Can Olive Oil Go Down The Drain/Garbage Disposal?

Last updated on July 22nd, 2022 at 12:14 am

Olive oil is great to cook with. It is needed to cook certain foods and adds flavor to them. 

You fixed a great meal for your family. Using olive oil for sauteing vegetables and cooking chicken, everything tasted delicious. After everyone was finished eating, the plates were put into the dishwasher. 

On the stove sits the pan you used to cook the meat and meat and veggies. Somehow, you need to throw away the oil. But is there a certain way it should be done? 

You think about just pouring it down the garbage disposal in the sink’s drain, but then you remember that something could clog it up. So, after you are done cooking and need to dispose of leftover olive oil, can you pour it down the drain or the garbage disposal?

You should never pour olive oil (or any oil) down a sink’s drain or garbage disposal as this can clog it up. The best way to get rid of cooking oils is to put them in a sealable container before tossing them into the trash.

Olive oil is a common ingredient in many cooking and baking recipes. If you cook with olive oil often, then you know that when it’s time to discard the oil, you may want to opt for the easy way out and just pour the stuff down the kitchen sink drain or garbage disposal. But, this is something you should avoid doing unless you want to deal with clogged pipes. 

Instead of putting olive oil down the drain or garbage disposal, there are some other things you should do. 

First of all, you can reuse the oil. If you are frying with the olive oil you can use it 3 or 4 more times by storing it in the fridge and using it again for those veggies or chicken. This can save you money and be less wasteful in the long run. 

Next, leftover olive oil can also be recycled or composted. This can be an environmentally friendly way of getting rid of the olive oil. 

Lastly, you can also throw the olive oil away. You should use a sealable container to throw the olive oil away in. We will discuss how to throw away olive oil later on in this article.

Does Olive Oil Clog Pipes?

So, after you are done cooking with olive oil, you should get rid of it. We mentioned that you should not pour the liquid down the drain or garbage disposal. 

There are other ways to dispose of leftover olive oil. But, why can’t this be done? Does olive oil clog pipes?

Olive oil could potentially clog pipes if you pour it down the drain or into the garbage disposal. Many times it is cooking oil that clogs pipes at home. So to avoid any unwanted plumbing bills, don’t throw olive oil down the drain and dispose of it properly.

While it may be tempting to just toss the pan with the leftover olive oil into the sink and rinse it out, washing all the oil down the drain, it is not recommended you do this. Pouring olive oil, or any cooking oil, for that matter down the sink’s drain and garbage disposal can result in clogged pipes. 

When the olive oil goes down the drain, it could build-up in the pipes and over time lead to a slow-draining drain or a clog. Olive oil is thick and can solidify in cold temperatures below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. 

This doesn’t sound like a problem you want to deal with. I’m sure you don’t want a costly plumbing bill so avoid putting olive oil down the drain.

According to How to Dispose of Cooking Oil The Correct and Responsible Way,“Pouring grease or oil down the drain in your kitchen sink can clog or damage your home’s pipes once it solidifies. And putting hot water, degreasers, or detergents down your drain won’t necessarily help reduce the damage. The garbage disposal won’t help either. Solidified grease can cause damage down the pipeline. It can also cause public tunnel systems to overflow, which can lead to health and environmental hazards. Oil or grease leaks in your trash can attract pests and cause problems for garbage trucks. We won’t even go into how bad the smell can be. So when disposing of cooking oil, put it into a sealed, non-breakable container first before you toss it in the trash.”

How Do You Properly Dispose Of Olive Oil?

So. you shouldn’t pour olive oil down the drain and the reason is because it can clog the pipes. You should always discard the leftover oil in certain ways that keep your drains clog-free. How do you properly dispose of olive oil?

You should properly dispose of olive oil by transferring it into a glass container and when it is full, throw it away, Or you can transfer the oil to a sealable container or bag and discard into the trash can.

While you should not pour the olive oil directly into the trash can (especially if it is still hot), because this will make a mess and could leak through the bag, you can still dispose of it this way. An optional step is that you can also put the olive oil in the fridge before throwing it away so it does not cause a mess. 

Pour the leftover oil into a glass container and when it is full, just toss it into the trash to get rid of it. This is the best way to dispose of the olive oil.  Keep in mind that you should never put olive down the drain or garbage disposal.

The article, 6 Things You Need to Know About Disposing Cooking Oil states, “Olive oil should be treated just like vegetable oil and other cooking oils in that it should never be washed down the drain or thrown directly in the trash.  The best way to throw away used olive oil is to put it in a sealable, non-breakable container before putting it in the trash.  Homeowners can also compost small amounts of used olive oil.

The best course of action for food service establishments is to put used olive oil in the storage containers with other used cooking oil so it can be collected and recycled.”

Final Thoughts

Olive oil should never be put down the drain or garbage disposal since this could cause clogged pipes and an expensive repair bill. The proper way to dispose of olive oil is to transfer it to a sealable container and throw it into the trash. Or you can even recycle or compost it. 

These are the best ways to dispose of any cooking oil. It may seem like the easiest way, but olive oil cannot be put down your kitchen’s sink drain or garbage disposal.