Commercial and restaurant plumbing guides
Each guide covers one back-of-house or building system in plain language. They explain how it fails, what to do first and what to ask a licensed plumber, written for Fullerton restaurant owners, kitchen managers and property managers.
- Grease interceptors and grease traps explained
A grease interceptor keeps fats, oils and grease out of the sewer and out of your own lines. Here is how the different types work, why they fail and which questions belong with the city.
- Grease interceptor pumping, logs and kitchen habits
A pumping schedule only works if it matches your kitchen and someone writes it down. This guide covers intervals, the service log and the daily habits that keep grease out of your lines.
- Hydro jetting for commercial kitchen and building drains
Hydro jetting uses high-pressure water to scour grease, scale and debris from the full width of a pipe. It is the standard maintenance tool for busy kitchen lines, but it is not right for every pipe.
- Sewer camera inspections for commercial properties
A camera inspection replaces guessing with footage. For a business it is most useful before signing a lease, before a kitchen build-out and whenever the same line keeps failing.
- Commercial sewer lateral repair: trenchless versus open cut
When a commercial lateral is cracked, rooted or collapsing, there are several ways to fix it. The right one depends on the damage, what sits on top of the pipe and how long the business can be down.
- Commercial water heaters: tank, tankless and boosters
A restaurant or busy office runs on hot water. This guide explains why heaters fall behind at peak, how the main options compare and what to check before replacing one.
- Hard water scale in commercial kitchens and equipment
Fullerton's water is hard, and a commercial kitchen heats and uses a lot of it. Scale shows up in heaters, dish machines, ice machines and valves. Here is how to spot it and what can be done.
- Backflow prevention and testing for businesses
Backflow assemblies keep water from your building flowing back into the public supply. Many commercial properties have them, and they generally need periodic testing by a certified tester.
- Gas lines for commercial kitchens: safety and repairs
Ranges, fryers, broilers and water heaters all run on gas in most commercial kitchens. This guide covers what to do if you smell gas, how kitchen gas connections fail and what to expect when gas work is needed.
- Commercial restroom plumbing: clogs, leaks and odors
Customer restrooms take heavy use and get noticed quickly when something goes wrong. Most problems come from flush valves, urinals, floor drains and toilet seals.
- Plumbing in multi-tenant buildings and strip centers
In a shared building, the suite that floods is often not the suite that caused it. Clear responsibility, shared shutoff maps and early communication make plumbing problems much easier to handle.
- Restaurant build-out plumbing: what to check first
Before you sign a lease or start a kitchen build-out, the building's plumbing sets the size of the job. These are the checks to make early.
- After-hours plumbing emergencies: a plan for businesses
Plumbing emergencies rarely happen when the owner is on site. A one-page plan tells the closing manager or the first person in what to shut off, who to call and when to stop service.
- Finding hidden leaks in commercial buildings and kitchens
Commercial kitchens hide a lot of pipe behind equipment, under slab floors and in walls. Leaks there can run for a long time before anyone sees water. This guide covers the signs and how they are found.
- How to hire and vet a commercial plumber
Commercial plumbing touches food safety, tenants and business hours, so the contractor you choose matters. This guide covers licensing, written scopes and the questions to settle first.