Customer Reviews

Waste King L-8000 Legend Series 1.0-Horsepower Continuous Feed Waste Disposer

5 star:		(407)
4 star:		(77)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(20)

 

 

Couldn't be happier with the purchase.
Here are some facts:

1. This unit replaced a Badger-1 disposal which had come with our house when we bought it new in 2004. I didn't even know what type we had until I took it out. We had been happy with the Badger but it eventually stopped working. Doing some research after-the-fact, I learn the Badger-1 only has a 1/3 hp motor and 1 year warranty. The Waste King L-8000 has a full 1 hp motor and a lifetime (non-transferable) warranty.

2. Though the Badger-1 only had 1/3 of the power of the L-8000, the Waste King was actually quieter. We didn't think either of them was loud, but the Waste King was even quieter.

3. There are basically two types of disposal mounts nowadays. If you have an existing disposal, the odds are nearly 100% that it's installed utilizing either a 3-bolt mount system or the EZ mount system. If you are planning to replace a disposal that required a 3-bolt mount system (such as the Badger-1) with a disposal that requires the EZ mount system (such as the Waste King) you will also need to purchase the following adapter kit: Anaheim Mfg Co 3 Bolt Mount Adapter Kit 3101.

* The above adapter kit is sold here on Amazon for less than $10 and is very easy to install. All you do is swap out two pieces that came with your EZ mount disposal with the two pieces in the kit. You will then be able to connect your new EZ mount disposal to a sink that contains 3-bolt mount hardware. On a scale of 1-10, I would say that the difficulty factor was a 1 or 2. Easy! Additionally, Anaheim Mfg Co (the company that makes the adapter kit) is the same company that manufactures Waste King disposals. So, everything fit perfectly and effortlessly.

4. I had never done any plumbing but I was able to do this myself. Total time was around 2 hours... but I took my time and also (as the instructions recommended) took time to disassemble most of the plastic plumbing from underneath the sink and cleaned them out real well. I was surprised how much gunk had accumulated.

5. The instructions list nine items or tools it thinks you might need to get the job done... but you will likely need much less. I only needed two tools myself: a screwdriver and a hacksaw. The screwdriver was used to tighten the three screws of the 3-bolt mount system while the hacksaw was used to slightly shorten a couple plastic pieces (the horizontal sink pipe leading from main sink line to disposal & the discharge elbow coming off the disposal).

6. Another concern I had was whether the different lengths of the Badger disposal versus my Waste King disposal might cause plumbing alignment problems when I tried to put everything back together. It was not an issue. I'm now guessing the actual plumbing location within the different brands of disposals are standard. In other words, if one disposal is 16 inches deep while the other is 20 deep inches deep, both would have plumbing entering the disposal at 9 inches down from the top.

7. I bought this unit after seeing Consumer Reports (Aug 2009 issue) rate it highest out of six disposals they tested. They also showed the price as $230, so seeing it on Amazon for much less and reading all the positive reviews made it a no brainer.

Hope this helps!

Quiet and fast. Has stopper that really works. Small bin makes accidents less likely, and I have not dropped any tableware in yet.
One thing that you must do. Before turning the lock ring in the final step of installation, don't forget to soap up the rubber gasket. If you don't, you will be sorry. It is not an option as implied by the instructions.

I have been using this product for almost 6 months now and it is great. After installation, I have taken its flawless performance for granted. It was substantially larger than the small wimpy disposal that came with our house, but also surprisingly quieter; more like the guttural growl of a menacing bulldog than a loud but harmless chihuahua.

A couple of pieces of advice - make sure it will fit under your sink (it barely fit under mine), and create an outlet to plug it into instead of trying to directly wire it since it comes with a plug you would have to otherwise cut out.

Just finished installing it tonight. I have installed my fair share of disposals over the years, and this installation was by far one of the most troublesome.

Very important: make sure the locking ring at the bottom of the sink flange can slide over the rubber gasket. I had the gasket too high on the sink flange and spent 2 hours trying to push the disposer high enough to lock in place with the locking ring, and of course it didn't work--very, very frustrating!! The fix was to pull the rubber gasket lower, which allowed the locking ring to twist freely over the gasket. Had to do all this while on the floor under the sink, so it wasn't much fun.

As for the electrical connection, this is a replacement disposal, and the old disposal was direct wired. So I decided to remove the included 3-prong cord and direct wire this disposal to the switched wire rather than install a receptacle under the sink. It wasn't overly difficult, but in the end, it would have been less work to just install a receptacle under the sink. If you have this decision, add the receptacle and just use the attached 3-prong cord.

Looking forward to getting good use from this top rated consumer reports disposal, just wish it had been a little easier to install. Good luck.

I also purchased based on the Consumer Reports rating as well as reviews posted here. I feel I saved 50% over a comparable disposal at a big box store. Mine was shipped from Cantex. I was nervous based on the previous reviewer, but all parts were present and the disposal works very well. I had it professionally installed (was getting new countertops, new sink, new faucet). When I first turned it on, it sounded louder than I expected. The plumber said to put a little dishwashing detergent in and it would lubricate the blade. Wow, made a huge difference in the noise level. He said to do that weekly and it will also keep odors down. So far I'm very pleased.

