Commercial grease trap cleaning is essential maintenance that often gets forgotten or skipped. Commercial grease trap cleaning is essential maintenance that often gets forgotten or skipped.
Sure signs of grease pit trouble are:
. when drains back up frequently
. there is pest infestation around the drain
. grease flows back into the sink
. slow draining
. odors coming from the drain
FOGS (fats, oils, grease, and solids) are the major enemies of the drains and garbage disposals of commercial kitchen. In their natural, liquid form, people don’t think twice about pouring it down the drain.
Commercial grease trap cleaning professionals warn that, when the FOGS start to cool, they solidify, and result in a thick, waxy substance that adheres to the walls of drainpipes. The end result is in slow drains and often total clogs.
A grease trap is basically a box of water that traps grease and food waste (for example from washing dishes) and prevents it from blocking the waster system pipes. Over time – the grease trap will become completely blocked with grease preventing water flow through it.
The structure has a baffle inside that retains the wastewater long enough for the grease to solidify and rise to the top, while the clean water flows through. At the surface, the grease trap has removable lids used for inspections and cleanings.
Regular commercial grease trap cleaning—using the proper, professional equipment and techniques— usually takes from 20-30 minutes and is crucial for efficient operations and helps keep the number of down.
A safe and recommended commercial grease trap cleaning rule of thumb is to use the One Quarter Rule. Every three months. It complies with local regulations and for some busy restaurants, the traps should be emptied more often.
Keeping an eye on the grease trap and when it is a quarter of the way full (every three weeks), it is time to clean it out. The reason for the One Quarter Rule is because, at that point, the trap becomes no longer effective.
Commercial grease trap cleaning technicians vacuum the grease trap, scrape the grease trap clean and flow test to confirm proper draining.
Commercial grease trap cleaning works with cool water to allow the FOGS to float to the top. Wait ten minutes once the hot wastewater has been released from the dishwasher or sink and cools. The grungy fats, oils and greases are accessed by carefully prying off the grease tank cover. A delicate and critical component, known as the gasket, can be damaged if lifting off the cover without precaution.
Not only do commercial grease trap cleaning professionals efficiently remove and thoroughly clean grease traps, a key part of commercial grease trap cleaning is disposing of the waste safely.