Knockout Plugs for the Dummy DIY Plumber

When it comes to explaining the "why" of a set of "how-to" instructions, we occasionally run across some pretty doofus reasons for performing a task. Some of the worst are in automotive repairs, but they're scattered all across the universe of DIY projects. Today's explanation, about "How to Remove the Knockout Plug in a Garbage Disposal" is one such case. Sit back and observe as Hunker.com contributor Steffani Cameron explained what she thought might be the reason for doing so to a while back

Interestingly enough, Cameron's attempt to explain the process seems to find Leaf Group in cleanup mode, rewriting the rubbish posted by Owen Pearson to eHow some years back (we castigated Owen for his work last year). Like Pearson before her, Steffani seems ignorant of the situation, explaining why you might need to remove a knockout plug thus:

"Whether you've installed a new dishwasher with an existing garbage disposal or vice versa, overlooking one small detail can cause the unfortunate problem of having your dishwasher fail to drain."

Try as we might, we cannot conceive of how installing a new dishwasher with an existing garbage disposal might lead to "overlooking [this] one small detail." After all, if one replaces an existing dishwasher, the knockout plug surely has already been removed! The instance of neglecting to remove the knockout in a new disposer seems more likely, although in our experience – and several of our staffers have installed new disposals – the installation instructions are pretty clear on the need to remove the knockout if there's a dishwasher in the plumbing circuit.

But no, Steffani needs to pretend otherwise 1) because she needs the additional verbiage to meet her minimum word count and 2) because she has no idea what she's talking about (we suspect her course of study to an AA in Journalism did not include plumbing). Some other evidence?

• "Unplug your garbage disposal so you can work safely..." – Most disposals are direct wired, Stef, not plugged in.
• "Using the hammer, lightly tap the back of the screwdriver against the knockout plug repeatedly. – WTF is "the back of [a] screwdriver"?.
• "If there are any jagged edges, a small file or paring knife can round out the hole." – You'd better not be particularly fond of that paring knife!

Cameron's style is intended to be folksy – she blathers about appliances "playing well together" like children (clearly, she thinks she's writing for a mommy audience) – but her grounding in both experience and fact are lacking. It's penny-grubbing freelancers like Steffani that prompted us to start handing out Dumbass of the Day awards in the first place... here's hers.

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