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Singapore –- the East Asian city-state –- is known worldwide as a leader in urban cleanliness and environmental stewardship. Visitors to Singapore discover a bustling multicultural metropolis where towering skyscrapers soar above charming British colonial architectural, and where an abundance of tourist sites, glamorous shopping centers, and food courts buzz with activity seven days a week. As one of the world’s most densely populated metropolitan areas, both the government and citizens of Singapore are proud of the nation’s leadership in urban efficiency, quality of life, and environmentalism.

Keep Soapy flows from Contacting Downstream Fats and Oils (Lipids)

Better Practices in the Modern Era

We are thankful to live in the 21^st century and to not worry about dying from a restaurant dining experience.  I once worked with a man whose 20 year-old brother died in 1940 of food poisoning from a restaurant with poor sanitation.  As recently as the late 1940s, hot water heaters were not reliable and ware-washing detergents were caustic based.  If the water was not hot, the detergent was not effective.  Today’s modern restaurant has plenty of hot water, highly efficient detergents and those detergents also contain sanitizers and water softening agents to ensure complete sanitation and cleaning takes place. 

Today we have better sanitation practices and the plates are always clean, but how about what is being sent down the drain?  Does it pose a problem for the community’s sewer collection system?  Can the constituents be treated at the community’s wastewater treatment plant? 

In our role as a trusted solutions provider for restaurant oil and grease compliance, Thermaco is honored to work with a number of highly successful restaurant brands – some founded upon interesting and inspirational methods of business.

With this post we share one such story…

A Long Poot or a Short Toot?

The smell was putrid, foreign, the caller said.

The strange odor, which emanated from somewhere on the college campus, stung the nostrils of the untrained and the unsuspecting.

Food Equipment and Supplies Magazine recently sent out an E-Newsletter featuring the Trapzilla line of products.  Take a moment to check out the articles below and stop by the Trapzilla website to see the award-winning animated short-film.

When Michelle Aumiller was a kid growing up in Oklahoma, she loved jumping in mud puddles.

Today, though, in her role as a municipal Industrial Waste Monitor, she knows that sanitary sewer overflows can turn a child’s mud puddle into a serious health hazard.

“By protecting our sewer lines and waste treatment plants from FOG (fats, oil and grease) and other contaminants,” Aumiller says, “we keep waste water from contaminating the environment and mud puddles – for our children and grandchildren.”

Six years ago, when Aumiller took on the position of Industrial Waste Monitor for Midwest City, Oklahoma, the municipality was experiencing serious problems with Sanitary Sewer Overflows (SSO).

“The city was under a Consent Order by the state Department of Environmental Quality and was facing large fines for the overflows,” according to Aumiller. “The first thing I did was write a letter that the sewer line crew distributed to homes, restaurants and businesses -- explaining the problem that we were having with FOG and other clogging materials and providing information on best practices to help solve the problem.”

With more than 37 years of experience in municipal wastewater treatment, Arnold Allred knows about the problems that restaurant oil and grease can cause for wastewater collection systems and treatment plants. 

Allred began his career in wastewater management in 1974, when right out of high school he landed a job “turning valves” with the City of Asheboro’s wastewater plant.  He stayed with the treatment facility for 30 years, working his way to plant superintendent.  After retiring from the City of Asheboro, Allred began serving as Public Works...