Everything we do in life is interconnected, no matter how far-fetched it may seem at times. For instance, your food choices and how you prepare them can actually directly affect your home. And in particular, your plumbing system.
From preparing your food, and cooking it, up to your disposal of food particles, leftovers, and trash, the way you handle your food can actually make or break your plumbing system. The byproducts of your daily cooking activities may shorten the lifespan of your drains, garbage disposal, and other parts of your plumbing system if handled improperly.
If you want to avoid damaging your pipes when preparing your daily meals at home, here are a few food items and how you can prevent them from affecting your plumbing system:
Coffee Grounds
Disposing of your coffee grounds on the drain can cause a thick, slushy mixture to form within the drains. This may in turn clog the system and cause backups.
Instead of flushing them down the kitchen drain, you can use your coffee grounds as fertilizer, insect repellant, and even facial scrub.
Fruit and Vegetable Peels
Peels from fruits and vegetables can be hard to flush down the drain. Even with a garbage disposal unit installed, it will be hard to grind them, ultimately causing blockages in your drainage system.
If you’re into composting, you can definitely add the peelings to your home compost, along with other organic materials like leaves and grass clippings.
Starchy Food
Pasta, rice, root crops, and other starchy foods can absorb water when flushed down your kitchen sink and eventually, clog the pipes if disposed of the wrong way.
If you have any leftovers, it’s best to throw them away and into the trash bin for safer disposal.
Cooking Oil and Grease
It’s inevitable to produce oil and grease when preparing food. Almost all of the food people consume on a daily basis has been cooked with oil or butter if you want to add more flavor. Unfortunately, continuous dumping of oil in the sink can cause a buildup of grease, oil, and fat – better known as FOGs.
FOGs can be hard to get rid of and can actually impact the city sewer system, contributing to water pollution. To reduce such impact, you should follow proper disposal of oil and grease as instructed by your city.
Flour and Other Baking Materials
Just as when you’re preparing a batter or cake mixture, dumping flour in your drainage system may also create a thick paste that can cause clogging. If you want to throw your leftovers away, just dump them in your regular bin.
Need Help With Clogged Drains?
Drain clogging is inevitable, especially with regular and continuous usage of the plumbing system at home or at work. If you ever notice that it takes a while for your drains to clear up, it might be time for your plumber to do some maintenance work on the plumbing system.For Kent residents and anywhere in King County, you can contact Drain Pro Plumbing for any plumbing needs. We cater to emergency plumbing and regular maintenance services. Just let us know the problem and we’ll be there right away!
