The water drains slowly in my sink,

[mahoffma]

My kitchen sink has a garbage disposal, and
lately the water drains very, very slowly.
What can I do to clean it out. From time to
time I pour some baking soda and vinegar
down to the drain to clean it out.

[Patricia]

Here are some good rules of thumb for a garbage disposal that might help you with your slow running disposal.

1) Always run cold water when grinding in order to move the waste all the way through the drain lines. Fats and grease congeal and harden in cold water which can then be flushed through the system. Don't use hot water when grinding because it can dissolve fats and grease, which may then accumulate in the drainline.
2) Under no circumstances should you put glass, plastic or metal non-food materials through a disposal. This includes bottle caps, tin covers or aluminum foil--these are some of the items service technicians commonly find in clogged or broken disposals.
3) Maintenance should be easy. Grind small bones and egg shells to actually help clean the disposal by scraping away stubborn deposits or citric acid and pulp. Grinding a little ice is another way to clean out deposits and get rid of odors.
4) To clean our your disposal use baking soda and/or vinegar. If you want to really clean it out, make vinegar ice cubes and crush those up. It should flush out your disposal and having it running like new in no time.

If the above tips and tricks do not help you may have something clogging your disposal that needs to be dislodged. That is beyond my area of expertise so we will have to wait for someone else to reply as to that issue. Good luck. A stubborn disposal can be very frustrating. [:I]