Grease Is the Word
Running a restaurant can be very lucrative, but it can also be quite a challenge. Food handling has a great swath of regulations and standards that must be maintained for safety and cleanliness. FDA standards for food inspection are very strict to keep patrons safe and for the business to avoid liability—and in food prep, it doesn’t take very much for something to go wrong. That’s why maintenance is key. Constant cleaning of all components ensures quality food without risks of potentially life-threatening sicknesses and infections, like salmonella and E. Coli, and without threatening the environment with the neglected buildup of greases and oils. This is one of the major reasons it’s important to keep up on grease trap cleaning.
How Does a Grease Trap Work?
A grease trap is a basic mechanism that acts as a filter that catches oil and grease runoff as it runs toward a drain. The grease trap catches the semi-solid fats, which are heavier than the water carried with it, in a basin between the grill and the drain. This keeps the grease from seeping into sewer pipes. Regular grease trap cleaning is therefore needed to avoid many environmental catastrophes and the fines that follow.
Grease trap cleaning is also essential for many other reasons. Oils are heavily viscous, and they can easily lock up a drainage system with buildup. This can damage components, cause downtime, or in the worst cases, lead to a fire. A grease trap looks like a large, square basin that is about the size of a large, two-handled storage box, but it is made of metal with a sealed lid. To clean the trap, the lid must be carefully pried off without chipping or cutting the rubber gasket. Inside, the receptacle holds the grease, which must be stored in an approved environmental waste container.
The Costs of Grease Trap Cleaning, and the Cost of Avoiding Grease Trap Cleaning
While grease trap cleaning is, in theory, a fairly simple task, it can also be risky to undertake it yourself without the proper training. Because grease traps are made up of several sensitive components that are assembled to specifications, grease trap cleaning that is done by untrained persons is unrecommended. It can be easy for a botched grease trap cleaning to damage the gaskets or lose parts, costing you the replacement of the parts or the entire unit, both of which can potentially cost you thousands, plus downtime.
Professional cleaning companies will charge a nominal price for a grease trap cleaning. In the United States, this typically ranges between approximately $115 and $1050, depending on the size, type, and buildup of your trap. If you are unsure, ask for a quote before getting a grease trap cleaning. One thing that is certain, though, is that a professional grease trap cleaning is much more economical than dealing with the costs involved in botched cleanings, or no cleanings at all.
Professional Grease Trap Cleaning
Restaurants in the Houston (https://goo.gl/maps/WmAZkhY57SSgw6JbA) area need to keep up on regular grease trap cleaning. If you are in the Houston area and need professional grease trap cleaning, visit this page now or contact Drane Ranger.