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FAQs
Each grease trap cleaning, as required by your municipality, includes:
- Removal and subsequent re-closure of grease trap lid (as access is provided by the customer)
- Vacuum out of grease trap contents
- Scraping of as many walls and baffles inside the trap that can be accessed
- Spraying the trap to clean debris from the trap (as spray is accessible)
- Verify the inlet and outlet are functional
- Inspecting the walls and floor of the trap for leaks
It is physically impossible for your grease trap to cause a backup. A grease trap is only a box that catches your waste water. As such, it doesn’t do anything but catch waste. When your trap is cleaned out, all of the waste is removed. Therefore, your lines should actually flow better after they are vacuumed. However, just because your grease trap catches most of your waste, this doesn’t mean the trap is the only place where waste can collect. Much as the arteries in our bodies get plaque build-up on their inner walls, so the drain lines in your building get grease build-up. The most likely cause for a clogged drain is that the drains from your 3-comp sink to your grease trap have a build-up. It’s also possible that the drain line from your grease trap to the city waste water line is clogged. A recently cleaned or well-maintained grease trap does not cause a backup.
Your grease trap is only a box that catches your waste water. As such, it doesn’t do anything but catch waste. As water flows out of the drain lines in your building, that water contains various materials. Most of those materials stay in the water and flow out, but some materials, like grease and other heavy solid particles, are dropped (or caught) by your grease trap. Those materials begin to break down as they sit inside of your trap. This trapping of materials, and their decomposition over time, is what causes the smell to come from your trap. If the seal on your lid is good and tight, you shouldn’t smell the stench. However, many trap lids fall into disrepair, which causes the smell to emanate from your trap continuously.
Much like the arteries in our body get plaque build-up, so do all of the drain lines in your building. The likely cause is that the drains from your 3-comp sink to your grease trap have a build-up that is plugging them, or the drain line from your grease trap to the city waste water line is clogged. Even though you clean your grease trap, as mandated by your grease inspector, there can still be a build up of grease and other solids within your drain lines.
The solution: Call GreaseCorp and ask us to snake or jet your line.
There are several reasons you may have a fruit fly problem. Grease traps that process high dairy or sugar content, traps that hold stagnant water or traps that are not maintained adequately will bring a rash of fruit flies. If your fruit fly problem goes unaddressed for too long it can turn into a very serious issue. Give GreaseCorp a call today! We have developed a comprehensive plan to wipe our your fruit fly problem.
Grease Trap Regulations
FOG (fats, oils, grease) is officially labeled a pollutant by the Environmental Protection Agency. FOG Compliance is a huge issue for waste water across the country, because it interferes with POTWs (Publicly Owned Treatment Works). If you’ve never heard this before, you will. Fats, oils, and grease are the components that make up FOG. It’s not just grease, but includes liquid oils and solid fats as well, from things like meat, dairy products (milk, yogurt, ice cream, butter, and cheese), and mayonnaise / salad dressings. So, even if you don’t use grease for cooking, you are likely using some of these other ingredients in your business. This is why your municipality is concerned that your business has a grease trap. Their primary goal is to control and prevent public health and water quality problems caused by these pollutants.
The EPA did a study noting that about 47% of all waste water blockages were caused by FOG. They call these pollutant discharges in EPA (40 CFR 403). They prohibit solid or viscous pollutants in amounts that can cause obstructions to waste water systems. Additionally, the Clean Water Act of 1972 protects state water, public health, and sanitary sewer / public treatment works. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection is in charge of enforcing the federal Clean Water Act.
Add all of these factors up, and it’s clear that you must handle FOG according to regulations, or consequences will eventually be faced. In fact, the report from the EPA, says there may need to be additional oversight and enforcement of existing regulations and controls in the future. The needs for FOG. Enforcement won’t be going away anytime soon, so it is critical that your business work with your inspector to remain in compliance.
Grease Trap Tips
Grease trap maintenance stinks... literally. The smell from a grease trap can fill up your business for hours after it has been cleaned. We provide fast removal, without neglecting cleanliness and quality of service for your trap. Additionally, the headache of grease waste disposal is handled properly by our technicians.
The best advice is to get on a regular grease trap maintenance program that makes sense for your business.
It makes sense to maintain a grease trap log book to show any inspector who visits your establishment. In fact, GreaseCorp provides our customers with a standardized log book, and we verify compliance and fill out your log every time we service your trap.
If your drain clogs, you could have a build-up of grease and other materials in your drain lines or your grease trap. If your grease trap is well maintained, the clog is probably in your lines. Either way, GreaseCorp is the solution. Give us a call, and we’ll open up your lines in a snap.