Published: Tuesday 29 April 2025
It may seem like the easiest option, but please resist the temptation to pour oils and fat down the kitchen sink after cooking.
Cooking fat and oils will eventually turn solid and build up in your pipes. When this happens, it causes blockages, creating issues for everyone in the immediate area.
This is particularly common in blocks of flats or converted houses where different homes share the same plumbing, and it can cause dirty water to back up into neighbours’ sinks or baths.
It’s easy to avoid – simply collect oil and fat in a container like a jam jar or yoghurt pot, leave it to cool, and once it’s set, scoop it out and pop it straight in the bin.
Follow more of our top tips to avoid blockages:
- Scrape or wipe plates, pans and utensils before washing (put the solid waste into the rubbish bin)
- Keep oil and grease out of washing-up water
- Do not put cooking oil, fat or grease down the sink.
- Use strainers in sink plug holes and put any collected food debris in the rubbish bin
- Do not sweep solids into floor drains - put rubbish and food waste in rubbish bins
- Consider fitting a grease trap and make sure that it is regularly maintained
- Do not dispose of oils, fats and grease at Civic Amenity sites (the tip)
It’s better to prevent your pipes from getting blocked in the first place if you can, but if they do, please report it as a repair here.