Here at Marion Pumper, we want to help you take the best possible care of your whole septic system, and that includes the grease trap. If you want to keep this key component in good working order, it’s important to understand how it works. In this article, our team will provide a brief overview of exactly how grease traps work so that you can more easily spot problems when they occur.
- Why Grease Traps Are Necessary. Before we get into how grease traps work, let’s go over why they are necessary. We need grease traps to prevent grease and other fats from getting into our plumbing, as these substances will stick to the pipe walls and create blockages that can lead to serious damage to the system.
- How Grease Traps Work. Grease traps rely on the fact that fats, oils, and grease (called FOG in industry terms) are all less dense than water, meaning that they will float on top. A grease trap is essentially a receptacle placed near the top of a septic tank that is designed to intercept the grease layer and prevent any part of it from flowing out into the drain field with the other liquids. The heavier solid waste in the system sinks to the bottom, the grease float on top inside the walls of the grease trap, and the liquids flow out of the tank through a baffle and enter the drain field. Like septic tanks as a whole, grease traps will also need to be periodically emptied of their contents in order to make room for new grease to enter, and our team is proud to provide this service to our clients.