Las Vegas, Nevada – Hood cleaning is perhaps the single most important maintenance job needed to ensure safety in a commercial kitchen. Without it, flash grease fires ignite easily, which can have dire consequences.
Chief Executive Massoud Farazandeh of American Professional Services (APS-Hoods), a professional hood cleaning company in Las Vegas, Nevada said, “Dirt, grease, and grime build up over time. If you don’t properly clean your exhaust hoods, the authorities can close you down, or worse, a fire can spontaneously erupt.”
What are the kitchen-related fire statistics from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)?
The statistics reported by the National Fire Protection Association, a nonprofit organization established in 1896 with a mission to reduce fires worldwide, are sobering.
- The leading cause of fires in day care centers, college classroom buildings, and adult education centers during 2003 through 2006, (all originating in the kitchen or cooking area), was due to cooking equipment.
- During the same time period cooking equipment was the cause of 18,581 or 17 percent of all structure fires.
- Cooking equipment caused three out of four fires or 76 percent of all fires in nursing homes and other residential boarding facilities from 2003 through 2007. Forty-six percent of these fires resulted in injuries, and 10 percent resulted in direct property damage.
Are there any problems, other than fire, associated with unclean exhaust hoods?
Besides being an extreme fire hazard, dirty or clogged up exhaust hoods can present other problems.
- A dirty exhaust hood can pose a health problem for employees. A poorly functioning system does not clean the air, and kitchen workers are breathing polluted air, which is full of grease, dirt, and fumes.
- Another problem is the likelihood that the customers or residents are breathing the same polluted air.
- Lastly, the air is stale smelling, and if the air has floated into the dining room, customers or residents will smell it disapprovingly.
How often should hood cleaning be performed?
The frequency of hood cleaning depends on the volume of greasy smoke that the kitchen normally generates.
According to Farazandeh, “Hood cleaning frequency depends upon the size of the institution or restaurant. For instance, a steak house will generate a lot of greasy smoke and those types of establishments should schedule hood cleaning monthly.”
“Other types of restaurants,” he added, “might only need to be cleaned quarterly. It all depends upon what you are cooking and how much you are cooking.”
What is the best way to know when exhaust hoods need cleaning?
Besides scheduling routine hood cleaning, the very best way to ensure that all parts of an exhaust system are cleaned and work properly is to pay a professional hood cleaner to do it. Professional hood cleaning companies know what to look for in the way of cleaning and safety.
- They will check and clean filters. Properly functioning systems should collect up to 80 percent of the grease generated. Cleaning filters must be done on a regular basis.
- They will check and clean the ductwork to remove any grease buildup and will make sure that the ducts have not collapsed and are properly directing grease to the outside.
- They will clean the fan and check that it is working properly to direct polluted air out of the kitchen.
- They will clean and check that the hood is correctly positioned.
- They will clean and check the plenum, which holds the filters.
Even though using a professional hood cleaning company costs more money than doing it yourself, it is well worth it for the safety and well-being of your business, employees, and customers.