Greased Out

Microbes eat grease and clear fat before they enter the sewer system

Sure, chicken katsu and shrimp tempura taste rich and crunchy, but where does all that cooking oil and grease go? By law, food establishments must install grease interceptors or traps to catch as much fat, oil and grease (FOG) as possible before they’re dumped into the sewer system. Unfortunately, the grease traps need to be vacuum pumped every month, an expensive and stinky burden on the business owner. In addition, the traps don’t catch everything, and excess FOG causes problems at the wastewater-treatment plant, leading to sewage spills.

Hydrologix, a Waikoloa-based company operating on the Big Island, Oahu and in Southern California, has created a system that uses micro-organisms to eat the grease and pre-treat the water before it enters the sewer. The result is a less foul sludge that is easier on the municipality’s centralized treatment facility. Markus Lenger, chief scientific officer at Hydrologix, explains how it works:

Correction: The Hydrologix System reduces maintenance pumping to once every 1.5 to 3 years, as needed, not every three months as originally published.

 

 

 

 

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