Pumpkin Pulp: A True Halloween Ghoul for Garbage Disposal Systems

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A Roto-Rooter Reminder for Pumpkin Carvers this Halloween

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Pumpkin pulp has a sticky, stringy consistency that hardens when it dries. It will choke drain pipes and gum up all the moving parts of garbage disposals.

With Halloween around the corner, it’s almost time for trick-or-treaters, scary costumes, and the traditional pumpkin carving.

For kitchen sink garbage disposals, that last activity is truly frightening. In fact, sticky pumpkin pulp from carved-up jack-o-lanterns is a major cause of clogs this time of year. Roto-Rooter, America’s premier plumbing repair and drain cleaning service, reminds everyone to avoid throwing pumpkin pulp down the kitchen drain into garbage disposals.

Many homeowners call on Roto-Rooter in the days leading up to Halloween to fix pumpkin pulp clogs – sometimes costing hundreds of dollars.

“Pumpkin pulp has a sticky, stringy consistency that hardens when it dries. It will choke drain pipes and gum up all the moving parts of garbage disposals,” said Paul Abrams, spokesman for Cincinnati-based Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Water Cleanup.

This scary Halloween scene isn’t limited to kitchens. Mr. Abrams also noted that Roto-Rooter has resolved many pumpkin pulp bathroom clogs as well because people have flushed pulp down the toilet or rinsed it down a bathroom sink. Roto-Rooter recommends a sensible, money-saving method to avoid Halloween season drain clogs:

  • Carve pumpkins on newspaper, away from the kitchen sink.
  • Wrap up all the pulp in the newspaper once the carving is complete.
  • Dispose of the paper and pumpkin pulp in a garbage can or compost container.

One more tip: rinse your hands outside, if possible. Even a small amount of pumpkin pulp rinsed from hands can wreak havoc on drains and garbage disposals.

These easy steps help avoid one of late October’s most costly kitchen repairs, and they ensure everyone can enjoy Halloween without a scary garbage disposal repair bill.

You can also separate the pumpkin seeds from the pulp to make a wonderful roasted treat, or you can air-dry and plant them for next year’s Halloween pumpkin harvest!

Founded in 1935, Roto-Rooter is the world’s largest provider of plumbing and sewer & drain cleaning services. Roto-Rooter also provides water cleanup services. Roto-Rooter operates businesses in more than 130 company-owned locations and 400 independent franchise locations serving the U.S. and Canada. Look up your local Roto-Rooter at http://www.rotorooter.com/locations/

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Paul Abrams
Roto-Rooter
1 (513) 762-6434
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