You’ve been cooking all evening, you just want to finally settle down with your meal but there’s still oil in the pan.
What do you do? Just a sneaky little pour down the drain? Just this one time? Just quickly?
Well, according to one plumber, this mindless action could end up costing you £500. Experts at Magnet Kitchens have teamed up with plumber Tom Watts to warn people of the dangers of putting oil down the sink.
Watts said: “Fatty oils and grease disposed of in kitchen drains will dry out and solidify causing severe blockages within your pipe work. This puts your sink and any appliance (dishwashers, washing machines and boilers) within your kitchen at risk of becoming damaged.
‘’Once the oils have solidified the blockages won’t be removable with a plunger, and will require a plumber to come out and use expensive machinery to either vacuum or rod the blockages’’.
The plumber warned that you could pay £250 upwards on the blockage and time required to unblock it. He added that if the pipework is unrepairable due to permanent damage, you could be facing over £500 in charges to renew the pipes completely.
Eek.
How to dispose of grease and fatty oils properly
The experts at Magnet Kitchens have also warned against this grimy habit. They said: “Instead of pouring grease down the sink, collect it in a container or empty it into a separate bin and dispose of it once it has cooled and solidified.”
It’s also worth noting that frying oil can often be reused, so once it’s sealed, store it in a cool, dark place until the next time you need it.
How to protect your drains
In addition to not pouring grease and fatty oils down your sink, Magnet recommends these three tips to ensure you don’t damage your drainage system.
Purchase a strainer or filter for your kitchen sink plug-hole
Most kitchen sinks will come fitted with a strainer or filter to prevent any large chunks of food or grease from draining into the pipework, but fitting a larger filter is a great option to ensure your pipes don’t get clogged.
Once any scraps or food build up in it, simply remove the strainer and empty the contents into your compost bin.
Make sure you scrape food waste from plates and utensils into your bin
It can seem practical to just rinse small chunks of food waste off plates and utensils before cleaning them, however, even the smallest food chunks can begin to cause a blockage and over time could mean there’s a huge build-up of solidified food in your drainage system
To avoid this, simply scrape any food waste from plates and kitchen utensils into a bin rather than down the sink.
Regularly clean your sinks and drains
If you have noticed a change in your draining systems, it’s best to flush out your sink with a mixture of baking soda and vinegar. This mix will help break down any existing grease and prevent any blockages, simply follow with boiling water down your sink to get rid of any remaining residue.