Nice disposal, much quieter than our old GE 3/4 HP. Took about 10 minutes to install in our stainless sink.

The sink ring is a slightly cheap looking stainless, but other than that, it's a high quality disposal. Got the 1hp version for the lifetime warranty, but I'll probably never need to use it.

Upside: Very easy to install, good instructions in both the paper manual and the Waste King online video. We replaced a contractor grade 1/3hp Badger in a Kohler porcelain sink (not deep well) that had a three screw mount with lock ring. The Easy Mount kit fit just fine, and installed with minimal effort. The only thing I needed that wasn't in the packaging was the plumbers putty. Install time: 1 hr which included a complete run-through before final assembly. Operation: Very quite, and very powerful. Beats the pants off that Badger.

Downside: The Waste King "Disposal Flange" is integral to the installation. This means that even though we have a matching Disposal Flange (and stopper) that matches our faucet hardware, it doesn't work with the Waste King. Secondly I don't like the fact Waste King has branding all over the silver Flange in the bottom of the sink. I'll buy their hardware but I have no desire to see their brand every time I use the sink. I'd order the *matching color* Flange off their website, but I'm pretty sure they have branding on it as well.

I replaced a piece of ISE Badger junk with this unit. When the ISE seized, the shaft seal went out, and it leaked internally. So I had no dishwasher unless I wanted to do the bucket brigade from below the disposer to the other side of the sink. Galvanized wetted parts plainly aren't the way to go for this service.

I had pretty well decided on the WK 3300 while researching / looking locally and then tried Amazon, finding it much cheaper. Since the WK 8000 was even cheaper, at the top of the Consumers Reports list, and Aneheim Mfg. offers a lifetime warranty (original purchaser), it was an obvious choice.

So I went the WK Direct / Cantex Trading route, with no problems. I ordered early on a Sunday morning; it arrived Wed. afternoon; and was running that nite. The paperwork says it came from Austin, TX. Included are both handwritten and printed notes that urge you to leave feedback at Amazon and contact them directly if you can't give 5 stars in every category; their staff receives bonus based on the feedback. Maybe when they shipped that customer the defective unit in early Sept., somebody at Cantex noticed the review, and has taken action to avoid a repeat.

EZ-mount: I was sure to get this, because I wanted the removable rubber baffle. (How else do you get the grunge off that thing?) It should be a simpler install for most people. Only concern is that the vibration will loosen the plastic locknut, but I guess the mfr. has looked at this. Anyway, it's accessible to tighten if it happens. Rubber gasket under the sink flange instead of messing with the plumber's putty - yea! Two-position locking ring (hold the unit up but let it swivel / locked in place) - yea!. The instructions implore you many times to be sure to get the lower cushion mount in right. If the locking ring would slide higher - up over the flange threads - it would really help with this feat.

Plumbing: Since this WK is larger in both height and diameter, this just required hack sawing the plastic pipe and outlet nozzle for a fit.

Electrical: Didn't have to disconnect the old unit; just cut the romex and installed a plug. No telling how many 2-prong female plugs there are in my house, but had to make the dash to the local hardware for a grounded one. Mounted the plugs high on the rear sink compartment wall with a zip tie to help avoid them seeing water.

Noise: Can't understand other comments; my unit is much quieter than the Badger 5, even without the detergent trick. It's a ss sink.

Purchased from Waste King Direct. Price was excellent ($119 incl shipping). Shipping was very good. Also like the "lifetime" warranty. Beats the 2 to 5 year warranties on the more popular selling In-Sink-Erator, which was the unit I had to replace after 10 years of moderate service.

Downside to this purchase was the service from Waste King which was non-existent. Called customer service on Friday at 3:30pm CDT to get additional details on electrical hookup. CSD was apparently gone for the day. Left message on answering machine to call me as soon as possible. Call was never returned. However, very happy overall, with disposer now that it is installed. Only complaint is the louder than normal noise this unit makes along with some added vibration. Perhaps this is because the unit has a large 1 HP motor turning over at 2800 rpm with a lot of startup torque.

I purchased this product while doing a major Kitchen renovation. First time I've ever had a disposal so don't really have any disposal experience to compare it to. Was fairly easy to install. One tip I could offer is to check the height of the waste line coming out of the wall. I got lucky as I installed it to a 10 inch deep sink and so the discharge level of the disposal was maybe 16-20 inches below the countertop. Need to have the waste pipe lower than the point of discharge from the disposal. Had read some reviews about this unit being loud and producing a lot of vibration. I didn't find the unit to be overly loud and it produces very little vibration. I suspect those that are experiencing vibration have it mounted to a lesser guage sink and perhaps a laminate countertop. My only complaint is the sink flange is chrome which clashed with my brushed stainless sink. I spent an additional $50.00 to get a brushed stainless sink flange,adapter,locking ring and 3 bolt mounting bracket which were all needed to change the sink flange to stainless. Would have been nice if stainless was offered with the disposal.