5 Common Areas for Restaurant Plumbing Problems

Keeping a restaurant running smoothly depends a lot on inventory, staff, and customers. What you might not realize is how big of an impact your plumbing can have, as well. Think about what would happen if you couldn’t wash your dishes, or if the bathroom was out of service. Things would get pretty hard to manage. Here are the most common restaurant plumbing problems you may encounter and how to avoid them.

Kitchen Sink Drain

Obviously, a clean sink is vital to clean dishes, silverware, and cutlery in your kitchen. When bussers and waitstaff are tossing leftover food and other debris into the sink’s drain, it can build up and cause a clog. Not to mention, some items could become toxic to the sewer system and water supply in your community. Install a drain lock or strainer to ensure large items don’t get washed down the drain.

Grill Grease Trap

A commercial kitchen produces a lot of grease. You likely already have a grease trap in place, which is good. But you should also ensure that you are having the grease removed and the trap cleaned periodically. Without this treatment, the grease can build up and get moldy, causing it to rot your pipes. If the pipes rot, you’ll need to have them replaced, which is very expensive and time consuming.

Bar Drain

Second to the drains in your kitchen, the drains in the bar area are a prime place for insects. The alcohols, mixtures, and garnishes all attract little animals that love to feed on the debris and breed larvae. Keeping these drains free of clogs is your first step to avoid this. Second, you’ll want to ensure you have your drains regularly cleaned and jetted to avoid buildup.

Floor Drain

A clear and clean floor is important for your staff’s safety and when the health inspector comes to visit. Oftentimes, the cleaning crew will spray down the floor and then squeegee all the water into the drain. This is perfectly fine, but they may also be throwing plastic silverware, straws, napkins, and more into the drain as well. As you would with the kitchen sink, install a strainer or drain lock to prevent these items from entering your restaurant plumbing system.

Bathroom Sink & Toilet

Sanitary wipes, paper towels, and excessive toilet paper are all common issues with restaurant bathroom plumbing. Although you can’t monitor every use of the bathroom, you can install signage that reminds guests to throw these items in the trash, not down the toilet. You may also want to include a sign that encourages them to bring any problems to your attention so they can be treated right away.

Restaurant Plumbing Problems Are No Match for Hulsey Environmental (a Blue Flow Company)!

It takes a lot of people to run a restaurant, and a restaurant plumbing company you can trust is just one of them. Please contact Hulsey Environmental (a Blue Flow Company) today to learn more about how we can help keep your restaurant plumbing in tip-top shape and schedule an in-person consultation or cleaning.