How to Dispose of Cooking Oil in Springfield, MO

Frying up catfish, wings, or a Thanksgiving turkey leaves you with a pot of used cooking oil, and getting rid of it is one of the most common kitchen questions we hear from Springfield homeowners. The wrong move - pouring it down the sink - is also the most common one. Here is how to handle used cooking oil, grease, and fry oil the right way in Springfield and the Ozarks.

Never Pour It Down the Drain

Hot oil looks like a liquid going down, but it cools and hardens inside your pipes. Over time it builds up, traps food scraps, and forms the clogs that plumbers call grease blockages. It is one of the top causes of backed-up kitchen drains and can even contribute to clogs in the city sewer line. The same goes for flushing it down the toilet. No matter how small the amount, keep cooking oil out of every drain in the house.

Small Amounts: Cool, Contain, and Trash

For the oil left in a pan after everyday cooking, the easiest method is to let it cool completely, then wipe it up with a paper towel and throw it in the trash. For a little more than that, pour the cooled oil into a sealable container - an old jar, a milk jug, or the original bottle - seal the lid, and put it in your regular household garbage. Solidifying it first makes this cleaner: stir in flour, kitty litter, or sawdust until it firms up, or refrigerate it until it hardens.

Larger Amounts After Frying

A full fryer or a deep pot of oil is a different job. If the oil is still clean, you can strain it through a coffee filter and reuse it a few times. When it is finally spent, let it cool, pour it back into a sturdy sealed container, and set it out with the trash. Do not dump it in the yard, a storm drain, or an alley - it kills grass, draws pests, and washes into Ozarks creeks and the James River watershed. Some Springfield-area waste and recycling sites accept used cooking oil for recycling into biodiesel; call ahead before you haul a load over, since drop-off programs change.

Grease Is Not the Same as Motor Oil

People sometimes lump cooking grease in with automotive fluids. Keep them separate. Motor oil, transmission fluid, and other automotive chemicals are hazardous waste and belong at a Greene County household-hazardous-waste collection, never in the trash or a cooking-oil recycling bin. Mixing the two ruins a recycling batch and creates a disposal headache.

When It Is Part of a Bigger Kitchen Cleanout

Cooking oil usually turns up during a larger project - clearing out a rental kitchen, an estate, or a garage full of old fryers and restaurant gear. If you are staring at more than a few jars, or hauling out old appliances and cabinets at the same time, our Springfield junk removal crew can take the bulky items and point you to the right drop-off for the liquids. When the job gets bigger than a trash bag, reach out for an upfront quote and let us handle the heavy lifting.