# How to plug hole in garbage disposal after removing dishwasher and piping



## dharlan50

Help, Please. While I was gone (couldn't say and watch, had to go to work) a handyman came to my house to remove my dishwasher and take it to my duplex that I just rented. He removed the dishwasher and connections (I don't know what kind of connections), but I now have a hole towards the top and on the side of my garbage disposal that, when I turn the water supply back on, water drains out of it instead of the proper way for my sink to drain. I don't know what to do. I can't use my kitchen sink because of this. Is there some kind of cap that I can buy at Home Depot or Lowes to screw onto this hole in the side of the disposal? The hole comes out about half an inch and is approximately 6/7 or 7/8 inches wide. I am not a handyman at all and don't know how to fix this problem. Any suggestions would be welcome.
Thanks!


----------



## bbguy5

You need a cap. That hole is for the dishwasher drain line. Visit your nearest big box stores and ask them for a cap for it.


----------



## dgeorge

If for some reason you can't find the cap, Lowes sells a large rubber plug in the hardware aisle. It will fit in tightly if you tap it in with a hammer. Temporary fix though....


----------



## gma2rjc

dharlan, in 2005, when I was putting new flooring down, I called a plumber in the Yellow Pages to come over and remove my dishwasher, which included pulling the drain line where it drained into the plumbing under the kitchen sink.

While he was working under the sink, he asked, "Do you have a little piece of plastic, like a piece of bread wrapper and a rubber band?"

I didn't think anything of it and cut a chunk of plastic off of a bread bag and found a rubber band for him.

A few days later, I was done laying the laminate flooring down in the rest of the house and got to the area in front of the sink. I noticed the floor was a little bit wet there, so I opened the cabinet door and looked around for a leak in the pipes.

I immediately found the piece of bread wrapper and rubber band I had given the plumber. It was being used to cap off the part of the drain where the dishwasher line had been connected. I guess he was too lazy to walk out to his truck for a proper cap.


----------



## dharlan50

*Thanks to everyone's input*

I went to Lowes last night. They said the only thing they had in the store that would work was the plastic stoppers that you would put on the bottom of old type kitchen chairs or table, so as not to be able to "scoot" the table on the floor. The hole was 7/8", which was exactly the size I measured on the hole in the garbage disposal. Then he showed me the clamp to use around it after I got the plug on. Worked wonderfully! Total cost was $3.00.


----------



## Mandres

What kind of clamp was it? We're in the same boat until I get the new dishwasher installed.


----------



## dharlan50

*To Mandres*

I'm not sure what kind of clamp it was. I just Googled it to find a picture and it looked something like what is called a "T bolt band clamp" or a "worm gear clamp." That's the best I can come up with by looking at the pictures on Google.


----------



## hardwareman

a hose clamp


----------



## oh'mike

This is what I use----There is a rubber clamp on reducer made for garbage disposers--

It goes from the 3/4"(?) opening down to 1/2" (for use when using a smaller drain line)

Buy a 1/2 " copper cap--hose clamp that into the small side--clamp the larger side to the hole in the disposer.------Look in the rack where the black Fernco rubber fitting are--also look where the disposers are displayed----Mike---

Here's a picture--Google Image Result for http://www.homehardware.ca/products/300/32549621.jpg


----------



## Nana4

dharlan50, Thank you. Read your post and since I was having the same point with my garbage disposal I gave the chair cap a try. Seems to be doing fine. HD guy hadn't heard of it but thought it should work too. Again thank for the idea.


----------



## Cheap-a$$ John

My thanks to dharlan50 for the excellent inexpensive solution! The 7/8" rubber leg tips were available at all my local hardware stores and I reused the band clamp when I removed the old washer! So, a quick fix for under $3


----------



## GTKZ

I just did this today. Home Depot didn't have a so-called garbage disposal cap or plug--didn't see one online, either (not sure they are for sale). So I bought two boxes of rubber leg tips--3/4" and 7/8" at $2.15 each. I removed the hose, let it drain in a bowl, attached the 7/8" tip, which fit perfectly, and tightened with the existing (get one if you don't have one) worm gear hose clamp. The End. Final cost: $2.15 or $3.15 with a new clamp. Plumber: $85 per hour.


----------



## Lollyv

Thank you! The 7/8” rubber chair leg cap worked like a charm. Just reused dishwasher drain clamp as discussed. Super simple fix to what was a perplexing problem!


----------



## GrannyH

I just used an expandable wine bottle cork. Works great and cost was $0 (It was sitting idle in a drawer)


----------



## Nealtw

A short hose with a bolt shoved in it will do.


----------



## joed

10 year old thread


----------



## huesmann

joed said:


> 10 year old thread


Frackin' Recommended Reading...


----------

