plumbing and sewer pipes, and so food waste disposers are often perceived as water wasters. Myths are perpetuated that they will hydraulically overload wastewater infrastructure, both centralized and decentralized, septic systems. To address these concerns, research was undertaken on quantifying the amount of water used by food waste disposers. A review of ten studies found that the water use of food waste disposers is less than five (5) litres per household each day, which is around one flush of the toilet of water per day.

The Facts - Organic Loading on a Septic System

The use of food waste disposers does add organic material to wastewater and a septic system. Research from ten states in the US specified that where food waste disposers are commonly used, the Total Suspended Solids increased by 20 grams per day. Another finding from the research found high carbon to nutrient ratios indicates there may be a positive impact for enhanced biologic phosphorus removal at wastewater treatment plants, which implies there may also be potential benefits of this high carbon ratio on nutrients discharged from septic tanks. This means the food waste’s high carbon content could help remove nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus when they discharge into drainage fields.

The Facts - I Don’t Need a Garbage Disposal Because I Compost.

Garbage disposals are a year-round solution and can help composters deal with some of the challenges and shortcomings of composting. InSinkErator garbage disposals are powerful enough to grind un-compostable meat, bones, dairy and eggs, as well as things like citrus peels, onions and garlic that can deter helpful insects, worms and bacteria from your compost pile. If leftover bread and pasta are attracting unwanted pests, grinding those scraps can also help keep pests out of your compost pile.