Phoenix City Code Chapter 28: The FOG (Grease) Program for Food-Service Businesses

Chapter 28 makes keeping grease out of the sewer the food-service business's own duty. The City describes its enforcement plainly:

Commercial Inspection staff educate and inspect Commercial Users to ensure compliance with Phoenix City Code Chapter 28 (Sewers).

The City's FOG Best Management Practices Manual spells out how a kitchen complies. A compliant kitchen has to do four things.

First, install an approved grease interceptor. Kitchen drains that carry grease, such as pot sinks, prep sinks, dishwashers, and cook-line floor drains, must run through an interceptor sized for the kitchen's flow. Phoenix sets a floor on size: the smallest gravity interceptor the City allows is a 500-gallon, two-compartment unit. Smaller hydromechanical grease traps must be PDI, IAPMO, or UPC listed.

Second, pump and clean it on schedule. Phoenix requires gravity interceptors at food-service sites to be fully pumped and cleaned at least once every three months. There is also a condition-based trigger. The widely used 25% rule says you clean the unit once the floating grease and settled solids reach 25% of its working volume, whichever comes first. A licensed pumper must do the work, empty the unit completely, and haul the waste to a licensed disposal facility.

Third, keep records. Each service leaves a manifest showing the date, the volume removed, and where the waste went. The City can ask to see these during an inspection.

Fourth, keep FOG out of the sewer entirely. That includes the indirect route. Using enzymes, bacteria, or solvents to break grease loose so it flows down the drain is prohibited, because it just moves the grease downstream to harden in the main.

This code governs any Phoenix business that prepares, cooks, or serves food. Picture a new taqueria opening in a strip mall: before it serves a plate, the City reviews its grease interceptor size at permitting, and after it opens, Commercial Inspection staff can show up to check the interceptor, the pumping records, and the drains. The same rules reach hotels, schools, and other kitchens that discharge grease.

If you run or are opening a Phoenix food-service business, treat the grease interceptor as core equipment, not an afterthought. Size it correctly at permitting, put its pumping on a calendar at or before the three-month mark, and keep every manifest. For how to pick the right cleaning interval for your unit, see how often to pump a grease trap, and for the registration and inspection side, see does my Phoenix restaurant have to comply with the FOG program. To size the interceptor correctly, see what size grease interceptor a restaurant needs. A separate industrial wastewater discharge permit applies to non-food shops that send process water to the sewer.

The Phoenix FOG requirements sit in Phoenix City Code Chapter 28 (Sewers) and are implemented through the City's FOG Best Management Practices Manual. Read the current manual on the City of Phoenix Water Services site: Phoenix FOG BMP Manual.

This page explains a city program in general terms and is not legal or compliance advice. Exact interceptor sizing, pumping intervals, and the current Chapter 28 section numbers can change, so confirm the current requirements with Phoenix Water Services before you rely on them for your business.