Grease is one of those things that can harm restaurants. No, not the musical. APS Hoods is talking about food-related grease, the hot liquid and cold solid material that can clog drains and cause flames to rage out of control.
The fact is, grease buildup is one of the top hazards that can affect restaurants and other commercial kitchen establishments everywhere. If users have accumulated grease, it’s only a matter of time before users face trouble of their own.
There is hope, however. Excess grease can be prevented once users know the proper steps to follow. Following is all users need to know about this food waste material and how to avoid expensive fines, closures due to fire, as well as bodily injury and death that can all be caused by the buildup of grease.
Hazards of Indoor Grease Buildup
While it’s easy to let grease management fall by the wayside forgoing the grease cleanup is a mistake
The average restaurant produces copious amounts of waste in the form of grease on a daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly basis.
While it’s easy to let grease management fall by the wayside, especially as users deal with all the stress that comes with running a busy restaurant, forgoing the grease cleanup is a mistake. These are some of the issues users are likely to run into if users allow the grease to pile up out of control.
Enhanced Risk of Bodily Harm
Grease can easily find its way onto the tile floor. When that happens, watch out. Employees can slip and slide and even fall leading to an expensive liability issue. OSHA regulations for restaurant safety require users, as the restaurant owner or manager, to create a safe working environment that is free of hazards like the accumulation of grease that could then go on to cause injury or death.
If an employee is injured on a greasy floor, that entire person has to do is file a complaint with OSHA while claiming damages. Do users rant about that expense or knowledge that users could have prevented the employee’s injury by cleaning up all the grease? The lesson? Keep the floors and entire establishment grease-free to prevent injuries and future lawsuits.
Plumbing Backups
Unless users want number two all over the commercial kitchen, cleaning grease buildup should become the priority
While it’s true that grease becomes liquid during the cooking process, the substance hardens when it cools. Before users know it, users have a gelatinous mess on their hands. If that mess finds its way into the plumbing system, users face a heavy clog.
To make matters worse, when a business’s plumbing is affected, the problem could go on to clog the local sewer system, causing a stinky mess that isn’t easy to clean. Unless users want number two all over commercial kitchen and dining areas, cleaning grease buildup should become the number one priority.
FOG Fees
Fats, Oils, and Grease (FOG) should all be disposed of properly. FOG programs around the country exist to monitor restaurants and other food establishments to ensure sanitary conditions and the appropriate disposal of FOG.
These programs also require users to properly service and maintain all Grease Management removal equipment. If users don’t comply, they could be hit with expensive FOG build-up fees.
Environmental Damage
Users might wonder how to grease buildup inside a business could be an environmental concern. However, the cost to the local ecosystem becomes clearer when users consider the following. Users' standard rooftop grease collector maintains about four quarts of grease.
Users' standard rooftop grease collector maintains about four quarts of grease
The kitchen exhaust hood sends about a quart of grease to the rooftop collector each month. If users only change out the grease pad every year when the inspector comes around, users could find themselves dumping around eight quarts of grease onto the roof each year.
The moment it rains, all that grease could flow off the roof and into rain gutters, subsequently finding itself into a storm drain, and then into the streams and rivers. All that grease can quickly go on to kill plants, fish, and other wildlife. Keep the environment clean by keeping restaurants free of excess grease.
EPA Penalties
The unauthorized discharge of grease-tainted stormwater is against the law.
Users could be subject to fines from the Environmental Protection Agency if they don’t keep up with the buildup of grease in the rooftop collection system.
Foul Odors
The longer grease remains in the kitchen, the worse it’s going to smell. Users' goal is to keep a clean and pleasant-smelling environment for customers to enjoy a meal.
Having an unpleasant odor wafting from the kitchen isn’t going to cut it and could lead to declining business and negative reviews. Restaurants smell like the delicious meals users serve by keeping excess grease at bay.
Pests
Lingering grease can attract mice, rats, drain flies, roaches, and other nasty vermin. The fact is, that buildup of heavy grease is a serious sanitation issue.
Increased Fire Risk
Keep the risk of fire at an absolute minimum by cleaning the grease inside an establishment regularly
Aside from cleanliness, the heightened fire risk is by far the most important reason for Grease Management in a commercial kitchen. Grease is highly flammable. When it builds up, the risk of dangerous fire significantly increases. When a fire ignites, users face restaurant damage and injury, or even loss of life.
The financial drain on business could be enormous, not to mention the emotional toll on customers and staff. Users' reputations could be harmed, and the bottom line could be affected for months, if not years, into the future. Keep the risk of fire at an absolute minimum by cleaning the grease inside an establishment regularly.
The Step by Step Guide to Cleaning Excess Grease Buildup
Users have plenty of reasons to maintain a grease-free environment for customers and staff. Here are a few steps to follow to ensure that happens now and in the future.
Clean Grease Traps
The kitchen’s grease trap doesn’t just catch grease, but it also catches oil and fat. Remember FOG? Oh yeah, users' grease trap’s full of it. It’s up to users to empty it every once in a while. If they fail to clean the trap, all that grease can find its way into the local sewer, and APS right back to a sewer backup.
Users can clean a grease trap on their own. Users can even get staff to do the job. However, only a professional can ensure that the grease trap is opened, cleaned, serviced, maintained, and sealed properly. A wrong move can leave a grease trap that isn’t properly cleaned or that isn’t well-maintained, giving problems sooner or later.
