Cooking Oil and Grease

Cooking Oil and Grease can be cleaned and reused sometimes.

You’ll need to check with your local utility or search for local businesses and options that may collect and recycle the oil.

If you live in Austin, you can drop used cooking oil and grease off at the Recycle & Reuse Drop-off Center at the HHW Station (the covered carport-like structure). According to ARR’s What Do I Do With:

Drop off this household hazardous waste at the Recycle & Reuse Drop-Off Center, where it will be safely disposed of, recycled or reused. 

If you do not want to drop off oil and grease the proper please trash.

Put this item in your trash cart. Help protect sanitation workers. Remember to bag and tie your trash to keep it contained.

Small quantities of oil can be can be mixed with kitty litter, doubled bagged, and then placed in your trash cart. You can also seal small quantities in a coffee can or similar container and place it in your trash cart.

Do not pour cooking oil or grease down the drain; it can clog pipes and the City’s sewer system, resulting in expensive repairs, foul odors and sewer overflows.

http://www.austintexas.gov/department/what-do-i-do-0

Please do not pour oil in the sink or toilet. It can clog pipes. According to a phone call I had with Austin Water, if the utility is able to determine a household caused a clog that required repair, that household will be charged for that repair.

Small amounts of cooking oil like bacon from breakfast, can be wiped out with a paper towel and composted in your curbside compost cart.

*Note: The featured image is not used cooking oil, but a gallon of coconut oil purely as an inspiration to collect cooking oil in a container near your stove.


**Tip: If you use a lot of a product, buying in larger quantities (e.x. 1 or 5 gallons of coconut oil vs. a small jar from the store) will usually save you money on the per-unit cost and will save resources by using one larger container versus several smaller containers.

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