Restaurant Duct Cleaning: Essential For Health and Safety

November 17th, 2022

Last updated: June 9th, 2023

Running a commercial kitchen or a restaurant is not always easy, and there are certainly a lot of different things to consider when it comes to the health and safety responsibilities of your business. When it comes to kitchen fire hazards, you might not necessarily think of your kitchen ducting, but it is not something that you should neglect as it can have grave consequences.

There are many different types of duct systems that may be installed within a restaurant, both in front of house and back of house operations. From ducting for air conditioners to keep your employees cool, to full kitchen ventilation systems.

As a customer, when you go to a restaurant, you rarely think about the ducting, but there are a number of benefits to a well-ventilated space.

• Fresh air at all times. Ducting allows the stale air to leave the building and be replaced by fresh air.
• Restaurant duct cleaning reduces the risk of grease, smoke, and heat building up within the kitchen or restaurant.
• Reduce the fire risk. Ducting should always be considered when it comes to your fire risk assessment.

Air conditioning systems also have ducting which is an important part of the mechanism and how the system works. This means the AC ducting should be treated in a slightly different way to kitchen ducting. Poor maintenance of air conditioning ductwork can lead to a very inefficient system which can cost you a lot more to run.

Fortunately, you don’t have to deal with lots of different companies. With Robinsons Facilities Services you can ensure that all of your ducts are properly maintained at all times. A planned preventative maintenance schedule is the ideal way to get regular maintenance carried out, ensuring that your duct systems are always kept in top condition.

How Often Do I Need To Get Restaurant Ducts Cleaned?

The frequency of commercial duct cleaning will depend on a number of factors, including the type of business, the size of the premises, and how often the system is used. Our team can carry out a simple survey and recommend the duct servicing you need. This may vary between the different parts of your restaurant.

As a general rule, it is recommended that commercial ductwork is cleaned at the very least once every year. However, some businesses may need to have their ducts cleaned more frequently. For example, if you are running a very busy kitchen or a factory where a lot of grease and smoke is produced, then you might opt for more frequent cleaning schedules to ensure your legal compliance.

Is Restaurant Duct Cleaning a Legal Requirement?

In UK law there are a number of different rules and regulations regarding duct cleaning. The Health and Safety at Work Act is one example. Under the legislation, keeping premises safe for both customers and employees are obligated. This means that the operator of the restaurant must pay attention to things like the fire risks within a building, and even potential air quality issues that can come from ducts not being clean.

There are specific regulations related to commercial kitchen extraction and ductwork, too. The BESA TR19 specification is the industry-recognised standard for this cleaning work and should be followed by any company that specialises in commercial cleaning.

Not ensuring a safe workspace leaves you open to legal action, and can prevent insurance companies from paying out in the event of a fire or other issue arising from poor maintenance.

Can You Clean Ducts Yourself?

We don’t recommend that you clean the ducting yourself. It is a specialist job and it is easy to miss something or to make a mistake while you are cleaning the ducting or putting covers back on.

It is also easy to forget and put off the job of cleaning if you decide you are going to handle this yourself. Instead, it is much more simple and straightforward to put restaurant duct cleaning in the hands of a professional company.

While ducting is not something that people necessarily think about regularly, it is not something to take any chances with, and without professional training and knowledge, it is not something to consider doing yourself.

Working across Yorkshire, we cover North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, East Yorkshire and South Yorkshire and offer a fast, efficient response time to all breakdowns and repairs. Contact us today for all planned, reactive maintenance or emergency call out. Call 01423 226578 or get in touch to see how Robinsons Facilities Services can help.