Uncleaned Kitchen Extract Systems Puts Commercial Kitchens At Risk Of Fire

Department of Communities and Local Government (DGLC) statistics show that the majority

of restaurant and catering establishment fires involve high risk equipment such as fryers, griddles, ranges and ventilation ducts and it has been estimated that more up to 80% of kitchen extraction ducts are never cleaned.

Building owners and operators have duties of care in fire safety legislation passed in 2006. Anyone ignoring it faces severe penalties in court for failure to comply with fire safety legislation.

An important first step, therefore is a fire risk assessment for ensuring that a commercial kitchen is safe both for the people who work there but also for customers and clients eating in its restaurant.

Environmental Health regulations also mean that kitchen emissions have to be kept under control.

Fire services in the UK have reported a recent spate of fires in kitchens that have not paid proper attention to extraction cleaning. A spokesperson for aone fire authority says that uncleaned grease extract ventilation systems are possibly the highest contributors to the risk of fire in catering facilities.

This is because a kitchen extract ventilation system's purpose is to draw in grease-laden air from the areas above cookers, grills and fryers via the cooker hood,. Grease deposits are especially vulnerable to being ignited a small flash fire on a hob or in a grill.

In one recent incident in London a fire in the ventilation shaft in a fast food outlet at a railway station closed the station for most of the day, disrupted the train schedule and involved 40 firefighters before it was finally extinguished.

Kitchen extraction cleaning is a difficult, unpleasant job but regular attention to can also have financial benefits on insurance costs. The Association of British Insurers recommends that extract systems in commercial kitchens should be regularly cleaned and certified. How often depends on usage and can vary from a month to once a year.

It is most efficiently carried out by a commercial cleaning company that specializes in kitchen extract cleaning and carries it out in compliance with the HVCA best practice guidance.

Opt for a company that can verify that its operators are properly trained in the use of various cleaning materials and solutions and that will carry out a proper survey beforehand as well as providing proper reports and certificates afterwards for building owners or managers to keep in their records for insurers, health and safety and environmental health inspectors.

Copyright (c) 2011 Alison Withers

by: Alison Withers

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