Investing in your first restaurant is a promising venture, but it's one that you shouldn't go into ill-prepared. One of the things that many new restaurant owners don't understand is the importance of addressing the grease trap on a regular basis. Before you find yourself with a plumbing nightmare on your hands, here are a few things that you need to understand:
What Problems Can Arise?
The grease trap is designed to keep all types of grease and other fats from reaching the sewer system. Since these things can cause major clogs, it's important that they don't filter into those water sources. Unfortunately, since they catch things like this, they can become clogged themselves. That's why you need to monitor your grease trap regularly.
If you have a clogged grease trap, it's going to leave you with a mess that can be costly to deal with. You'll end up with foul odors from the drain lines due to the grease accumulation, and it could ultimately cause you plumbing backups and other blockages. In addition, if you end up with any grease seeping into the sewer system, you'll risk significant fines from the city for the contamination. All of this can be costly and devastating to your business.
How Can You Avoid Grease Trap Issues?
The easiest way to avoid problems with your grease trap is to maintain it and clean it on a regular basis. You'll want to start by learning how to check it yourself. You should have an owner's manual for the trap that will tell you how to inspect it as well as how to clear clogs. If not, a local drain cleaning company can help you with that.
Regularly check the trap itself to be sure that it's secure, not leaking, and not backed up. Blockages in the lines can happen quickly, so don't dismiss your routine inspections. A full grease trap needs to be cleared out right away. You may also find clogs in the incoming, outgoing, or crossover lines. Those need to be flushed and addressed.
Always make sure to keep foreign objects out of the grease trap. Anything in the trap that doesn't belong can damage it or cause serious clogs. Don't try to treat clogs with a solvent material, as you need to be sure you're not risking damage to your pipes or the city water system. Let a drain cleaning company like Tierra Environmental & Industrial Services handle that part.
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