Columbus Grease Trap Rules

Who the rules apply to

The rules come from Columbus Water & Power, through its Division of Water Reclamation, under Columbus City Code Chapter 1145. They apply to food service operations inside the City of Columbus and in the communities that contract with Columbus for sewer and water reclamation service. The city's FOG program packet puts the number of contracting municipalities at 25.

A food service operation is any commercial facility that prepares or serves food for the public. The city's definition names, among others:

• Restaurants, commercial kitchens, cafeterias and nightclubs
• Delicatessens, bakeries, bagel shops and meat cutting or preparation
• Grocery stores and caterers
• Hotels, schools, hospitals, correctional facilities and care institutions

What every food service operation needs

City Code 1145.20(B) requires every food service operation in the service area to write and follow a Fats, Oils and Grease Best Management Plan, known as a FOG BMP. The plan covers:

• The sources of grease in your kitchen, such as fryers, grill troughs, hood filters and food waste
• The handling and cleaning practices that keep grease out of the drains, such as scraping plates into the trash and posting "No Grease" signs above sinks
• How the grease interceptor is inspected and maintained, including the cleaning company you use and how often it cleans, with the manufacturer's maintenance instructions attached if you have them

An authorized representative signs the plan. The FOG BMP and the cleaning logs must be kept on site and shown to Columbus Public Health or city sewer staff on request.

Installing or replacing an interceptor

Under City Code 1145.04, when grease separation is required, plans go to Building and Zoning Services for approval. Gravity (exterior) grease interceptors, hydromechanical grease interceptors and automatic grease removal devices are all permitted.

A gravity interceptor sits underground outside the building and must have at least one inspection hatch on top. A hydromechanical interceptor sits inside the building or under a sink and must have a removable lid.

How often to clean

Columbus does not set one cleaning interval for every kitchen. Frequency should follow the manufacturer's instructions and how quickly grease and solids build up. The city notes that weekly or even daily cleaning may suit many hydromechanical interceptors, and that cleaning often also cuts odors.

The city recommends maintenance when an interceptor nears, but does not pass, 25 percent of its capacity.

For new and remodeled food service operations, the designed service interval may not exceed 30 days for concrete gravity interceptors, or 90 days for units built from materials that resist the acidity and hydrogen sulfide gas in the wastewater.

What the hauler must do under Rule 26-02

Rule and Regulation 26-02, effective April 21, 2026, sets the cleaning practices every trucked waste hauler must follow in the Columbus Water & Power sewer service area, including the contract communities. It replaces Rule 08-01 from 2008, which the city's FOG packet still refers to. Each cleaning must:

• Remove the entire contents of the interceptor, meaning all solids and liquids, including what has built up on the baffles and sidewalls
• Leave flow into and out of the interceptor unobstructed
• End with the facility's cleaning log filled out completely, or with the same details given to the kitchen in writing: the date, the amount of grease and solids removed (not counting water), and whether the interceptor's condition is Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory, with corrective actions listed if it is Unsatisfactory

In practice, that means a full pump-out every time. Skimming only the top layer does not meet the rule.

Keeping the cleaning log

After every cleaning, the log records the date, the gallons or percent of grease and solids removed (not the total liquid pumped), and the interceptor's condition. If the condition is unsatisfactory, the log notes what was done to correct it.

Each interceptor needs its own log. After ten cleanings, an authorized representative signs the log's statement and a new log is started. Keep every log with the FOG BMP for at least three years. A blank cleaning log is included in the city's FOG packet, linked below.

What a grease blockage can cost

Under Director's Rule 15-04, Columbus charges a minimum of $2,000 for a typical sewer blockage caused by improper grease disposal. Blockages that take more than four hours to clear can cost more.

Director's Rule 02-13 also sets a local limit for wastewater sent to the Columbus sewers: no more than 200 parts per million of hydrocarbon fats, oils and grease.

Questions about the rules

The city's FOG program is run by its Industrial Wastewater Pretreatment group, which takes questions by email at [email protected]. The FOG packet lists this group under the Division of Sewerage and Drainage, while Rule 26-02 is issued by the Division of Water Reclamation.

Source documents

• Columbus Rule and Regulation 26-02, Grease Interceptor Cleaning Practices (PDF) Effective April 21, 2026.
• City of Columbus FOG Reduction Program packet, with the FOG BMP form and Grease Interceptor Cleaning Log (PDF)
• Columbus City Code Chapter 1145, sections 1145.02, 1145.04, 1145.11 and 1145.20(B), as cited in the two documents above.

This page is a plain-language summary of the documents above, not legal advice. If anything here differs from them, the official documents apply.