Healthy Drains Lead to a Healthy Environment

“Clean for Health” has long been the phrase used to describe the focus of the sanitation program in schools and hospitals across the country. Today, with the increased media attention on hospital acquired infections and foodborne illnesses, combined with societal efforts to become more environmentally conscientious, our sanitation programs must now incorporate a comprehensive drain maintenance program.

Organizations including the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) with their Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) programs and Hospitals for a Healthy Environment (H2E) have helped to bring attention to the issue. “Healthy drains lead to a healthy environment.”

Past practices of pouring sulfuric acid down slow flowing drains to open them up or pouring bleach down the drain to knock down odors are being replaced with healthy concepts and programs that start by first identifying the source of the problem, not just the location and symptom. Schools and hospitals share a variety of environments that have similar types of drains and issues including foodservice or dietary, restrooms, showers, drinking fountains, and custodial closets. Further, in buildings that have multiple levels, there are additional laterals and trunk lines that are part of the building’s drain system.

Whether it is a kitchen drain backing up or a restroom drain emitting off foul odors, these simple drain situations can pose potentially serious health effects to visitors and staff alike.The issues and remedies do vary by area. And they must be reviewed separately first, and then combined together as a comprehensive drain program.

One of the biggest drain challenges for the facility is located in the dietary area. With food being processed and small chunks of waste being washed down the line, the staff may have to deal with as many as three different but related issues; slow or plugged lines, odors and unwanted pestilents such as rodents or drain flies.

The first line of defense for all three of these problems is prevention. By incorporating “best management practices” to limit the amount of the food waste that goes down the drain (pre-scraping the food off the plates and into the trash, eliminating the use of garbage disposals, and putting on drain screens to catch food particles), much of the food waste is kept out of the system. Not only does this help keep the drains clean, but it often helps minimize the wastewater bill through the reduction of the waste in the system.

After limiting the amount of food that goes down the drain through best management practices, the next step is to remove the waste that has entered the drain and become attached to the drain line. Removing the physical soil will usually also control related foul odors since the odors are primarily comprised of either amines or gases that are often released from the waste. Prior to removal of this waste, one must first identify the type of drain or drains located in the problem area. Dietary drains are usually one of two types, either a standard floor drain with some sort of drain screen or a trough like trench drain.

For a standard drain you should assess how much of a build-up is in the line. If the drain is plugged or almost plugged, to minimize cost and time, a mechanical means such as hydro-jetting or snaking the line is usually the fastest remedy. Today this process is the best way to handle drains that are in desperate need of deep restoration. If the drain flows slowly due to a partial build-up, there are a couple of additional remedies that maybe incorporated to eliminate the physical build-up. One method is to incorporate a regular routine of a natural biological solution that digests the sugars, carbohydrates, proteins, and fats being dumped down the drain. These natural digesters are a great supplement as they generally do not cause downstream issues in the municipal systems and do not pose any significant health risk to the facility. Biological products are to the drain, what a toothbrush and toothpaste are to teeth.

In the kitchen, there is often the tendency to try to routinely treat the floor drains with an emulsifier similar to those found in D-limonene or sodium hydroxide based products. Be aware that most communities are now forbidding the use of these types of emulsifiers to treat the grease interceptors or traps since they defeat the purpose of the interceptor, which is to mechanically separate food waste from the water. This is important because the kitchen drain lines feed through these traps right into the municipal collection system. If it is apparent that the facility is going to use an emulsifier to routinely maintain kitchen drains, approval from the local sewer authority is highly recommended. Failure to do so could lead to a downstream issue that may drastically raise the sewer bill.

The second type of drain commonly found in the dietary area is the trough style trench drain. This drain allows for easier access to a larger section of the drain and the dumping of water from large pots, mixing bowls, etc. Because of its exposed area, the entire trench drain should be treated as part of the floor surface. It should be cleaned using the same procedures and products used to clean the entire floor surface. Be sure to remove the grates and clean the trough portion of the drain as well.

There have been studies conducted by universities that suggest perhaps an effective way to eliminate a drain fly infestation is by removing their food and breeding sources (the wet sugars and carbohydrates) in and around the drain. Last fall, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was very careful to clearly remind every supplier that if they want to make any reference to chemically or biologically achieving this goal, the product must go through the appropriate testing and registration process.

Restroom drains have long been a challenge for the maintenance staff as the issues range from the disposal of inappropriate materials into the drains (gloves, pens, diapers, and feminine hygiene materials) to odors coming from incorrectly plumbed pipes. For the inappropriate materials, today there is no safe substitute to the mechanical removal of the materials. For odors in pipes that have not been plumbed properly, the only relief is to keep it lubricated or wet (using water) until a proper drain or vent can be installed. Due to indoor air quality issues, the hazards of accidentally mixing bleach with other chemicals, and the violent reaction that may occur; it is not a good idea to pour bleach down the drain to control odors. If the pipes are well lubricated and the drain is still emitting an odor, if it can be determined that the odor is a gas or an amine coming from the soil in the drain, a proper biological material may digest that soil and eliminate the smell.

Shower drains are handled similarly to bathroom drains with the exception that often the shower drain will get loaded with a “hairball.” That is the clump of hair that over time has been tangled around soap that is in the drain. The remedy is to either mechanically remove the hairball or break the soap down that holds the hairball together. This can be done with either a small amount of a biodegradable degreaser or by using a biological product to break the clump down over time. As the soap is broken down, the hair will tend to slide down the drain and the shower will regain its capacity to drain.

The last set of problematic drains that are commonly found in schools and hospitals are the drains in the custodial closets. The biggest challenge here is that due to the drain being used to empty everything from buckets, extractors, and automatic scrubbers, the best way to prevent the plugging of the line and production
of foul odors is to simply rinse some water down the drain after emptying the last container of the group. This process will flush the residual debris and odor causing waste down the drain. If odors persist, a biological drain maintenance product is a safe, easy tool for this application.

Whether it is a kitchen drain backing up or a restroom drain emitting off foul odors, these simple drain situations can cause potentially serious health effects on visitors and staff alike. When deciding just how important a routine drain maintenance program is, keep in mind, “Healthy Drains are the next step to a Healthy Environment.”

John Schauff is the bioaugmentation manager for Maumee, Ohio-based Spartan Chemical Company, Inc. and is an ISSA Certified Expert (ICE) This article was originally posted at facilitymanagement.com.