Grease trap cleaning: the rules, the costs, and who is allowed to do it
If you run a restaurant or commercial kitchen, your city almost certainly requires you to pump your grease trap on a schedule, use a permitted hauler, and keep the paperwork. This site explains those rules in plain English and points you to the haulers your city has actually permitted.
Austin, for example, requires every trap to be emptied at least every three months by a permitted hauler[1]. Houston only lets permitted transporters clean a trap and requires you to keep the manifests on site for five years[2].
Read the grease trap cleaning guide
City pages
We only publish a city when we can list real companies from an official public source. Each listing shows where it came from.
Houston, TX
11 officially listed companies · rules from Houston Health Department
Austin, TX
4 officially listed companies · rules from Austin Water
New Orleans, LA
8 officially listed companies · rules from Sewerage & Water Board of New Orleans
What you will find here
- Rules, with links. Cleaning frequency, permits and record-keeping, quoted from the city or utility that enforces them.
- Honest cost ranges. Published price ranges, labeled with who published them. We have not run our own price survey.
- Questions to ask a hauler before you sign a service agreement.
- Related services: kitchen hood cleaning and used cooking oil pickup.
Common questions
How often does a grease trap have to be cleaned?
It depends on your city. Austin requires at least every three months (sooner at 50% full), and New Orleans says at least every 90 days. See our guide and city pages for the exact rule and source.
Who is allowed to pump my trap?
In the cities we cover, only a hauler holding the local permit may pump it, and you must keep the manifest (the pump-out record). Each city page links the official list.
Do you charge restaurants anything?
No. This site is free to read. We do not sell leads or take payment from listed companies today.