The holidays bring many festivities, and challenges. The next six weeks or so will be filled with rich foods, and that means more cooking than usual. While we all see this as a joyous and merry, it presents a few challenges.
- TURKEY, HAM, AND PRIME RIB mean extra fats in the pans. There are several ways to deal with this, but the best advice is to put the grease in the garbage, not the garbage disposal. Save some sort of container, such as a pickle jar or coffee canister, and use that for your grease disposal. When you are done with it, simply put it gently into the trash and dispose of it that way. If you have the time to chill your broth or pan juices, then you can take that fat off in one solid piece and simply wrap it in a plastic grocery bag and drop it in the trash.
- THE ULTIMATE RECYCLE of your fats is to reuse them. Chicken and turkey fat is known as schmaltz, beef fat is tallow, and pork fat is lard. These flavorful fats are good for you and will forever change the way you make some of your favorite dishes. For instance, the fat from the turkey is wonderful for sautéing the mirepoix for your stuffing, or cutting into the biscuits. It also is wonderful in homemade bread in place of oil. You can use it in place of some of the butter in your mashed potatoes, and you can toss the veggies in it instead of olive oil before roasting them. There is no way that these fats, used over again in your cooking, will cause any problems in your drainage system.
- FOOD SCRAPS are a constant threat to the drain pipes. While many homes have garbage disposals, not all do. If people are depositing their used plates in the sink, you may find that bits of this and that have escaped down the drain. This can be a real problem. You may be able to set a container by the sink with a spatula and let everyone know that they can scrape their plates in the scrap container. You also can serve food on paper or Styrofoam. People just toss them in the trash, and the scraps never make it to the sink this way.
- EXTRA USE OF THE BATHROOM SPACES as we entertain, and possibly host guests over the holidays, mean more hair down the drains. All those rich foods mean that the commodes may be getting an extra workout as well.
When you combine these sinks and other pipes being used to their full potential for a period of time, it is no surprise that plumbers get a lot of calls during the last two months of the year. Follow the guidelines we have shared, and if something still manages to clog your drains, call ASAP Plumbing right away so we can get your pipes flowing smoothly again. We are here to help keep your holidays on the happy side. You can count on us for quality work, competitive rates, and fast, friendly service. Call ASAP Plumbing at 228-865-2727. Enjoy your holidays, from ASAP Plumbing!
