Best disposers -- vintage or modern?

[Marky_Mark]

Steve, thank you very much indeed for that.  I'll install it over the weekend.

 

Dan, yep CR ratings indicate that current ISE models don't grind as finely as those from Franke, GE, Waste Maid, Moen etc.  The cheap Badger models are the worst offenders.  I looked at a plumbing supply website in the UK a couple of years ago and they recommended the TOL Insinkerator models as being the best disposers for most people however they did also say that they recommend the Franke style ones instead if you have a drain run that is long and meandering.  

 

Thanks, John.  It was a fun test!  The GE hopper isn't very wide but it is deep.  I ground up chicken bones in both disposers with no problem.  My husband also happened to buy me a bag of beef marrow bones specifically for testing LOL.  The beef bones were large and they jammed immediately in the KA.  So I boiled them for hours and tried again.  They jammed again in the GE, KA and my ISE Excel.  I did manage to grind one completely in the KA and I threw the rest out.  In all three disposers, the bones jammed against the dishwasher drain.  Neither the KA nor the ISE could unjam by reversing, so I had to unjam them all manually.  Fortunately I am vegetarian, so this is not going to be an ongoing problem ha ha.  My husband does eat meat (hence the chicken bones) but he would never normally buy massive beef bones.  

 

John, nice to see the setup there at the oceanfront house.  I've never used a batch-feed model before but they sound good.

 

[Marky_Mark]

The KA seemed to be better at getting rid of everything and leaving the grind chamber clear.  

 

The final test I did was the celery.  The GE ended up with strings of celery still inside and they just wouldn't go.  As Nathan mentioned further up the thread, they probably would go if you subsequently added more food.  And perhaps if you filled the sink with water and let it all drain through fast...?

 

I removed most of the stands before putting the GE away but there are still quite a few remaining, as you can see in the photo.  I much prefer the KA but I'm really glad I bought the GE to try it, even though it's not a genuine one made by GE.

 

[reactor]

congratulations

Congratulations, Mark in receiving your two disposers! Both are good, each in their own respective ways. The Hobart design was built with very heavy components and carried a premium price in it's day.

Yes, the snap mount on the KA can be a bit tricky. To get the sink flange off, hold on to it and pull up as you push down on the lock-release lever. When installing, you may have to rock the disposer forward-backward and side-to-side a small amount in order for the disposer to slide up on the flange collar enough for the snap ring to engage the indentation on the collar. You will hear and feel it when it does.

Job well done with the tests. When General Electric actually made the disposal, their instructions for both the series and induction models recommended "mixing" wastes. For example, if you put large amount of celery in your GE badged Anaheim unit, along with pork chop bones the abrasive action of the pork bones would enhance the cutting of the celery. This holds true in virtually any disposer.

Hope you one day find a sound-insulated Maytag such as the FC20, it is a very quiet unit and extraordinarily easy to mount . You don't get the vibration transmission from the unit to the sink as you do with the Hobart design, not that it is overly intrusive in nature, just noticeable.

As the letters imply, the Maytag FC20 is the continuous feed, and the FB20 is the batch feed version. The batch feeds are fun, I have had many. Though I usually end up bypassing the cover switch put a splash guard on and convert them to continuous...just a personal preference.

Enjoy!! Thanks for sharing your test results!

BTW, you may wish to contact "Volsboy1," one of our members, who has a very large disposer collection. He occasionally sells some, and may have a Maytag unit for you. Also, the pre-Anaheim Waste King disposers were marvelous units, like the original Maytag units, they have the rubber mount collar as do the Maytag's, and are very easy to install and very quiet. The rubber collars prevent much of the unit to sink vibration transmission.

 

[qsd-dan]

pre-Anaheim Waste King

I've seen them mentioned here over the years a few times.

How does their performance/longevity compare to Maytag and Hobart Kitchenaid/Viking units?

 

[reactor]

longevity

My personal experience with a pre-Anaheim Waste King, Dan, is very limited. I only had one, purchased very shortly before Waste King sold out. I had their top on the line unit, and after only a couple of months the starting winding went out. It was replaced under warranty.

