TYLER, Texas (KETK) – Food stuffed down the kitchen sink after your Thanksgiving meal could break your garbage disposal, if not done properly.

“Rule of thumb is no more than the size of the palm of your hand at a time with plenty of water before and after,” said Matthew Good, a field manager for Super Plumbers. 

Good said grease and oil is the number one liquid to not pour down the drain.

“It’s the number one no-no because when you put grease in, it will go down liquid and then it solidifies up and will create a blockage no matter what,” said Good.

He added that the number one food to keep away from the blades are egg shells.

“The biggest thing is no eggshells, boy you wouldn’t believe what it does, it just packs in there. I’ve seen some trends that eggshells sharpen blades.. it’s not true,” said Good.

When it comes to the side dishes, if its a noodle like macaroni and cheese or a stringy vegetable, like asparagus, they cannot go down the drain.

“Basically it stays stringy when it goes through garbage disposals, so instead of chopping it up small enough to flush on out, it stays in the drain and then everything builds up from there and creates and blockage for you,” said Good.

If you do find yourself with a packed drain, Good said to not use a plunger.

“While it may work sometimes, a lot of times it’ll blow the drain out from underneath because they are not meant to have pressure put into them,” said Good.

Plumbers busiest day of the year is the day after Thanksgiving to unclog drainage systems and repair disposals.

If at all possible, take it to the trash.

Good also recommends if you are having company over to your home, to try and avoid putting anything that’s not flushable down your toilet.

It could cause more sewer issues.