How does it not get clogged

[Wan]

I work with food a lot and sometimes I do the dishes. One thing I have noticed is that people dump food that contains juices or some kind of fatty liquid, directly into the sink. I am just wondering how it doesn't get clogged. It happens frequently and a lot of restaurant food has a high fat content. It contains a lot of grease. But nobody ever talks about having to call a plumber. Nothing ever gets clogged. It's very strange.

 

[dragnlaw]

Depends on how far it has to travel. I remember seeing a photo of sewer workers in London England with a ball of fat collected that was taller than them.

 

[Wan]

Depends on how far it has to travel. I remember seeing a photo of sewer workers in London England with a ball of fat collected that was taller than them.

How is that possible? Wouldn't that completely clog the pipe?

 

[Andy M.]

Fat as part of other liquid can solidify in smaller particles rather than big clumps. It can often be flushed through the pipes and out of your life.

 

[pictonguy]

In restaurants it's called a grease trap and it gets cleaned about every 4 weeks.

 

[dragnlaw]

'Fatberg' the size of a bus clogs London sewer - video

CCTV footage shows a 15-tonne mountain of congealed fat and sanitary products in a sewer in Kingston, south-west London

www.theguardian.com

Fat in sewer

 

[HeyItsSara]

I'm sure it does. Pipes aren't magically forgiving.

 

[dragnlaw]

I don't know about other towns but where I used to live (on island of Montreal) if your drain got plugged between your house and where if entered city sewer it was your expense. Whether it was tree roots, grease/fat, baby wipes or other stuff. Once it reached city property the city paid.
A friend was very lucky, a tree (beautiful ancient and huge willow) blocked up their pipes, 1.5 feet into the city portion at the sidewalk.

 

[jazzerlord]

I work with food a lot and sometimes I do the dishes. One thing I have noticed is that people dump food that contains juices or some kind of fatty liquid, directly into the sink. I am just wondering how it doesn't get clogged. It happens frequently and a lot of restaurant food has a high fat content. It contains a lot of grease. But nobody ever talks about having to call a plumber. Nothing ever gets clogged. It's very strange.

Most modern drainage systems have special filters and pipes that can handle grease and other food waste

 

[dragnlaw]

Curiosity asks... Where are these modern systems installed? Pipes that resist grease would really interest me.