Umm... amidst a relocation and city says I need a 1000 LB capacity grease trap for my little old cake business. WTH!!??? For those of you with shops- how big are yours?? I can't even find one that big! I'd be interested to hear about everyone but especially those of you in the lovely lone star state! THANKS in advance!
Julie 53- REALLY?? That BIG?? Or just in general? I'm not arguing the fact thta I have to have one- just the size. I talked to a GT salesman and he said thta was ridiculously large. MY calculations (based on the size of my sink and it's flow rate) is thta I need a 70 lb one. That's a BIG difference!
Sarah, check with the TX Dept of Agriculture. I'm thinking that perhaps the city thinks you're a catering business, not a bakery. Usually the rules/regulations are different but it could be that TX is more strict than other states.
Then again, in some states, city or county rules/regs can supersede the state dept of Ag. Don't 'cha just love the food business??!!
Sarah, check with the TX Dept of Agriculture. I'm thinking that perhaps the city thinks you're a catering business, not a bakery. Usually the rules/regulations are different but it could be that TX is more strict than other states.
I have no idea how big mine was, capacity wise, but it measured about 1.5ft x 1.5ft x 2ft and fit under my sink. And I WAS a caterer!! 
I bet they think you're a restaurant. Some of those places have to have one that is so big it's underground. Keep checking until you get someone who knows what you're talking about.
We tried to convince our health dept that we didn't need one as we worked with little grease in our cake shop. That didn't fly with her so we got a 100 lb one,(recommended by our plumber) I even think that is too big.
@ indydebi- funny thing is- this is the senior plumbing engineer!! But y'all are right- they HAVE to think I'm doing something way more than what I am. I love my little shop and want to continue- we're almost ready to go- this is the LAST hurdle to jump!!
Sarah, check with the TX Dept of Agriculture. I'm thinking that perhaps the city thinks you're a catering business, not a bakery. Usually the rules/regulations are different but it could be that TX is more strict than other states.
Then again, in some states, city or county rules/regs can supersede the state dept of Ag. Don't 'cha just love the food business??!!
The Ag dept. has nothing to do with it here in Texas. If the local HD tells her that is the requirement, then that is the requirement. In Texas it varies by area, sometimes the state HD is the governing entity and they have the least stringent requirements, then some counties have their own HD's which supercede the state requirements meaning they are more strict, then if you are in a city that has a local HD their rules supercede. Basically the state has an outline of guidelines, then if a county has enough funds to have it's own HD then they build on the states rules and add their own requirements, the cities are the most picky and hardest to deal with.
Are you within the city limits of Dallas? They have in the last year or so, as part of a "cease the grease in Texas" campaign, started requiring a greasetrap for all businesses, including coffee shops and the minimum size they are requiring is substantial. There is a coffee shop in Dallas that had a fundraiser I believe Friday night to help him raise the money to put his in. Fort Worth is following the same by requiring a very large minimum size.
I will see if I can send you the link to the article about it. We are in the "grease trap nightmare" right now but are in one of the outlying city limits that does not have a minimum requirement.
I agree, that sounds really large though. For what you are doing you shouldn't need one that large!
Here is a link to the "cease the grease North texas" website, if you select Grease trap there is a link to the sizing information for Dallas. Maybe this will help you in figuring out how to get them to reduce the size requirement.
http://www.ceasethegreasentx.com
Gosh I hope our area doesn't adopt that mentality...I feel for you!
We squeezed past the health department without the requirement of the grease trap, but then the water district said we had to have one. (I figure the health department knew and was letting them be the bad guy) It will be a 40lb one as we do cakes by special order only and are very low volume. It fits under the sink like Indydebi's
While doing research on sizes, I did notice that Texas has very stringent rules about this. I told my husband this may be the only thing they are tougher about than California!
Mine is the same size as Debbie's. It's a requirement here in Ontatio too you cannot operate by the city (not a health departmen issue) you wouldn't believe how much that thing traps. Ultimately it will save you in the long run as with all that stuff going down throug your pipes it will be no time before you have a serious clog!!!
To be properly insured as a business you have to be inspected by the city as well as the health department and the greese trap is one of their requirements.
mine's under the sink, they mistakenly told me in the beginning i'd need a huge one like that...for one that big, you'd have to have it underground.
Thanks, all, for your reply. I've actually been checking in with local shops to compare theirs, and he is waaay out of line- we're going back and forth on the issue now...I 'll update later!
Sorry to bump this back up, but I was just told the same thing by my health department... OMG. I am trying to open a cupcake business, and I need a 1000 gallon grease trap?! WTF! I am devasted... I have been saving for a long time and had planned to get no loans for this business... something that huge I know will be ridiculously expensive and is totally not in the budget.
I bet they think you're a restaurant. Some of those places have to have one that is so big it's underground. Keep checking until you get someone who knows what you're talking about.
In Texas, they don't care what kind of food you're selling. You're a "Food Establishment" and the rules are the same for everybody. The grease trap rules helped put a local lady out of business - both she and the Mexican Food Restaurant next door with 50 employees had to have the same size grease trap.
The trouble with common sense is, it's not so common. 
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