How to Change a Kitchen Sink Disposal

Disconnect the power from the sink disposal. If your disposal has a power cord, go under the sink and unplug the sink disposal from the disposal electrical outlet. If your sink disposal is hardwired into the house, turn the circuit breaker off to the disposal inside the home electrical box.

Use a Phillips-head screwdriver to remove the electrical access panel on the side of the disposal if your unit is hardwired. Untwist the plastic wire caps from the wires. Loosen the clamp that secures the wiring conduit to the sink disposal and pull the conduit with the wires out of the sink disposal. Bend the conduit out of the way.

Loosen the slip nut that secures the drain pipe to the sink disposal with a pair of channel lock pliers. If you have a dishwasher hose hooked to the sink disposal, use a Phillips-head screwdriver to loosen the clamp that secures the hose and pull the hose off of the sink disposal.

Use a flat-head screwdriver to unsnap the retaining ring at the top of the disposal. Hold the disposal from the bottom and twist the unit to disengage from the bottom of the sink drain. Use a socket wrench to remove the mounting screws securing the mounting ring to the sink drain. Pull the mounting ring off of the sink drain.

Go to the top of the sink and pull the sink drain straight out of the sink. If necessary, use a putty knife to break away any putty that is holding the sink drain to the sink. Remove any residual putty from the sink hole and dry the area thoroughly with a towel.

Put a small ball of plumber's putty in your hand and rub your hands together to make a putty rope. Place the putty rope under the lip of the new sink drain. Set the sink drain into the sink hole and have a helper hold the sink drain in place.

Attach the new mounting ring to the sink drain, and attach the mounting assembly with the securing screws. Make sure that you tighten the screws evenly so that the sink drain flange will seal evenly on the sink. To tighten the screws evenly, alternate between the screws as you tighten them down.

Set the new sink disposal into the mounting assembly and push the snap ring closed to lock the disposal into position. Thread the slip nut from the drain pipe to the drain outlet on the sink disposal and tighten it down with the channel lock pliers.

Punch the knockout hole for the dishwasher hose with a screwdriver, if you have a dishwasher to connect. Place the hose over the connection and tighten the hose to the sink disposal with the clamp.

Remove the electrical access door if your unit is a hardwired unit. Insert the conduit and wires into the side of the sink disposal. Secure the wire connections from the home to the wires inside the sink disposal with plastic wire nuts. Make sure to connect like colors together. Red to red, white to white and black to black. Secure the clamp around the conduit with a Phillips-head screwdriver. Replace the access panel and secure the door with the retaining screws.

Plug the power cord into the electrical outlet if your unit is not hardwired. Hardwired units need to have the circuit breaker turned on to the sink disposal.