When it comes to your food service business’ bottom line, drainpipes generally are not part of the conversation, until they’re backing up. However, many restaurant owners end up spending hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars in drain line cleaning and repairs. The truth is, when drain lines are installed and maintained properly, they do not stop up.

HOW SHOULD I FIX A STOPPED DRAIN?

Foreign objects are the most common cause for restaurant drain clogs and stoppages. In most cases, people wait until a clog occurs to call a plumber or drain cleaning company, but this only creates added expenses. Paying someone to snake out your lines can compound the problem. When an individual drain is stopped up, the first choice should always be to vacuum out the drain to remove anything caught in the p-trap, then use a retriever on the end of a sewer snake to remove items the vacuum couldn’t reach. Going in with a snake from the start without the proper end can push debris further into the drain system making it more difficult to remove in the future.

HOW CAN I PREVENT DRAIN CLOGS?

When drain lines have gone unprotected for years, all sorts of debris can accumulate in the drain system and become very costly to retrieve. To make matters worse, some objects that find their way into pipes can only be removed by breaking up the concrete. The best solution is to keep the debris out of your lines. New restaurants can save thousands of dollars in drain cleaning expenses by protecting drain lines before problems start occurring, and existing facilities can benefit by keeping any additional items from going into drain pipes. Locking Dome Strainers can be used to keep things out, and Safety Baskets are a great way to catch foreign objects so they can be easily thrown in the trash.

 

The bottom line is that most restaurant owners cannot afford to wait for a drain clog to occur – prevention is the best protection against unforeseen business interruption and costly plumbing expenses. Installing permanent protection options that prevent debris from entering your restaurant drain lines to begin with can save a lot of headaches, time and money down the line.