When the restaurant business is measured in terms of safety, grease traps are often near the top of the list. When grease accumulates in kitchens, ventilation systems can fail, and heat from cooking appliances and equipment can be released into the air, which can cause illness and respiratory problems.
Hot grease is not only unsightly, but it can also cause severe burns to the eyes, nose, and throat. For this reason, Grease Trap Perth is important for all kitchens. Here’s how they work.
The trap has a small bowl or pan of grease in it. It’s usually an insulated bowl with a removable lid that’s coated with silicone grease-resistant material. The lid is a vital part of the trap as it can be a surface where food gets stuck in a way that can make a grease-trap full from the food. The lid also keeps a vacuum seal on the inside.
When the temperature rises in the kitchen, the grease from the traps eventually evaporates and the air gets exposed to air and heat. This heat can condense on the food, which may be in the trap or in other areas of the kitchen. As it’s the warm air that’s causing the condensation, the air in the trap can expand.
The trapped air expands through the trap, putting pressure on the pan that has the lid on it. As the expansion hits the air in the trap, it causes the trapped air to fall back down into the trap bowl. As it falls, the trapped air turns into liquid oil and creates a “grease puddle” in the pan.
As the puddle drains, the food trapped inside the pan’s traps itself. In a sense, food traps food.
Once the trap is full, a vacuum seal is necessary to keep the puddle of trapped air in place. This makes a grease trap is necessary in order to reduce the amount of air in the trap. You need to remember that the vacuum seal doesn’t stop the flow of air in the trap bowl; it just prevents it from rising to the top of the trap.
As long as the lid is in place, the pan will stay sealed. The pan is left sealed until it’s time to clean the trap, or before it’s time to open the trap. When it’s time to open the trap, you must remove the lid in order to ensure the food will be safe from any food that may get caught inside.
A floor drain trap is another option for keeping the trap full. This prevents condensation from building up as it can happen if the trap is not full. A floor drain trap works in conjunction with the grease trap, helping them both work together to keep the trap well-ventilated and not only clean but also free of the accumulation of food and grease that would otherwise clog them.
While a floor drain trap is a very convenient and effective way to keep the grease traps full, it’s also important to remember that it can only trap some of the problems. In a commercial kitchen, the grease trap can trap so much that it doesn’t ever leave enough room for the excess to drain. This is especially true in a fast-food restaurant, where a grease puddle could mean poor food safety and increased health risks.
Instead of relying on the grease trap to remove the food, many restaurants use a newer process for keeping the grease trap full and free of the accumulated food and grease. The new trap has special, non-conductive plates, which are placed in the grease trap at all times so they can drain off the liquid oil and water in the trap.
The non-conductive plates are coated with oil-resistance technology, which prevents the oil from mixing with the grease in the trap and from spilling out onto the floor. By reducing the amount of material in the trap, this non-conductive coating prevents grease from clinging to the plates.