(especially in regards to the grade of the disposal) Food items that expand, such as noodles, rice, etc should be tossed in the trash. Also make sure to run the water, start the disposal, then put the food down it and let the disposal run 15-30 seconds after it sounds like all the food is "disposed". Also many people say to take the smell out put a lemon down it, but they causes fruit flies, I just use lemon juice with hot water and thats work just fine. Hope this helps!