As the holiday season gets into full swing, we may find our kitchens filled with tantalizing scents of delicious meals and treats. But do you know what would be a huge bummer? Having to call a plumber in the middle of dinner!
Fats, oils, and greases – also known as FOGs – are both important components of cooking (hello, butter, and olive oil) and pesky byproducts (hey there, fryer oil and bacon grease). Due to their ability to be both liquids and solids, FOGs need a little extra attention when cleaning up in the kitchen.
If FOGs start as warm liquid being rinsed down the drain or spun through the garbage disposal, they’ll end up cooling and congealing somewhere further down inside the pipes. Just imagine, a cooled FOG glob that grows as more FOGs join the party to create an ever-growing glob (also known as a fatberg). This can cause major blockages or overflows in home plumbing, septic tanks, and the city’s sewer system. It’s smelly, unpleasant, unhealthy, and totally avoidable.
Here are some quick tips to keep your holiday season (and the rest of the year) clog-free:
1. Never pour FOGs down a sink drain or toilet. Instead, pour warm FOGs into a lidded container, let solidify, and throw the container with FOGs into the trash (or keep the same container and add/layer FOGs until full). Contact Clean Water Services to get a “Freeze the Grease, Save the Drain” kit (www.cleanwaterservices.org).
2. Use dry paper towels to wipe excess FOGs off of pots, pans, and dishes before washing. This prevents the warm water from liquifying the FOGs and rinsing them down the drain. Be sure to throw the paper towels into the trash.
3. The garbage disposal should be last! First, scrape the bulk of food scraps into the trash or compost. Then, use a strainer in the sink to catch any lingering bits when rinsing, then empty the strainer into the trash or compost. Small bits of food can stick with FOG to pipes, causing additional build-up.
4. FOGs are part of a pretty big category of things that shouldn’t go down the drain and garbage disposal, including: meat fats, lard, shortening, butter, margarine, food scraps, dairy products, batters, icing, dressing, and especially a holiday staple: gravy.
Here in Tualatin, we have weekly garbage pickup, so any FOGs you collect in a container or with paper towels and put into the trash will be out of the house pretty quickly. And as of July 2023, if you have a yard debris bin, plate scrapings and other food scraps can go straight into the bin and will also be picked up weekly as a part of our curbside composting service (yep, even the meat and bones from Thanksgiving turkeys and holiday hams)!
For more information about FOGs or to get a printable yes/no list for composting, visit the “Trash and Recycling” section of the City’s website or give us a ring at 503-691-3093.
