Garbage Disposal Installation and Repair in Ajax

Ajax, the Duffin Creek Plant and Food Waste Grinders

Wastewater from Ajax goes to the Duffin Creek Water Pollution Control Plant on the Lake Ontario shore in Pickering. The Region of Durham runs it in partnership with York Region, and it serves York Region communities as well as Ajax and Pickering.

Durham has a long record of caution about disposers. In a March 2013 letter to York Region, Durham's Director of Environmental Services wrote that Regional staff had consistently advised against food waste grinders, because the extra solids and biological load would raise capital and operating costs at Duffin Creek. The Sewer Use By-law the Region adopted later that year (No. 55-2013) did not ban household units, but it does prohibit discharges that obstruct sewers and lists oil and grease as prohibited.

We recommend using a disposer for plate scrapings. Grease, bones and large amounts of scraps belong in the green bin, which the Region of Durham collects every week in Ajax.

How We Install a Disposer in Ajax

1. 01Confirm the fit: the sink opening, the clearance below the sink, and the height of the trap compared with the disposer outlet.
2. 02Seal the sink flange and hang the unit on its mounting ring, so the sink mount carries its weight.
3. 03Knock out the dishwasher inlet plug when a dishwasher drains through the unit, and give its hose a high loop under the counter or run it through an air gap.
4. 04Connect the discharge tube to the trap, trimming or extending it so it lines up without strain.
5. 05Plug into the existing outlet under the sink, or tell you before we start if a Licensed Electrical Contractor needs to add one.
6. 06Run water, run the disposer and, where there is one, run the dishwasher's drain cycle, checking every joint for leaks.

Repairs, Replacements and the Electrical Side

Many repairs are simple. A disposer that goes silent may have tripped the red overload button on its base, and one that hums without grinding usually has something wedged inside. Leaks at the sink flange or the dishwasher inlet can often be resealed. If the housing itself is leaking, we recommend a new unit.

If a new disposer needs power where there is none, that part is electrical work. The Town of Ajax notes that a building permit is not the same as an electrical notification filed with the Electrical Safety Authority, and under ESA's rules, electrical work you pay someone to do at home has to go to a Licensed Electrical Contractor.

What a Disposer Costs in Ajax

Every disposer job is priced after a free in-home estimate, because the unit, the drain layout and any dishwasher or electrical work change the total. You receive the price in writing before we begin. A kitchen sink that stays slow after the disposer is cleared usually points to a clogged drain line; for that, our 2026 cost guide gives a drain cleaning range of $150 to $400.