When to Clean a Commercial Kitchen Exhaust System & Fire Suppression System

When it comes to making a safe commercial kitchen space, everyone knows that cooking equipment and counters must be scrubbed down, floors mopped and food needs to be handled according to the health department standards.

Maintaining your exhaust hood system is just as important – if not more so – than almost anything else on your to-do list. The question is, how do you know when your system needs to be cleaned? Commercial kitchen exhaust cleaning is dictated by the National Fire Protection Association and the responsibility of the commercial kitchen owner.

Consider the Hours of Operation

The first factor the commercial kitchen owner needs to consider is your commercial kitchen exhaust systems overall workload. The harder your exhaust system works, the more you’re going to need the kitchen hood cleaned, and there is a direct correlation between the amount of hours your commercial kitchen cooking equipment is running and the amount of potential grease build up and debris your kitchen hood exhaust fan system and fire suppression system may be hiding.

The National Fire Protection Association, NFPA, has developed a set of respected standards for commercial kitchen exhaust cleaning and fire suppression system cleaning that are generally accepted as “law” by Fire Inspectors.  There are standards for inspecting the fire suppression system, kitchen hood, cleaning the exhaust fan, and maintaining kitchen exhaust systems. According to National Fire Association standards, a certified kitchen exhaust cleaning company can test your hood system to determine the cleaning frequency. –  a monthly, quarterly, semiannually or yearly basis. The frequency of National Fire protection inspections on your commercial kitchen exhaust system depends on the factors listed below. Ultimately the commercial kitchen owner is responsible for cleaning kitchen exhaust systems and the fire suppression system. Every commercial kitchen owner should be familiar with the codes. You can read the national fire protection code here.

What’s Cooking?

Commercial kitchen exhaust cleaning and fire suppression inspection frequency can’t be determined by operating hours alone. What you’re making, and how you are making it, is just as important. For instance the high heat and oils used in most Asian style cooking produces substantially more grease than a grill used for hot sandwiches.  Steak houses more than Sushi restaurants while breakfast joints tend to produce a lot of soft grease from all the bacon and eggs.  Each commercial kitchen exhaust system needs to be assessed by the type and quantity of food being prepared on the cooking equipment to determine the kitchen hood, exhaust fan and exhaust system cleaning schedule.  The commercial kitchen owner and chef set the menu but the National Fire Protection Association sets the exhaust cleaning and fire suppression system frequency. In addition to the type and quantity of food the size of the kitchen hood, exhaust fan, and cooking equipment, there are other factors that determine when you need to clean your commercial kitchen exhaust and inspect your fire suppression system. The National Fire Protection Association recommends a grease comb test be done prior to the kitchen exhaust cleaning. The commercial kitchen owner can perform the test to determine when cleaning kitchen exhaust is needed.

Type of Fuel Used & Cooking Equipment

Gas ovens, stoves, fryers and grills are very different from wood, wood assist and charcoal fires.  National Fire Protection Associations, which all fire codes are based on, states the burning solid fuel in cooking equipment requires monthly kitchen exhaust system cleaning.  Gas oven cooking equipment typically contains the grease while fryers and grill top cooking equipment allow grease laden steam to freely enter the commercial kitchen exhaust system.  Electrical appliances under a kitchen exhaust hood system hood will also contribute to the grease and carbon load entering the commercial kitchen exhaust hood.  If you’re cooking with solid fuel such as charcoal or wood – monthly National Fire Protection Association inspection and commercial kitchen hood cleaning is required. However, if you’re an average commercial restaurant restaurant doing basic charbroiling and frying under a commercial kitchen hood quarterly,  while the commercial kitchen making subs and sandwiches under a commercial kitchen exhaust hood semiannual exhaust cleaning will probably suffice. These exhaust system cleanings and fire suppression system inspections can be performed at once.

Kitchen Exhaust Cleaning System Status

Just like the fire suppression system the National Fire Protection Association has outlined how to check exhaust system cleaning and cooking equipment cleaning for completeness. The commercial kitchen owner is exhaust system runs best when it’s in good shape, properly maintained, and tended to on a regular basis. Consider the hood grease filters, for instance. They can’t do their job capturing grease and flammable debris if they are dirty and clogged. Kitchen exhaust system filters need to be cleaned by your in-house crew on a weekly basis, or you’re at risk of fire hazards and an unsafe work environment. MERV type pollutions control filters are often part of your cooking equipment. These filters need to follow National Fire Protection Association rules for inspection and cleaning. These filters need to be changed or cleaned more often than the kitchen hood cleaned. The fire suppression system requires professional cleaning to properly operate.

As the commercial kitchen owner you can assist in general upkeep in other ways, too, like installing a duct access door which allows access your hood cleaners to gain access to hard-to-reach areas.  The National Fire Protection Association requires access panels on many kitchen hoods to properly perform exhaust cleaning. The commercial kitchen owner should also have the fire suppression system serviced regularly. Grease containment systems for the roof should be considered as part of the kitchen hood system exhaust fan to capture flammable grease and protect the roof from degradation.   After all, if you, the commercial kitchen owner, can’t see it, or if you choose not to see it, you can’t clean it, and thorough hood cleanings are just as important as timely ones.