How to Properly Dispose Used Cooking Oil

No matter how little, or how much used cooking oil you generate in your kitchen, you will want to get rid of it safely. Therefore, you need to know how to properly dispose used cooking oil.

Of course, you should try to reuse the oil, until you cannot use it anymore. Even reusing the oil requires some tactic. For instance, oil used to cook seafood might not be good for cooking other types of meat. The seafood taste can be too strong.

When it eventually comes to the time when you must dispose of the oil, well, you have to do it properly. The first thought will be to flush it down the kitchen sink with hot water, but do not do that.

Irresponsible disposal of old cooking oil can lead to serious problems like clogged pipes, clogged sewerage system, and others. Leaving it lying around in the kitchen is not good either, because it attracts bugs, and breeds bacteria.

Keep reading to see various ways to dispose of the oil:

1. Store the used cooking oil properly

Do not store the liquid cooking oil in plastic bags because they can be pierced easily and the oil will leak everywhere. The best way to store it is in plastic containers that have lids, so that you can keep it covered up properly. This way, it will stay safe and intact, until you can dispose of it properly.

After cooking with the oil, keep it safe somewhere, so that it can cool down. It will take some time to cool down, so make sure you keep it in a place with minimal or no traffic.

After it cools down, pour it in the containers that you have dedicated for the job, and cover them properly. Do not spill any on the floor because it can breed bacteria, which could then find their way to your food.

Later, you can dispose of the oil with your garbage.

2. You could freeze it for easier disposal

This is another option, because solid oil is not as messy to deal with as liquid oil. It can take up to 24 hours for the oil to freeze and solidify, but once it solidifies, it will be so easy to handle.

You can put the blocks of frozen oil in plastic bags and dispose of it with your garbage. It is best to freeze it one day before the day you plan to dispose of it. When you take it out of the freezer, it will start melting after exposure to heat.

To prevent any “accidents,” even after freezing the oil, please store it in plastic containers that have airtight lids. That way, there will be no leakage if the oil melts while it is in the garbage.

Please remember to label the containers holding the old cooking oil. You can write something like: Cooking Oil – Do Not Recycle.

That way, the used cooking oil recycling company knows how to handle it to prevent spillage.

3. Use what you can, then dispose of the remainder

Before you think of throwing it away, you should first think of how you can use whatever amount you can. There are various ways to reuse the used cooking oil, but please make sure it is still fresh. Try:

Adding it to your pet food

If you had cooked chicken, turkey, fries, or any other meats in the oil, go ahead and add some of the oil to your cat and dog food. Vegetable cooking oil is not harmful to animals. In fact, mixing such oil with their food will make it tastier, and it improves their coat of fur.

Adding it to compost

You can add used cooking oil to compost in minimal quantities. Since oil tends to be sticky, and it makes things around it sticky, it is recommended that you add only a little amount of the oil. You want to keep the compost as aerated as possible, to prevent foul odor from developing.

If you add too much oil, it will make everything sticky and with less air movement in the compost, it will develop a bad odor. The smell is going to attract bugs and rodents.

Also, please note that you should only add organic varieties of cooking oil, as they decompose easily in the compost.

4. Talk to the local restaurant to see if they can take the oil

This is not common, but there is no harm in asking. Restaurants have arrangements with used oil recycling companies, which provide them with containers, and collect the old oil.

You could ask whether they will accept your used cooking oil. That way, it will be collected by the recycling company with theirs.

Please note that used cooking oil recycling companies do not take all types of oil. For instance, if the oil is spoiled, they will not take it. Thus, most restaurants might not want to mix your used oil with theirs.

If they do not take the cooking oil off your hands, you can try other disposal methods.

5. Mix it with sand, sawdust or litter

Sometimes, the best way to properly dispose cooking oil is to mix it with absorbent material. You can use sawdust if it is available because it soaks up the oil nicely. You can then dispose the sawdust with the garbage.

If you do not have sawdust, you can mix the oil with a little amount of sand. You can then store the sand in a bag and dispose it with the garbage.

Cat litter also absorbs liquid oil, so you might consider using it if it is available.

Conclusion

Everyone generates some used cooking oil, albeit in small quantities, from the residential kitchens. This oil needs to be properly disposed, to prevent it from going to the sinks. If it goes to the plumbing and sewerage, it can cause clogging. If too much used cooking oil finds its way to the landfills, it might eventually get to the water sources.

When you have emptied your containers and jars at home, keep them handy, so that you can reuse them for storing the used cooking oil. Keep the lids on to keep bacteria, and bugs away from the oil.

Never flush cooking oil, whether cold or hot, down the toilet. As soon as it comes into contact with the cold pipe surfaces, it will start to solidify, and attach itself to the walls. This will keep happening until the pipes clog up, costing you a lot of money in repairs.