Collecting FOG excess
Professionals can also repair parts and replace them as needed, making sure FOG excess is always collected
Most grease traps have to be opened carefully, with specialized tools so that users don’t break the gaskets. All that gunk needs to be removed and then properly disposed of. Users can’t just dump all that FOG down the drain, nor should they toss it into the garbage.
Users can get fined for that, which is another case for getting professionals to do the job on their behalf. Professionals can also repair parts and replace them as needed, making sure FOG excess is always collected and that all the waste in the local sewer system stays right where it belongs.
How Often Should Grease Traps Be Cleaned?
The restaurant’s grease trap cleaning frequency will vary depending on the size of the rap and the amount of grease staff use in the kitchen.
Most cities require restaurants to clean the trap so that they maintain less than 25% FOG accumulation. For most establishments, this equates to a thorough cleaning at least once per quarter and sometimes as frequently as once per month.
Grease Trap Buildup Warning Signs
Users should be aware of indicators that can tell them when the grease trap should be cleaned and/or maintained. One warning sign to look for is a drain system that doesn’t go down as fast.
Backed-up drains are almost a sure sign that there is too much grease in a trap. Another warning sign is a strong and foul odor. FOG waste produces an extremely unpleasant odor after sitting stagnant for extended periods Users need to ensure they remove them frequently.
Cleaning grease traps properly, and having professionals do the job, will prevent these foul odors from accumulating inside the restaurant. Finally, if sewers are backing up, that could be an indication that the grease trap is full and needs to be cleaned out.
Vent Hood Cleaning
Users can maintain the cleanest vent hoods and keep the health inspector happy with regular vent hood cleaning
A dirty ventilation hood can be a major fire hazard. Users can also get fined by ha health inspector for having blocked or soiled ventilation components. The staff should be engaging in nightly, weekly, and monthly cleaning duties.
One of those duties is likely the cleaning of the grease filters on the vent hoods. But how well is staff inspecting the hoods to ensure they are free of all grease and debris? Users can maintain the cleanest vent hoods and keep the health inspector happy with regular vent hood cleaning by experienced professionals.
Maintained and compliant service
A vent hood cleaning service will ensure that every inch of the unit is clean and well-maintained. Most importantly, the service will keep code-compliant.
Those codes exist to keep restaurant personnel, and customers safe from foul smoke and dangerous fire. For those reasons and more, users will sleep easier knowing that the vent hoods are cleaned by those who know the value of cleaner and more breathable air.
Cooking Oil Pickup
It’s not just grease users have to worry about. Users also should think about any cooking oil kitchen is producing to excess. It can be dangerous to leave used cooking oil just hanging around. Talk about a fire hazard.
A single spark can pose a dangerous situation to building, staff, and loyal customers. For this reason, ensure that users are removing used cooking oil on-premises and that users are following all local rules and regulations while doing so.
Following restaurant laws
Users can ensure that restaurant follows the law by calling on certified professionals for FFOG-related removal
Users can ensure that restaurant follows the law by calling on certified professionals who regularly work with FFOG-related removal.
Removing used cooking oil doesn’t have to be a messy job. Professional services exist whose reputation depends on fast, clean, and courteous pickups of all types of substances, including used oil and grease.
Clean Kitchen Floors
Grease doesn’t have to spill in a puddle to cause a fire or slip hazard. Grease can accumulate on kitchen floors for a long time. This results in a sheet of grease that must be removed if users hope to leave the restaurant safe for staff and customers alike.
The kitchen floors are especially susceptible to grease buildup after the grease trap has been cleaned and maintained.
Cleaning regularly
While the staff is undoubtedly keeping floors somewhat cleaned with their nightly sanitation duties, professional cleaning regularly can give much better peace of mind.
Professional floor cleaners use powerful degreasing agents. They also use heavy-duty machines like floor scrubbers and carpet steamers. Removing grease can be done with wait and kitchen staff, but professional services will make sure floors are always cleaned to satisfaction.
For Major Grease No-Nos
So far, APS Hoods have covered steps users can do to keep grease buildup from becoming a problem.
APS Hoods are going to discuss a couple of things users should never do to keep restaurants clean and free from grease buildup.
No Pouring Grease Down the Drains
All waste should be disposed of properly, in the garbage bin, particularly solid food waste
Everyone in the kitchen should know that users should never pour grease down the drain directly. However, users are essentially doing that very thing when users allow food waste of any kind to the race drain system. All waste should be disposed of properly, in the garbage bin, particularly solid food waste.
Don’t rely on garbage disposals and always empty drain strainers. The goal of kitchen staff should be to minimize at all costs the amount of food that sneaks into the grease trap.
Don’t Leave Outdoor Oil Storage Containers Unsecured
If users recycle cooking oil and leave that oil stored in outdoor containers, make sure they are always properly secured. These containers should always be locked away and maintained so that they are far from wastewater systems.
These protocols ensure that the grease and oils never enter the natural environment. Locking the containers also keeps thieves from stealing and selling used oil and build-up grease.
Don’t Let the Grease Buildup Get Out of Hand
Users know the damage that can be done to restaurants they allow grease and FOG altogether to accumulate to excess.
The restaurant cleaning professionals at APS-Hoods want to talk to users if they have heavy amounts of grease and wish to make an establishment cleaner and safer for everyone involved. Users staff and customers deserve an environment that is sanitary and that prevents slips, falls, and deadly fires.