I shortly sold the condo and did not keep the unit, when I moved.

My experience cannot be extended to an overall generalization of their reliability, based only on one data point. There also can be no generalization that the older Waste KIng units were more reliable than the newer, which I had, or vice versa. I wish I had kept it for a more extensive testing period and observation of the replacement unit's longevity.

It did grind very well, and was quiet. [this post was last edited: 6/8/2024-14:34]

 

[Marky_Mark]

Today I installed the KA but unfortunately there are a few problems.  Hopefully you guys can help!

 

Firstly, the tailpiece was leaking a little and I've discovered the reason why.  A piece of plastic has broken off.  Can I just buy another generic tailpiece that would fit?

 

[Marky_Mark]

My drain line is coming out of the wall too close to the larger KA disposer and I will need to move it.

 

Finally, here's where I'm really confused.  Please help!  I thought I followed the installation instructions but I must be missing something here.  The sink flange does not sit securely in the sink at all.  It's very loose even after the disposer is installed and its weight is hanging from the flange.  I must be doing something wrong.  These are the parts I have:

 

[Marky_Mark]

I put it together like this (with the sink between the two rubber gaskets).  Where am I going wrong?

 

[mattl]

The tail piece is a standard item, I rarely use the type included, mostly use a straight tube.  For the flange I can't be of much help, but I always use plumber's putty on the flange rather than a rubber gasket, better seal in my opinion.

 

[reactor]

flange

Hi Mark. Are you using the highest tab (one closest to the sink)? On stainless sinks I find the mounting plate is very difficult to get started on the highest tab in the flange. Using the next lower tab will cause the the condition where you have the flange too loose, just as you described. I struggle with this each time I mount my KA or Viking disposals.

Two ways to approach this. If possible, have a friend push down, with great force, on the flange from the top of the sink. If you can compress the rubber rings enough you can get the mounting ring to just barely catch on the uppermost tab. It takes effort, but it will happen.

Secondly, do as Matt suggests and use plumber's putty as a replacement for the upper rubber gasket. I prefer the rubber ring myself, but you if can get the putty to compress enough the mount plate may slip more easily.

I always get the mounting plate to eventually catch the top tab, with some sweat and exertion, even if it just barely catches. Often, it is so tight, I cannot fully turn the mounting plate to the point where it is supposed to be. However, that great tightness will compress both rubber seals, and you will never have a leak.

I fight with this every time I install my KA so I understand your frustration. Once you get the mounting plate between the tab and underside of the sink, as previously mentioned, if you can't rotate by hand to is proper position, take a slotted screw driver and hammer and tap it so it will rotate a bit more. I often cannot get it fully rotated to the proper position, but get it as close as possible. When it's compressed that tight believe me, it will never rotate and fall down over time. I almost never get it fully rotated on a stainless sink, but have never had one come loose or leak.

Yes, just as Matt stated, often I have substituted discharge tailpipes. Try your Anaheim/GE tailpipe. If that doesn't work go to Lowes's and get an ISE tailpipe, or a generic flanged sink tailpipe.

The third option is to take a waterproof glue or epoxy such as JB Weld and use a toothpick and run it on the inside the indentation/groove of the rubber gasket, for the whole circumference. Put the lip of the tailpie into the indentation and wipe off any excess that squeezes out. Make sure none gets on the external surface of the rubber gasket as it has to stay pliable.

Wishing you well on your installation!

 

[Marky_Mark]

Thanks, guys.  Great to hear that I can just use a standard tailpiece.

 

I did use the highest tab closest to the sink, Barry.  It went together very easily with no resistance at all.  Strange.  

 

I've just been out and bought 4 ISE seals to try adding some extra "ballast" to it.  In the photo below, I've put it together with 4 seals (two original and two new ISE) and this makes a snug fit.  I'll try installing it in the sink again with one or two extra seals and see what happens.

