Fats, oils, and greases may be a delicious component of your cooking, especially with Thanksgiving right around the corner, but they can cause a lot of problems in the sewer system. Fats, oils, and greases (FOG) are the by-products of cooking, food preparation, and baking. FOG includes anything oil or dairy-based. Some examples of FOGs include, but are not limited to:
- Meat greases and fats
- Cooking oils (olive, coconut, avocado, etc.)
- Cheese
- Butter
- Gravy
- Ice cream
- Peanut butter
- Mayonnaise
- Salad Dressings or sauces
- Milk
When poured down the drain, FOG hardens in sewer pipes. This restricts the capacity of the sewer pipes to convey the waste to the treatment plant. Over time, FOGs can completely block the pipes and force sewage back up into your home, the street, or nearby creeks.
By eliminating FOGs down the drain, you can help maintain the sewer system so that it remains dependable and long lasting. System maintenance, repair, and replacement, and overflow cleanups are factored into your water bill, and FOG continues to be the #1 cause of sewer system blockages in the metro Atlanta area.
Simple things you can do to prevent FOG from going down your drain:
- Never pour any FOG down the drain.
- Scrape leftover food into the trash instead of the sink, even if you have a garbage disposal.
- Pour oil and grease from pans into a container that you can dispose of in the trash before washing your pans.
- Fryer grease should be cooled, placed in a sealed container, and disposed of in the trash.
- Use sink strainers to catch food and empty it into the trash can.
- Don’t forget that FOG includes not only fats or grease from meats, but also mayonnaise, salad dressing, cheese, butter, and other items that were listed above.
Roswell residents can bring liquefied cooking oils – such as olive oil, soybean oil, or peanut oil – to the Roswell Recycling Center, located at 11570 Maxwell Road, Alpharetta, GA 30009. To learn more information, check out the FOGgy Things video that explains in more detail the effects of FOGs.