Undersized system
The business demand, menu, seating, takeout volume, fixture load, or pump schedule may exceed what the existing unit can reasonably handle.
Existing Systems
Grease Trap Replacement for Commercial Food Service Properties
When an existing interceptor is too small, damaged, difficult to maintain, repeatedly causing issues, or no longer accepted for the business use, replacement needs a field-driven plan.
Replacement Triggers
Do not assume the old tank solves the new restaurant problem.
Existing grease traps are often discovered during lease review, restaurant buildout, change of use, a DERM or municipal comment, a plumbing backup, or a pump-out problem. The system may look usable because covers exist, but the useful questions are deeper: what size is it, what fixtures connect to it, what condition is the tank in, where does it discharge, can it be pumped, and does the proposed business fit the system?
Genesis Prime Group evaluates replacement as both a compliance and construction issue. The scope may involve locating the existing interceptor, reviewing maintenance access, exposing buried piping, coordinating bypass or downtime, removing damaged components, setting a new interceptor, restoring concrete or pavement, and supporting the owner through inspection and agency closeout coordination.
Common Conditions
Reasons a property may need replacement.
Physical deterioration
Older tanks, lids, risers, baffles, piping, or access covers may be cracked, corroded, damaged, unsafe, or difficult to service.
Access and maintenance problems
A unit that cannot be pumped or inspected properly can become a recurring operational and compliance problem.
Change of use
A coffee shop, bakery, full-service restaurant, market, school, or hotel kitchen can have very different FOG characteristics.
Repeated backups or odors
Operational symptoms can point to sizing, maintenance, piping, venting, or physical failure issues that need diagnosis before replacement.
Agency or landlord review
Replacement may become part of resolving comments, lease requirements, construction documents, or tenant improvement approvals.
DERM Violation Response
Received a DERM Violation for a Broken or Breached Grease Interceptor?
A violation can turn a grease interceptor problem into a schedule, engineering, construction, and documentation issue. Genesis can review the notice, evaluate the visible condition, help document whether temporary corrective work is appropriate, and begin the permanent replacement path while the owner keeps track of the agency's required actions.
Temporary corrective work may reduce immediate discharge or nuisance concerns, but it does not necessarily eliminate the need for engineered replacement. When the existing grease control device is compromised, the durable solution usually involves drawings, applicable review, permits, excavation, removal of failed components, installation of the approved interceptor and piping, inspection coordination, surface restoration, and support for agency closeout after compliant completion.
Official Miami-Dade context: verify current requirements directly with the County's Fats, Oils and Grease program and FOG Discharge Control Operating Permit resources. The specific corrective deadlines and required actions depend on the violation and applicable agency requirements.
Capacity Change
Existing Grease Interceptor Too Small for a New or Expanding Restaurant
Replacement is not limited to cracked or breached tanks. A buyer may acquire an existing restaurant, a tenant may lease a former food-service space, or an operator may expand seating, add takeout, change the menu, add dishwashing, or increase production. The old interceptor might still exist, but it may not be appropriate for the proposed operation.
Before relying on an inherited system, Genesis should evaluate condition, access, available records, pump-out history, fixture connections, and the proposed restaurant use. If the business assumptions are changing, use the calculator for preliminary sizing and then compare that result with field conditions and applicable review comments.
Replacement Cost
What Does Commercial Grease Trap Replacement Cost?
There is no responsible generic price without the property facts. A replacement under an open parking lot, a tight urban sidewalk, a rear service alley, an active restaurant slab, or a shared shopping-center utility area can involve very different work even when the interceptor capacity appears similar.
Interceptor capacity and type
The required capacity, flow rating, model, traffic rating, risers, covers, and manufacturer requirements affect material and installation scope.
Access and excavation
Depth, soil, groundwater risk, utility conflicts, equipment access, traffic control, and whether the tank sits under slab, asphalt, or concrete can change the work plan.
Removal and piping
Demolition, removal, disposal, bypass needs, grease-waste piping, tie-ins, cleanouts, and downstream conditions can drive labor and schedule.
Engineering and permitting
Replacement may require design drawings, submittal coordination, agency review, permit issuance, inspections, and response to comments.
Surface restoration
Concrete, asphalt, pavers, striping, landscaping, or other site restoration should be included so the property can return to normal use.
Operating constraints
Restaurants, hotels, markets, and shopping centers may need phasing, off-hour work, tenant coordination, or access planning to reduce disruption.
Replacement Planning
Information Genesis needs to price responsibly.
- Violation notice or agency comment, if applicable.
- Property address, business type, and proposed restaurant operation.
- Photos of covers, kitchen fixtures, pump-out records, affected pavement, and any discharge or access issue.
- Known tank size, model, drawings, plumbing records, or previous permit records.
- Symptoms such as backups, odors, failed inspections, compromised components, or maintenance issues.
- Business hours, tenant coordination needs, and downtime restrictions.
- Whether work is inside, outside, under slab, under asphalt, or in a shared tenant area.
Use the calculator to organize the proposed food-service demand, then review that preliminary estimate against the actual site, records, damage, access, and permitting path.
Estimate Your Required Grease Interceptor SizeEvaluation Before Replacement
A replacement decision should be based on evidence.
Some existing systems can be reused after review. Others should not be trusted for a new food service use. Genesis' evaluation should separate visible convenience from actual suitability: known capacity, inlet and outlet condition, baffle condition, cover rating, riser height, structural integrity, access for pump trucks, fixture connections, history of backups, and whether the system aligns with the proposed menu and operating hours.
If the system is buried under pavement or slab, there may be cost in simply confirming what exists. That investigation can still save money before a tenant commits to a lease, because a hidden replacement requirement can change the economics of a restaurant buildout. When replacement is needed, the construction plan should address temporary operations, demolition, disposal, new interceptor setting, pipe tie-ins, inspection schedule, backfill, compaction, and restoration of the surface that customers, employees, or delivery vehicles use every day.
Replacement vs. Maintenance
Not every problem is solved by pumping more often.
Pump frequency matters, but frequent pumping cannot fix every condition. Repeated service calls may point to undersizing, poor access, damaged internals, bad inlet/outlet elevations, downstream restrictions, or a change in food use. Before spending money on replacement, Genesis should review the maintenance history and symptoms. Before spending more money on maintenance, owners should ask whether the system is physically capable of supporting the current kitchen.
Urgent Replacement Review
Received a DERM Violation or Need to Replace an Existing Grease Interceptor?
Send the violation notice if applicable, property address, photographs, existing drawings or records, proposed restaurant use, and anticipated seating or capacity changes. For urgent coordination, call 305-570-8520.