Grease Trap maintenance

ollielaroo

Hi all,

Just a quick question on grease traps.
We have a grease trap very like this 40 Litre Domestic grease trap seen here from JFC.

I pulled up the blue bucket and emptied all the grey and greasy sludge out. (I know I need to do this about once every three months or more).
That went fine but when I lifted up the bucket there was excess water at the bottom of the grease trap therefore the bucket wouldn't sit back down correctly. I took up the bucket again and emptied all this water out so the bucket could sit down properly. Out of curiousity I checked the next day and the bucket is floating and bobbing on the water again i.e. not sitting and settled at the bottom of the grease trap like I thought it should.

What's the story here? Is this what I should expect?

Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

slimjimmc

Based on what your link shows it seems your trap is working normally, the bucket is meant to be submerged. The trap works on the principle that water entering the chamber is slowed down enough to allow the fat/grease solids fall to the bottom of the bucket. Tt doesn't matter if the bucket is floating or not; the only thing that matters is that the grease has time to settle into the bucket. As the bucket fills with grease it gets heavier and will sink to the bottom which is why you may not have noticed it before. There's no need to drain the water from the trap when emptying the bucket, it's only going to fill up again the next time you empty the sink.

Avns1s

Sorry Jim but I dont think you're right. If the bucket is floating the water and grease simply bypasses it. You would be as well with no grease trap at all!

OP empty your trap again and fill the bucket with water. This will hold it in position and any water passing into the grease trap wont have the effect of causing it to float. Simple really!

ollielaroo

slimjimmc, thanks for your response but I still like what Avns1s is saying.
Not sure what other people are doing in this kind of situation though.

Avns1s you must have been in this situation before thank you!

dh0661

Avns1s wrote: »

Simple really!

= obvious, obviously

slimjimmc

Avns1s wrote: »

Sorry Jim but I dont think you're right. If the bucket is floating the water and grease simply bypasses it. You would be as well with no grease trap at all!

OP empty your trap again and fill the bucket with water. This will hold it in position and any water passing into the grease trap wont have the effect of causing it to float. Simple really!

Yes you are correct.

For some odd reason I thought the bucket was submerged but just not sitting on the bottom correctly, as opposed to floating on top .

ollielaroo

OK I've checked the grease trap again.
It seems the grease trap fills with water after a day or two and the blue bucket gets overcome (drowned) by the water therefore sinking the bucket to the bottom again.

Oh the excitement and anticipation of emptying it again in three months time!!

Thanks all!

whitelightrider

ollielaroo wrote: »

OK I've checked the grease trap again.
It seems the grease trap fills with water after a day or two and the blue bucket gets overcome (drowned) by the water therefore sinking the bucket to the bottom again.

Oh the excitement and anticipation of emptying it again in three months time!!

Thanks all!

Apologies for dragging up an old thread but we have the same trap in our house. I emptied it yesterday and noticed that today it is full of water. I mean the water is almost coming out of the lid of the trap! Is this normal? I noticed also that the washing machine seems to be feeding into the trap also so this may be why its filling up so fast.

Buford T Justice

If the trap is overflowing then it could be a sign that the outlet is partially blocked. The trap shouldn't impede the flow of water through it

whitelightrider

Fingers McGee wrote: »

If the trap is overflowing then it could be a sign that the outlet is partially blocked. The trap shouldn't impede the flow of water through it

How would I free the blockage in the trap though without digging up the other side of it?

Buford T Justice

whitelightrider wrote: »

How would I free the blockage in the trap though without digging up the other side of it?

Firstly, I would don a pair of marigolds and start feeling around and see what I can feel. Not so sure, but there may be some sort of access port for it?

whitelightrider

Fingers McGee wrote: »

Firstly, I would don a pair of marigolds and start feeling around and see what I can feel. Not so sure, but there may be some sort of access port for it?

Stuck on the marigolds already
Ill take another look this evening. Maybe some grease got stuck where the water seems out of the trap. Hopefully thats all it is

RKQ

whitelightrider wrote: »

How would I free the blockage in the trap though without digging up the other side of it?

Sometimes if its not regularly degreased, the grease can back up the inlet pipe. Put on a pair of disposable gloves or marigolds:)
I'd empty once every 4, 6 or 8 weeks, depending on cooking.

whitelightrider

RKQ wrote: »

Sometimes if its not regularly degreased, the grease can back up the inlet pipe. Put on a pair of disposable gloves or marigolds:)
I'd empty once every 4, 6 or 8 weeks, depending on cooking.

Hey RKQ,

But would that cause the whole trap to fill with water? I opened the manhole cover and it looks clear on the inlet side. Its the outlet side thats the problem. Im just wondering if the manhole cover near the septic tank might be for the grease trap outlet. Other than that I dont know how to unblock it.

RKQ

Hi Whitelightrider,
From personal experience, I've only ever seen the grease back up in the inlet pipe.
From what you describe it sounds like your outlet pipe could have a build up of grease, a blockage or your septic tank might be full. :eek:
If the tank is full it could be backing up to the grease trap. Tanks should be emptied once a year approx.
Do you have good percolation in your area?
Have you lookedinto your septic tank?
It might be worth trying to rod the pipe from the outlet of the grease trap to the septic tank.

whitelightrider

RKQ wrote: »

Hi Whitelightrider,
From personal experience, I've only ever seen the grease back up in the inlet pipe.
From what you describe it sounds like your outlet pipe could have a build up of grease, a blockage or your septic tank might be full. :eek:
If the tank is full it could be backing up to the grease trap. Tanks should be emptied once a year approx.
Do you have good percolation in your area?
Have you lookedinto your septic tank?
It might be worth trying to rod the pipe from the outlet of the grease trap to the septic tank.

And thats the one thing I never checked! Ill head out there after work and see how the septic tank is.

davemur

Can these grease traps be installed by anyone or do you need a specialist installer such as a plumber?

RKQ

davemur wrote: »

Can these grease traps be installed by anyone or do you need a specialist installer such as a plumber?

Groundworks Contractor can install a grease trap when installing pipework on a new build. Its possible to install it DIY but retrofit can be more difficult.

davemur

Thanks RKQ

ollielaroo

Another point about the bucket not sitting down correctly in the grease trap.....
I recently noticed the rim that the edge of the bucket rests on actually has two small notches made in it, one on each side. I found this out after I emptied the grease trap completely since.
When you are dropping the bucket into the trap you have to rotate the bucket untill it sits correctly into these two notches. When the bucket begins to be filled again the weight of the water helps it stay down and rest on the rim properly.

roy16_1977

where do people generally empty the bucket?