From Laws to Bacteria: Four Reasons Commercial Kitchens Need Grease Traps

Environmental Blog

If you are planning to open a business with a commercial kitchen, you may be wondering why you need a grease trap. The reasons vary, but here is a look at what you need to know.

1. Grease traps are legally required in some cases.

When restaurants clean pots, plates and other things in their kitchen, they are likely to rinse a lot of greasy or buttery residue off the plates. If this gets into the sewer system, it can damage the pipes. To protect the infrastructure, many local governments require businesses with commercial kitchens to have a grease trap. If you are opening a commercial kitchen, you should contact the local council or health inspector to see if you need one.

2. Unbridled grease can cause your drains to stop working.

If grease is allowed to escape unhindered into your drains, the grease can form clots in the drain. In particular, as the grease gets cold, it's likely to coagulate, causing other bits of food and debris to get stuck in the drain behind it. This can cause your sinks to stop draining, which is not ideal when you are in the midst of trying to cook food for catering clients or a restaurant full of customers.

3. Clogs can cause backups in other parts of the plumbing system.

Depending where a bit of grease clogs up the plumbing system, it may not just cause your drains to stop working. Instead, it may cause backups in other areas. For example, imagine a clog somewhere in the system causes the water rinsing out of your dishwasher to surface in the toilet while a customer is in the bathroom. This can create a situation no one wants to be involved with.

4. Oily buildups in pipes can cause health issues.

In some cases, oil doesn't even have to create a clog to create a problem. Recently, oil built up inside of water pipes provided bacteria a place to grow in the pipes. The oily water had built up in junctures of the pipe where they were not affected by the chlorinated water rushing by them. Eventually, the bacteria spread into the water supply, causing illness. This is another reason, you don't want to release unnecessary oil into your pipes.

Are you ready to learn more about grease traps, what they do and how they can help your business? Then, contact a grease trap expert.

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1 September 2016

Saving energy easily

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