Oil & Grease Recycling & Disposal
Recycling used oil and grease isn’t just great for our customers’ wallets. It’s also better for the environment. Whether you’re looking to get rid of used grease at a construction site or schedule routine pickups of cooking oil from a restaurant, we’ve got you covered.
Vegetable Oil Recycling
There are right ways and wrong ways to dispose of vegetable oil, both on a small scale and a large scale. From homeowners to industrial manufacturers, we’re all responsible for disposing of it properly. Ideally, that means recycling it, but even throwing it in the garbage is better than pouring it down a drain.
Reusing Vegetable Oil
Not all home chefs realize this, but if they haven’t heated their oil past its smoke point, it can be reused. This applies not just to vegetable oil, but also to just about any other oil or fat used in the average kitchen. To reuse the oil, strain it through cheesecloth while it’s still warm enough to be in liquid form, then store it in an air-tight container in the fridge or freezer.
Make sure to smell the oil before using it again to make sure it hasn’t gone rancid, but it should be fine to use a few times for frying, sauteing, or baking. After it’s outlived its usefulness, get rid of what’s left by recycling it or, in the worst-case scenario, putting it back into a sealed container and throwing it in the garbage.
The Wrong Ways to Dispose of Vegetable Oil
Pouring vegetable oil down the drain is never a good idea. Even home chefs should avoid pouring used oil down the drain. It clogs the plumbing system, and if the home, office, or restaurant is connected to the municipal sewer line, it can contribute to larger clogs that can cause a lot of damage and a lot of headaches for anyone who relies on municipal water treatment facilities.
Disposing of the vegetable oil outdoors is an equally bad option. It can seep into the groundwater, and even if it doesn’t, it will almost certainly cause problems for local wildlife and plants.
Better Alternatives
If homeowners just need to get rid of a tiny amount of vegetable oil, they can either sop it up with a paper towel and put it in with their green waste, if possible, or in the garbage. Small amounts of oil can also be frozen before disposal.
The best way to get rid of any serious quantity of vegetable oil is to recycle it. This keeps the oil out of landfills and allows it to be repurposed as biodiesel or another alternative energy source. Homeowners who want to get rid of a small amount of oil can mix all their kitchen oils and fats together and bring them to a collection site in the same container. There’s no need to freeze or refrigerate it beforehand. Just strain the oil before disposing of it to get rid of any lingering food particles.
Commercial kitchen owners and consumers who have to get rid of a lot of oil may not want to haul it to the collection site themselves. That’s where we come in. Our customers can just place all their used oil in a container, then trust us to deal with it responsibly. Call first to check whether different types of oil can be mixed, though, as restrictions vary based on municipality and collection site.
Other Forms of Kitchen Grease
While vegetable oil is the most common substance used in residential and commercial kitchens, it’s not the only kind of kitchen waste that produces grease. Meat, butter, lard, shortening, dairy products, and even salad dressing all contain oil or fat, and all of them create grease. Don’t pour them down the drain. Follow the advice above for safe and efficient disposal. Disposing of grease safely may take a small amount of extra effort, but it will pay off in the form of reduced plumbing bills, improved environmental stewardship, increased social responsibility, and fewer headaches caused by clogged drains.
Kitchen Oil Recycling Services
Commercial kitchens produce a lot more oil than the average residential household, so they need to come up with a more comprehensive plan for disposal. Recycling is especially key for commercial business owners, food pantry managers, caterers, and others who handle large amounts of kitchen oil. More oil means more to gain if it’s recycled, and more to lose if it’s tossed in a landfill.
You can call us to make arrangements for onetime or scheduled kitchen oil pickups. Just place it in an approved container, then we’ll come to pick it up at a time that works for you. If you need extra pickups after cleaning grease traps or finishing up a large catering run, give us a call to find out how we can accommodate your needs.
Construction Site Grease Disposal
Just about all construction equipment, from backhoes and bulldozers to cranes and rollers, needs to be greased to keep it running smoothly. Greasing equipment provides resistance to extreme pressures, ensures optimal performance within a wider temperature range, and reduces machine susceptibility to salt and corrosion. Once it’s outlived its usefulness, though, it also creates a new waste stream.
Contractors can trust us to dispose of their used grease responsibly. Those who want to kill two birds with one stone can also ask us about dedicated construction dumpsters. We can take everything from dirt and used concrete to wood and roofing materials, and our temporary dumpsters come in all sizes. Working with the same waste management team to meet all your needs will simplify your operation, and it may even save you some money. Give us a call to discuss options.
The Bottom Line
Used kitchen oil and grease don’t belong in a landfill. Even if it’s no longer good for cooking, it can be repurposed for use in an alternative energy vehicle. No matter how much, or how little, grease you have, you can trust us to help you figure out a responsible option for disposal.