 

Thanks so much for the help,

Mark

 

[Marky_Mark]

In the meantime, this has given me an opportunity to try out the GE instead!  When we bought the house, there were 2 disposals in the kitchen.  The double-bowl sink had an ISE 77, which I replaced with an ISE Evolution Excel.  The single-bowl sink on the other side of the kitchen had an Evolution Compact, which I've just removed for the first time to install the GE and KA.

 

The GE is a noisy beast but it grinds well and is pretty fast.  It did trip the overload once while grinding the pineapple seen in the photo.  It does tend to leave certain foods (especially stringy things) stuck on the cutter "square" opposite the dishwasher drain inlet.  I've noticed that when the dishwasher drains, the water hits the cutter and everything gets dislodged.  Good point, Barry, about mixing food waste for better grinding.  It's not a bad disposer but it's too noisy for our liking, so I'm looking forward to installing the KA.

 

Yes, Barry, I've love to have a Maytag FC20 too.  That would complete my small collection of disposers!  The Maytag sounds fantastic too.

 

Mark

 

[reactor]

wattage

What is the amperage rating on your Anaheim/GE unit, Mark? Anaheim reduced it from the original GE design, I can't, recall my Anaheim/GE's current draw. It seems it was 4.8 or 4.9 amps.

Near the end of the run, of the Anaheim/GE units, they did offer a 3/4 horsepower and a 1 HP unit. Unfortunately, the put the cheap Anaheim plastic screw mounts on their GE units. Even the flange was plastic. It has a plastic ring that screwed onto the flange under the sink. It was like screwing the jar on a lid. The opening was even slightly smaller than on your current unit.

The true GE models originally had a copper tailpipe. Although, later in the seventies, they changed over to plastic such as you have.

 

[Marky_Mark]

Hi Barry.  The label says it's 120 V and 4.5 A.  

 

A copper tailpipe.  It doesn't get much more vintage than that!

 

[mattl]

Copper

I always thought copper=good.  Then my copper drain line from my kitchen sink rotter out and killed over $5k of AV equipment in my basement.  All the drain lines in the house are copper, which I thought was quality. My folks built the house in '65, it took about 40 years to go bad, luckily none of the other drain lines have gone bad.

 

[reactor]

amperage

I checked on one of my actual GE series-wound disposals and it is rated at 5.2 amps. The Anaheim unit is lighter in weight and has a smaller motor (even though technically they are both rated at 1/2 hp.) Your unit has less thermal mass so it will get hotter more quickly, explaining why it shut down/overheated during the pinneapple grinding. Thanks for sharing your results, Mark.

 

[Marky_Mark]

I've taken out the GE and installed the KitchenAid!  I have a question:

 

I've attached the disposer to the sink flange by simply lifting it up and clicking it into place.  Do I need to do anything else now?

 

The photo Steve posted in reply #7 looks to me like the bolts have been "unscrewed" after installation, presumably to apply force between the mounting plate and the disposer itself...?  I haven't touched those bolts.

 

Mine is working great but it leaks when I fill the sink full of water and then drain the sink with the disposer running.  The water seems to be getting spun out between the disposer and the sink flange.  It doesn't leak at any other time.  What should I do to ensure it is sealed?

 

Steve's photo:

 

[Marky_Mark]

Versus how mine looks:

 

I don't have any installation instructions.

 

[reactor]

tightening of disposer

Yes, Mark, those two support bolts must be tightened against the sink flange for the very reasons you stated. They compress the seal, to make it waterproof, and they stabilize the disposer against the snap ring so it becomes imobile.

Take your fingers and raise each of the two bolts until they contact the support plate. Then use a wrench and tighten them both very firmly. Alternate tightening them so you don't warp the plate with too much force on one side.

 

[combo52]

Hi Mark, here’s a picture Of one of my national disposals that is installed in my kitchen sink.

This one was actually a Viking unit with a gray plastic case I found it thrown away brand new at a local Appliance company the case was all broken up and they figured it was useless and threw it away. I took the plastic case off of two old national disposers that were worn out so it partly yellow and it partly a green KitchenAid case.