My residents would always come to me for help with their disposals. After fishing out food waste, I advised them that the first cleaning is free, but from then on it's $50.00 each time. That pretty much cured them.
Since "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure", I would always tell them that certain things don't go down the disposal in the first place.
1. Bones
2. Celery
3. Starchy things like spuds peels and rice
4. And lastly, no plastic bread tabs, wire ties, pennies, etc.
When they are ready to grind, run the water for a few seconds, and then feed gradually. Let the water run after it has shut off for about 30 seconds.
To keep it not only clean but smelling clean, I always told them to grind up some ice cubes with 2 tsp. of lemon juice once a week. It not only keeps the blades sharper, but smells good.
I hope this helps. It sure did them!
Source: Too many years experience.
By Sandi/Poor But Proud from Salem, OR
This is a page about keeping garbage disposal smelling fresh. All of that food waste going down your garbage disposal can result in a smelly unit.
With all the food and other waste that gets run through a garbage disposal it definitely needs to be cleaned occasionally. Regular cleaning will help the performance and extend the life of your garbage disposal also.