Garbage Disposal Leaking: Where It Drips Tells You the Fix

Where a disposal leaks tells you what the fix is. Dry the whole unit and the cabinet under it with a towel, then run water — sink running, disposal off — and watch for the highest wet point. Water runs down, so a leak at the bottom of the body may have started at the flange an inch above it. Find the top of the wet trail, not the bottom.

1. Leak at the top, where the unit meets the sink

If water shows up around the rim of the sink opening, under the flange, the problem is the mounting flange seal or a loose mounting ring.

• Check the mounting ring first — it can loosen over years of vibration. Tighten it by hand or with the wrench that came with the unit.
• If it is tight and still seeping, the plumber’s putty or the gasket under the flange has failed. Pull the unit, clean the old putty off both surfaces, re-bed the flange with fresh plumber’s putty or the correct gasket, and re-mount.

This is a cheap repair: a few dollars in putty, or $10–$20 for a new mounting gasket kit. Hired, expect $100–$200 for the service call.

2. Leak at the side, at the dishwasher inlet

If the home has a dishwasher draining through the disposal, there is a hose nipple on the side of the unit. Water there means one of three things: the hose clamp is loose, the hose is cracked and weeping, or the connection was never sealed properly.

• Tighten the clamp first, or replace it with a screw-type clamp — the spring clamps get weak.
• If the hose end is cracked or split, cut off the last inch and re-clamp. If it is brittle all the way along, replace the hose.

Hose and clamp: $10–$25. Simple fix.

3. Leak at the discharge elbow

The discharge tube on the side of the disposal connects to the drain trap with a flange, a gasket, and usually two or three bolts. Water under that joint means the gasket is shot or the bolts have loosened.

• Shut the power off and dry the joint.
• Tighten the bolts evenly, a little at a time, alternating. Do not over-torque — the plastic flange will crack.
• If it still weeps, replace the gasket and the bolts. A discharge gasket kit is $8–$20.

This is the most common leak on an otherwise healthy disposal, and it is the one a homeowner can handle without much risk.

4. Leak from the bottom of the body, or through the reset area

Water at the bottom center of the unit — around the reset button, around the hex socket, or weeping out of the housing seam — is a different animal. That water is inside the motor housing. The internal shaft seal has failed, and the motor is sitting in water.

There is no seal kit worth installing on a residential disposal, and there is no way to dry out a motor that has been wet internally and trust it. Replace the unit.

STOP: Do not keep running a disposal that leaks from the bottom. Water and 120 volts in the same housing is a shock hazard, and the motor is on its way to a dead short. Kill the breaker and replace it.

5. A cracked body

Older units and units with a lot of rust develop cracks in the plastic housing at the discharge or at a bolt boss. A crack cannot be glued reliably on a part that vibrates every time it runs. Replace the unit.

The rule of the page

Seals and gaskets are repairs. Water through the motor is a funeral. If the leak is at a joint, a flange, a hose, or a gasket, fix it. If the water is coming out of the body, out of the reset button, or out of a crack, the unit is done.

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If you are replacing it

• Breaker off, and prove it dead. Disconnect the wiring and photograph it before you take it apart.
• Support the unit from below before you loosen the mounting ring — they are heavier than they look wet.
• Clean the sink flange area thoroughly. Old putty left behind is why the new one leaks.
• Follow the instructions for your specific mounting style. There are three common ones and they do not interchange.
• Knock out the dishwasher plug only if a dishwasher drains to the disposal.
• Fill and test with the unit off before you put the power back on.

One more: check the trap and the drain line while you have it apart. A disposal that leaks because the drain is restricted will leak again with the new unit. Water backing up has to go somewhere.