Because schools house large student bodies comprised of persistently hungry youths, they must prepare an enormous quantity of food daily. Ensuring school kitchens operate efficiently without disruptions is a vital necessity for administrators. Unfortunately, grease traps – despite being essential assets to commercial kitchens – pose a potentially serious weak link in the commercial kitchen chain.

Grease traps are some of the most frequently overlooked commercial kitchen fixtures because they are out of the way. Grease trap issues may not be obvious until disaster has struck. If not properly and regularly cleaned, the consequences can be overwhelming.

What Regular Grease Trap Cleanings Can Prevent

Health and Sanitation Violations

If grease traps aren’t cleaned regularly, they can become a breeding ground for bacteria and pests – inside a densely populated environment that’s already highly vulnerable to outbreaks. They also emit a foul odor that can permeate a large area around the grease trap, which can make a campus unwelcoming and unpleasant for students and faculty.

Regular cleaning of grease traps helps to eliminate these issues. Hiring a reliable, local grease trap maintenance and fryer oil recycling service provider can ensure your FOG is removed and disposed of effectively and efficiently, preserving the quality and standards of your kitchen and campus.

Safety Violations

Equipment must be maintained regularly to verify they’re in good working order. Due to their vital role in the prevention of FOG sewer clogs, grease traps are required by municipal ordinance to undergo regular, thorough maintenance by a licensed professional. In addition to being qualified to clean and service grease traps, the company must also be properly licensed to haul off and treat the wastewater vacuumed up from the trap.

Hiring a reliable grease trap maintenance and fryer oil recycling service can protect your institution from violations and the large fines and penalties that come with them. Southern Green Industries will also help you keep detailed records of your service, submitting manifests in any format to local inspectors on your behalf.

Sewer Blockages

The problems created by a poorly maintained cafeteria grease trap do not just affect the school, but also the entire community. One of the primary duties of a grease trap is to prevent FOG from escaping through the sewer line and into the city’s sewer system. The sewer line has far less diameter than the municipal sewer system and is more prone to clogs, but an excess of FOG will eventually create catastrophic blockages in the local sewer system that could affect an entire area.

Sewer line clogs can also cause severe sewage backups within a school, creating an extremely hazardous environment that requires expensive water remediation and professional-grade sanitization to rectify.

When grease traps are not cleaned regularly, they lose their effectiveness at capturing FOG. Blockages can cause foul odors to permeate the building, disrupt operations and require costly emergency repairs. This is especially worrisome for school kitchens, which must provide uninterrupted food service for hundreds or thousands of students every day.

Premature Equipment Breakdown

Regular cleaning ensures that grease traps continue to function at their optimal capacity, allowing your kitchen staff to operate with maximum efficiency. Neglecting grease trap cleaning can lead to accelerated wear and tear, which can result in more frequent repairs and replacements. Worst case, your grease trap may experience a premature failure, necessitating a full replacement. Removing and replacing underground grease traps can be extraordinarily expensive, especially for schools with strict budgets and limited resources.

Schools can prolong the lifespan of essential infrastructure, including grease traps, and reduce the need for repairs with regular cleaning and maintenance.

Environmental Violations

Regular grease trap cleaning is crucial to preventing FOG from entering the sewer system, helping to protect Atlanta’s sewers. When schools hire Southern Green Industries, they can trust that they’re partnering with the greenest grease trap cleaning company in the state. Not only do we go above and beyond to ensure FOG and waste fryer oil are properly treated at our wastewater treatment plant and oil recycling facilities, but we also convert the collected waste fryer oil into biofuel that fuels our entire fleet.

Georgia Schools Have Been Relying on Us for Quick and Comprehensive Grease Trap Cleaning and Waste Fryer Oil Recycling Services for Over 15 Years

From seamless grease trap cleaning and waste fryer oil removal to independent manifest submissions on your behalf, Southern Green Industries works hard to make proper grease trap cleaning and waste oil recycling easy for all types of commercial kitchens. Learn more and receive a free quote today by calling (404) 419-6887.