Nobody hands you a compliance manual when you open a restaurant.
You get a health department packet, a building permit with conditions you don’t fully understand, and a plumber who tells you what size grease trap to install without explaining why. Then six months later, an inspector shows up, measures your trap, checks your records, and writes a citation — because the trap your plumber installed doesn’t meet the city’s minimum, or because you’ve been cleaning it on the wrong schedule, or because you don’t have the waste manifests they’re required to see.
That’s how most restaurant owners discover grease trap compliance. Not through careful planning — through a violation notice.
The content you find online doesn’t help. Pumping companies write blogs to sell service contracts. Manufacturers publish spec sheets that assume you already know the code. City websites post the regulations in legal language that answers none of your actual questions. And the generic “grease trap guide” articles skip past the specific regulatory citations that are the entire point.
Grease Trap Compliance exists to fix that.
We translate the regulatory requirements for fats, oils, and grease (FOG) management into practical guidance for restaurant owners, kitchen managers, and plumbing professionals. Our content spans the full compliance lifecycle:
Grease trap sizing — GPM formulas, DFU calculations, and worked examples by kitchen type. Federal regulations — EPA 40 CFR 403 National Pretreatment Program requirements. State and local compliance — UPC and IPC code differences, FOG control program navigation, city-specific requirements. Product selection — traps vs interceptors vs automatic removal devices, with compliance-driven criteria. Installation — code requirements, plumbing standards, permit processes. Cleaning and maintenance — the 25% rule, pumping schedules, documentation requirements, waste manifest compliance. Inspection preparation — what FOG inspectors check, common instant-fail items, documentation checklists. Violation response — citation timelines, fine structures, steps to demonstrate compliance. Cost analysis — equipment, installation, and ongoing maintenance budgeting.
Every article cites the specific regulation by section number. Every fine amount names the jurisdiction and code section. Every recommendation explains which compliance requirement drives it.
We don’t sell grease traps. We don’t install plumbing. We don’t operate pumping trucks. We don’t accept manufacturer sponsorship, and we don’t review products in exchange for free equipment.
When we recommend a product category, we explain the regulation that requires it. When we compare options, we evaluate against compliance criteria — not brand partnerships. This independence is the reason the content is worth reading.
If a FOG inspector would accept it as a reference document, it meets our standard. If it wouldn’t survive an inspection, it doesn’t get published.