Current:Home > StocksThanksgiving foods can wreck your plumbing system. Here’s how to prevent it.-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Thanksgiving foods can wreck your plumbing system. Here’s how to prevent it.
View Date:2024-12-23 23:59:04
The holidays are a time for indulgent foods: Gravy, fatty meats, baked treats and more.
These foods may be central to a traditional holiday feast, but can cause major problems with clogging pipes — more specifically, the sewer pipes underneath homes.
Fats, oils and grease are found in many holiday staples. If not disposed of properly, however, they can wreak havoc on homeowners' plumbing and the nearby sewer system. When washed down the drain, the fats and oils can create sewer backups across utility systems that require costly repairs.
And they have.
In recent years, Citizens Energy Group, a utility provider serving central Indiana, has responded to nearly 100 incidents of sewer backups directly caused from fatty and greasy foods. That's on an annual basis. Depending where the backups are located within the pipes, Citizens said the blockages can require costly and lengthy repairs.
Why are there plumbing issues around the holidays?
During the holidays, people are often cooking larger meals with higher fat foods. Think of a big roast with rich gravy on the menu, or deep-frying a turkey around Thanksgiving.
But it's what folks do with the leftover fats and oils that causes problems to pop up.
When homeowners wash fats, oils and grease down the drain or garbage disposal, or flush it down the toilet, they enter the sewer system in a liquid state. But as they cool, the fats and oils solidify and attach to the sewer system's pipes and joints.
Over time, those solid deposits can block the pipes and cause backups. According to Citizens, residents will know when they have a problem. Waste water can come back up in sinks, toilets and basement drains.
Holiday travel:As Thanksgiving Eve became 'Blackout Wednesday', a spike in DUI crashes followed, NHTSA says
How do you repair plumbing issues?
If the plumber either rules out or clears an oily backup in the homeowner's plumbing system, but the issues continue, that may indicate the backup is on the larger system. That's the time to call your utility provider.
A utility service, like Citizens, will inspect the nearby sewer system, often with a camera. If a grease-related clog is identified, then the company will take steps to remove it. The first step is to get excess liquid out of the pipes by vacuuming it out with a sewer cleaning truck. Then the backup is removed using the same truck with cleaning tools attached to the flushing hose and vacuum equipment.
Citizens said it must respond to blockages with urgency, including both the removal and investigating the source of origin. According to the utility company, there may also be fines and penalties for homeowners.
How do you prevent holiday plumbing issues?
Compared to the potential problems and costs at stake, reducing backups from fats, oils and grease is "easy to do and well worth your time," Citizens said. Stop the problem before it's a problem.
Residents should never pour fats and oils down an inside drain, the garbage disposal or even a storm drain in the street, according to the utility company. Also, using hot water or soap will not prevent backups or wash the grease through the pipes.
Instead, Citizens recommends a few different steps to correctly dispose of fats, oils and grease:
- Pour the fats, oils and grease into a small, disposable container and either leave out at room temperature or place it in the fridge. Once it solidifies, place the container in the trash.
- Wipe grease off pots, pans and dishes before washing them. This is best done with a dry paper towel that you throw in the bin after. Don't do this with a sponge, because that will still result in the fats and oils going down the drain.
- For restaurants or other food preparation establishments, fats, oils and grease can be a valuable resource as a recyclable. They can be sold to rendering companies for use in soaps, fertilizers and animal feed.
What restaurants are open Thanksgiving?Details on Starbucks, McDonald's, fast food, more
Call IndyStar reporter Sarah Bowman at 317-444-6129 or email at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter and Facebook: @IndyStarSarah. Connect with IndyStar’s environmental reporters: Join The Scrub on Facebook.
IndyStar's environmental reporting project is made possible through the generous support of the nonprofit Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust.
veryGood! (6122)
Related
- 'Treacherous conditions' in NYC: Firefighters battling record number of brush fires
- Alberta’s $5.3 Billion Backing of Keystone XL Signals Vulnerability of Canadian Oil
- Billie Eilish Cheekily Responds to Her Bikini Photo Showing Off Chest Tattoo
- H&M's 60% Off Summer Sale Has Hundreds of Trendy Styles Starting at $4
- Watch as dust storm that caused 20-car pileup whips through central California
- Musk asks in poll if he should step down as Twitter CEO; users vote yes
- Kate Spade 24-Hour Flash Deal: Get This $260 Crossbody Bag for Just $59
- Justice Department asks court to pause order limiting Biden administration's contacts with social media companies
- Spirit Airlines cancels release of Q3 financial results as debt restructuring talks heat up
- As Rooftop Solar Rises, a Battle Over Who Gets to Own Michigan’s Renewable Energy Future Grows
Ranking
- Jason Kelce collaborates with Stevie Nicks for Christmas duet: Hear the song
- Warming Trends: Green Grass on the Ski Slopes, Covid-19 Waste Kills Animals and the Virtues and Vulnerabilities of Big Old Trees
- Polluting Industries Cash-In on COVID, Harming Climate in the Process
- H&M's 60% Off Summer Sale Has Hundreds of Trendy Styles Starting at $4
- Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan says next year will be his last in office; mum on his plans afterward
- Eminem's Daughter Alaina Marries Matt Moeller With Sister Hailie Jade By Her Side
- Q&A: A Human Rights Expert Hopes Covid-19, Climate Change and Racial Injustice Are a ‘Wake-Up Call’
- Covid-19 and Climate Change Threats Compound in Minority Communities
Recommendation
-
Oil Industry Asks Trump to Repeal Major Climate Policies
-
Teen arrested in connection with Baltimore shooting that killed 2, injured 28
-
How the Supreme Court's affirmative action ruling could impact corporate recruiting
-
Kate Spade's Limited-Time Clearance Sale Has Chic Summer Bags, Wallets, Jewelry & More
-
Investigators believe Wisconsin kayaker faked his own death before fleeing to eastern Europe
-
Why Is Texas Allocating Funds For Reducing Air Emissions to Widening Highways?
-
16 Amazon Beach Day Essentials For the Best Hassle-Free Summer Vacay
-
Warming Trends: Asian Carp Hate ‘80s Rock, Beekeeping to Restore a Mountain Top and a Lot of Reasons to Go Vegan