Project Summary
Grease Interceptor Replacement & Drainage Correction
The Civic Center had been battling persistent grease and drainage failures for years. Multiple contractors had attempted repairs, but none were able to fully diagnose or correct the underlying issues. Temporary fixes provided short-term relief, but the root cause of the system failures remained unresolved.
Due to the nature of the facility, this was not a minor inconvenience. The Civic Center regularly accommodates large crowds and high-volume food service operations, meaning that when drainage problems occurred, they escalated quickly. What might be manageable in a smaller facility became a catastrophic event here — disrupting events, impacting guests, creating potential health and safety concerns, and placing significant strain on operations.
The facility required more than another patch job. They needed a permanent, code-compliant solution that addressed the true source of the problem, ensured system reliability during peak occupancy, and eliminated the risk of repeated failures.
Resolving this issue was a top operational priority. Leadership was determined to implement a long-term fix that would protect their reputation, prevent future disruptions, and provide confidence that the system would perform properly even under maximum demand conditions.
See below for the full case study
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Civic Center
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Athens, GA
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Commercial plumbing – grease interceptor replacement, drain re-routing, underground repair
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750-gallon grease interceptor; Schedule 40 PVC piping; Unistrut supports; concrete restoration materials
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Multi-day project plus 5–7 day concrete cure period
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Recurring unresolved drainage issues, belly in underground drain line, limited mechanical room access
The Challenge
The existing grease interceptor was improperly located and the underground drain line contained a belly that restricted flow. Prior repair attempts failed to correct the underlying issues, resulting in continued backups and operational disruptions.
The Solution
The investigation revealed that the existing grease interceptor had been improperly located, preventing it from functioning as designed and contributing to recurring system failures. In addition, the underground sanitary drain line contained a significant belly, creating a low point where solids and grease accumulated. This restriction severely limited proper flow, especially during peak usage periods.
Previous repair attempts addressed surface-level symptoms but failed to identify or correct these underlying structural deficiencies. As a result, backups continued to occur, leading to repeated operational disruptions, event interruptions, and increased maintenance costs.
Without correcting both the interceptor placement and the compromised underground piping, the system would never operate reliably under the facility’s high-demand conditions. A comprehensive solution was required — one that addressed the true source of the failures rather than applying temporary fixes.
The Benefits
The system was redesigned and properly sized to meet the true demand of a high-volume commercial kitchen environment. Strategic placement and improved service accessibility were incorporated into the solution to ensure ease of maintenance and long-term operational reliability.
More than 30 feet of compromised underground drain line were excavated and corrected, eliminating the structural deficiencies that had caused chronic flow restrictions. By addressing both the grease management capacity and the piping integrity, the project delivered a permanent resolution to the facility’s long-standing drainage failures.
As a result, recurring backups were eliminated, overall system reliability was significantly improved, and the need for emergency service calls was drastically reduced. The Civic Center can now operate at full capacity with confidence, even during peak event demand.
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The system was redesigned and properly sized to meet the true demand of a high-volume commercial kitchen environment
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Strategic placement and improved service accessibility ensure ease of maintenance and long-term operational reliability
The Teams Take
This project required a comprehensive evaluation to uncover and correct root causes that had gone unidentified for years. Rather than applying another temporary repair, our team performed a full system assessment to diagnose the structural and design deficiencies contributing to the repeated failures.
By redesigning the grease interceptor layout to meet commercial demand requirements and correcting the improper drainage slope, we restored proper flow and system function. The result was not simply a repair, but a permanent, engineered solution that eliminated chronic backups and ensured long-term operational reliability for the facility.
