Every backup we clear on Belt Line Rd Restaurant Row started with something going down a drain that should not have.
Here is the master list. Post it in the wash area.
Never down any drain
- Grease, oil, or fat (obvious)
- Fryer oil (goes into sealed drums for the recycler)
- Marinades, brines, salad dressings (high oil content)
- Milk, cream, ice cream, half-and-half (fats emulsify with hot water, then re-solidify in the pipe)
- Butter, mayonnaise (fats)
- Batter (flour + water = paste in your line)
- Rice, pasta (swells in the drain, blocks it)
- Coffee grounds (form dense sludge)
- Eggshells (small pieces catch on rough spots and grow a clog)
- Bones (obvious)
- Latex gloves, gloves, plastic (obvious but happens)
The ones people miss
- Milk and cream — Baristas pour a lot of it down bar sinks. It is fatty and adds to grease trap loading.
- Soap suds — Excessive dish detergent creates foam that gets caught in the grease trap and reduces effective volume.
- Bleach + food waste — Bleach kills the bacteria that break down grease in the trap. If you sanitize with bleach, do it away from drain openings.
The disposal question
Commercial garbage disposals are legal in Addison but do NOT solve the drain problem. Ground-up food waste still hits the trap. And most restaurant health codes prohibit disposal use where a grease trap is required — check with the City of Addison.
Better practice: scrape and dry-wipe pans into a trash bin first, then wash.
The 3-compartment sink protocol
- Bin A: scrape food waste into trash (not drain)
- Bin B: wash with soap
- Bin C: rinse and sanitize
Drain protocols apply to every bin. Scraping FIRST is 80% of drain prevention.
Signs your line is loading up
- Slow drain at any sink
- Odor from floor drains
- Water backing into mop sink when a 3-comp is running
- Trap outlet gurgling
If you see any of these, jet the line before the backup. Emergency backups cost 3–5x preventive service.
The 6-month rhythm
Even with perfect protocols, jet grease lines every 6 months. See our Restaurant Row grease-trap guide for the maintenance rhythm.
Our commercial plumbing team does maintenance contracts across Belt Line at rates below one-off calls.
Belt Line Plumbing expert insight
This guide reflects what our licensed Texas RMP plumbers see on real prevention calls across Addison, Farmers Branch, Carrollton, and the greater Dallas North Tollway corridor. Belt Line Plumbing Co. has served the Addison area since 2007, with 412+ five-star reviews from north Dallas homeowners, property managers, and Belt Line Restaurant Row operators.
Local factors that affect the advice above: North Texas expansive clay soil drives most residential slab and sewer failures; Dallas Water Utilities supply water at 8–11 grains of hardness per gallon shortens every water heater and tankless system without a softener; and the February 2021 Winter Storm Uri freeze exposed attic supply lines across almost every 1970s–2000s Addison home. If your situation includes any of these local realities, factor them in before deciding between repair, replacement, or a preventive upgrade.