Household Grease – Keep the FOGs from Creating Clogs

Fats, oils, and grease (FOG) such as meat fats, dairy products, food scraps, cooking oils, sauces, dressings, sandwich spreads, gravies, marinades, dairy products, shortening, lard, butter and margarine are a main cause of sewer line backups and breaks.

Raw sewage can overflow into your home, a neighbor’s home, streets, parks, etc. It can also flow into a storm drain, which leads to local waterways. Raw sewage may contain bacteria, viruses and polluted materials that can cause health hazards and harm the aquatic environment. Also, sewer line backups and breaks are expensive to repair and unpleasant to clean up. The following guidelines will assist you with managing household FOG and protecting the environment, as well as the City’s infrastructure.

• Grease or other liquids should never be poured down a drain or flushed down a toilet. Cooking oils such as frying and salad oils, meat drippings, bacon fat, greasy leftovers, butter, food scraps, and sauces coat sewer pipes on your property and the main pipe in the street.  This grease eventually builds up and creates clogged drains or blockages that can cause raw sewage to back up into your home, which may result in costly repairs and messy cleanup.
• Dispose of cooking oils by pouring them into an empty milk carton, frozen juice container, or another type of non-recyclable container and throw it out with the garbage once cooled down. 
• Scrape grease and food scraps from dishes, pots, utensils, etc. into the trash before washing or putting them in the dishwasher. Dishwashers do not get rid of grease.
• Never pour FOG into a garbage disposal. It is designed to shred solid materials into smaller pieces. It does not dissolve grease.
• Put fat trimmings in the garbage instead of in the garbage disposal.
• Never rinse or flush FOG down the drain with hot water and/or dish soap. It does not dissolve grease and may push it further into your sewer lines. Small amounts of grease that may accidentally get into the drain should be flushed right away with cold water.
• Use sink strainer baskets to catch food and other waste and empty it into the garbage.
• Never pour fats, oils, grease, food scraps or other cooking or household liquids down a drain or into a toilet.
• Pour FOG into a heat resistant and sturdy non-recyclable container. Once the container is full and has cooled down, throw it out in the garbage.
• Download Stormy’s Household Grease Tips Card