How Do You Clean A Grease Trap

Nearly half a one thousand thousand tonnes of grease and fat enter the United kingdom sewerage system every yr. Grease sticks to piping walls, which can eventually pb to blockages while fats and oils harm waste h2o treatment equipment, costing municipalities millions in repairs every twelvemonth. If allowed to enter a natural water course, fats, oils and grease (FOG) tin can cause serious damage to the surround.

For these reasons, legislation ensuring that the correct FOG management is used by food service operators is at present being heavily enforced. Polluters can confront large fines or even closure if FOG waste product isn't managed effectively. FOG too causes big bug inside commercial kitchens, with FOG from wastewater causing blockages in internal pipes leading to expensive repairs and potential equipment downtime.

Fortunately, grease management systems such every bit grease traps are readily bachelor. They're often the start-option FOG management solution for kitchen operators only what are they and how exercise they work?

What is a grease trap?

Grease traps have been around for more than 100 years and are also known every bit grease interceptors, converters, catchers, grease recovery / management devices or FOG traps. They're used in in a wide range of environments including:

Restaurants
Cafes
Takeaways
Pubs, bars and inns
Hotels
Schools and colleges
Bakeries

To put it simply, a grease trap is a receptacle into which wastewater containing FOG flows through before entering a drainage system. The receptacle is designed to intercept or "trap" the FOG while allowing clear water to escape.

Grease trap installed nether a sink

How does a grease trap work?

Grease traps piece of work on the basis that animal fats and vegetable oils (grease) are 10 to xv pct less dense than water and that grease won't mix with water. Thus, fats and oils bladder on top of water.

When wastewater enters a grease trap, the catamenia rate is reduced enough so the wastewater is given plenty time to absurd and divide into 3 layers. The grease rises to the top inside the interceptor and is trapped using a system of baffles. Solids settle at the bottom and the separated clear water escapes nether an outlet bamboozle. Many grease traps also have strainers for collecting solid debris, which reduces the corporeality of solids that settle at the bottom of the trap.

Over fourth dimension, solids and grease build-up, and if left to accumulate for long enough they can beginning to escape through the outlet and in some circumstances, they can dorsum-up through the inlet. For this reason, the trap must be cleaned / pumped out on a regular basis.

The time between cleaning / pumping out the trap will depend on the amount of wastewater produced and the size of the grease trap but information technology is usually every two-4 weeks. This fourth dimension-period tin exist diffuse to up to 8 weeks by calculation a biological grease treatment fluid into the system. The solution combines non-pathogenic leaner with nutrients and enzymes to break down FOG, aiding grease trap performance. This process is unremarkably referred to every bit "dosing".

Dosing tin can also exist implemented at the outlet stage as a further method of preventing FOG build-upwardly in internal piping.

The different types of grease traps

At that place are 3 main types of grease trap; passive hydromechanical (manual), automatic and gravity.

Passive hydromechanical (manual) grease traps

Passive (transmission) grease trap

Traditional passive systems are one of the most mutual systems used in smaller establishments. This is due to the low initial investment cost required to buy i and the variety of sizes available, significant they can be easily installed nether nigh sinks while larger units are available to accommodate bigger wastewater production requirements.

Designs of manual grease traps date back to 1885 when the get-go U.S. patent was issued. Fifty-fifty today grease interceptors apply the same bones operating design as the 1885 model. They're usually constructed from plastic or stainless steel and must exist cleaned manually and on a regular footing.

Automatic grease traps

Automatic grease trap

Automatic systems, besides known every bit AGRU's (automatic grease removal units), employ some of the aforementioned principals as a traditional passive trap just re-heat and skim out the FOG automatically on a programmed schedule. The skimmed FOG is and then transferred into a collector bin for easy removal and recycling. The programmed schedule is based on the corporeality of FOG produced and means operators don't accept to measure or check grease levels.

Much like passive systems they're bachelor in a variety of sizes to accommodate a range of requirements. While they accept a college initial investment cost, they are more efficient and accept lower long term running and servicing costs.

Gravity grease traps

Gravity systems are ordinarily big in-ground tanks constructed from physical, fibreglass or steel. They work in a similar style to a passive hydromechanical trap but have a much larger capacity and are better for high-flow applications.

Gravity grease trap

Gravity traps must exist pumped out on a scheduled basis, usually by a specialist grease management service visitor.

With public awareness of ecology bug increasing, looking into your FOG management now is potentially a wise investment and finer futurity-proofs your business against future legislation which some are predicting will become more than stringent in this surface area in years to come.

You Might Similar

Manual Vs Automated Grease Traps

We compare Automatic Grease traps with Passive or Manual grease traps for efficiency, sustainability and cost over a three year period, view our results.

automatic vs manual grease traos