FogBusters

FogBusters is a breakthrough in high-volume, low-cost, oil/ water separation that is fully compatible with existing systems

FogBusters attains compliance with regulatory standards for a wide variety of industrial waste streams on volumes from 25 to 350 GPM while also reducing carbon footprint. The units can be ganged in series or parallel for larger volumes. FOG levels below 100 ppm are typically achieved. “The Fogbuster makes water virtually oil-free and oil water-free,” says Mart. The FogBuster, fully automated with plant-integrated control systems, can also adapt to FOG surges of 50 percent to 100 percent oil content (as with an oil spill) when necessary.

FogBusters have been successfully deployed in a wide variety of food processing and rendering plants as well as in the petroleum and biodiesel industries. The patented technology is widely used to process industrial wastewater from manufacturers of pre-cooked (steamed, fried, roasted, microwaved, baked) meats and other foods, edible oil process plants, snack food and chips, chocolate, dairy products and baked goods, as well as renderers and meat and poultry processors. In some meat processing facilities, small FogBusters are installed inside cook rooms to capture valuable food-grade edible fats from drippings before the process water becomes wastewater.

Monogram Foods, a manufacturer and marketer of packaged and value-added foods, recently installed a large FogBuster unit that harvests five to seven thousand pounds of marketable FOG (yellow grease) a day. Ventura Foods, a national processor of edible oil products, has several FogBuster installations around the U.S. producing three to five thousand pounds of FOG a day for biodiesel feedstock. Both manufacturers benefit from reduced labor and operating costs plus concomitant savings in sludge removal and disposal while making their DAF and biological wastewater system work more efficiently. ROIs are typically 12 months for 20-year life systems.

FogBusters’ many other food processing customers include Cargill, Dairy Crest, Cadbury and Arla Foods. FogBusters has also been working with Greenergy on the biodiesel front and Chevron in petroleum applications.

Of interest to municipal wastewater facilities, FogBusters technology is available (under a retail brand name) in a simplified, scaled-down form used by restaurants and supermarket delis that serves as a “self-cleaning” grease trap, which automatically extracts FOG otherwise headed down the drain. These advanced grease traps treat effluent from sinks, rotisseries, and combi-ovens. Finding FogBusters to be the best available technology, some wastewater authorities actually require commercial kitchens to use the system. The system has thousands of units in place nationwide and a noteworthy clientele that includes McDonald’s, Yum! Brands, Costco, Sam’s Club, and Walmart.

Currently serving North American markets, FogBusters are also sold in Europe, Asia, and Australia under the brand name Recovered Oil (“RecOil”). “We have positioned ourselves as the best solution for high-volume, low-cost wastewater treatment, turning a painful cost center into a profit center,” says Mart.