Rooftop Grease Containment

Exhaust ducts typically lead to the rooftop. Since exhausts carry all those oil and fat droplets upwards in the rising hot air that means that grease also finds its way up there. Which is the beginning of a major headache if it's not handled professionally. Grease on the roof is a disaster waiting to happen, just hanging over your head like the Sword of Damocles. OK, maybe not a sword, but a powerful mix of fire hazard, pollutant, building destroyer, and provoker of almighty rows with landlords, neighbors, and the police. Avoid all that. Have the pros check out your rooftop grease containment needs.
 
Why Containment?
Fats and oils build up steadily with tiny droplets gradually forming fat bergs and grease ponds.  Grease has a potentially disastrous combination of flammability and floatability if it's on the roof it is not only a fire risk but a fire risk that can run away and spread when it rains. Which means that your risks include hygiene since fat and grease attract vermin. They include physical damage to the property because grease is great at attacking a number of roofing materials and will eat into many and serious stain others. They include slip hazards because if your employees or anyone else slips and falls on that roof due to your grease you know who is liable. They include fire traps with the potential of a burning roof collapsing down into the building. Plus they include pollution since run off in the rain will streak down the sides of the building and enter the ground water.  All of which means that a combination of the Fire Department, the EPA, and the local authorities will be all over you if you don't manage your rooftop grease containment correctly. Time to call the pros.
 
Filtered Containment
It's not just about catching the slippery stuff when it emerges into the daylight. Smart containment systems work at every level of your kitchen exhaust and use specific grease filters to catch oil droplets and solid grease as it tries to move through the system.  Those filters only work if they're properly maintained and cleaned though since an unmaintained filter just serves to help catch the grease in one place until it clogs and becomes a hazard itself.

Sealed Containment
Undoubtedly the best rooftop systems are sealed units that cannot leak oils even in heavy rain.  Naturally sealed containers will need regular inspection, emptying, and cleaning if they are to continue to do their job.  So call us in to check what kind of containment you have and what's the best schedule to keep it safe and sweet.
 
Unsealed Containment
We've seen rooftop grease containment that consisted of a series of buckets open to the rain. That's not containment, that's playing with disaster.  However not all rooftop systems are fully sealed and that's where the smart food outlet owner invests in grease catchers like 'pillows' and pads to soak up any spillage or leakage.  Those pillows need laying in the right places and regular replacement though so once again call us in and we will sort it for you.