Carmel Restaurant Hood Cleaning Service

Restaurants and other commercial food service operations have kitchens that include ventilation hoods and an exhaust system. By law in the United States, each vent hood and exhaust system in commercial kitchens must be thoroughly cleaned on a regular basis. This can be accomplished by manual scraping and washing or by pressure washing depending on what is required by local ordinances and fire safety regulations. 

Any restaurant in Carmel or the greater Indianapolis metro area that needs professional cleaning services in its kitchen to ensure safe exhaust systems can rely on Office Keepers for a reliable, affordable restaurant hood cleaning service. Call us at 317-577-6877 to discuss your needs and get a quote.

Fire Safety 101: Restaurant Hood Cleaning is the Key

The most likely place for a fire to start in any restaurant or commercial food service operation is in the kitchen. The ventilation hood over the stove or griddle removes the smoke, steam, and other cooking fumes out of the kitchen and out of the building. As all of that moves through the hood and ductwork of the exhaust system, it leaves a residue that builds up over time. There’s grease in that residue and it’s highly flammable. 

All it takes is one flare-up to go high enough to hit the grease build up on the hood filters and you’ve got a potentially serious fire on your hands. If it ignites, the air being drawn up through the filter will pull the flame into the exhaust ducts where there could be more grease buildup. A third of all restaurant fires are caused by grease. This is why every restaurant or other commercial kitchen needs professional vent hood and exhaust system cleaning services. It’s a fire safety issue for your staff, your cooks, your customers, and your business investment.

Restaurant Hood Cleaning Services: Two Primary Methods

Your restaurant kitchen vent hood and exhaust system can be cleaned using one of two primary methods. Manual cleaning by scraping is common and is very effective as long as it is done thoroughly. It also meets the Uniform Fire Code. Hood cleaning can also be accomplished through pressure washing. More prep and equipment is involved in this method, but it is also more effective in getting to hard-to-reach places in the hood and exhaust system. The method used at your restaurant location may be dictated by state or local regulations. 

The Steps of Kitchen Exhaust and Restaurant Hood Cleaning 

Whichever method is used, the overall approach to cleaning a kitchen vent hood and exhaust system is the same. It includes the following steps:

• Shutdown: The first step is always turning off all exhaust fans and all the cooking appliances over which each kitchen exhaust hood is placed. This is a key safety step for the cleaning technician. Yes, this process means essentially shutting down your restaurant kitchen, so you have to plan around that. 
• Inspection: The next step is a thorough professional inspection of the entire exhaust system to take note of anything unique or unusual to keep in mind during the cleaning, or to identify any parts of the system that need to be repaired or replaced. 
• Preparation: Restaurant hood cleaning is a messy job, which means we’ll want to cover appliances and other nearby surfaces. 
• Cleaning: A cleaning technician up on the roof or otherwise outside at the point of exhaust will spray the exhaust system from that end with degreaser and then rinse with hot water. A cleaning technician in the kitchen will capture all that flow with a funnel and collection container. The inside cleaner will also be working on the removed baffle filters. Once the top-down process is done, both cleaning techs will start from inside the kitchen and work their way up the system cleaning down to bare metal as they go, making sure all buildup is removed and applying additional degreaser as needed to problem areas. 
• Polishing: Once the cleaning is done, the hood is polished inside and out, which helps prevent buildup so the next cleaning is easier. Everything will be spotless. 
• Re-Inspection: After everything is reassembled the whole system is thoroughly inspected again, including turning the system on, to make sure it’s ready for full operation. Following any and all local regulations, a certification sticker will prove everything was done to code.

Office Keepers: Your Professional Restaurant Cleaning Partner

Since 1978, Officer Keepers has been keeping things clean in and around Indianapolis for businesses, offices, medical facilities, restaurants, and other establishments of every industry imaginable. With sanitation and disinfecting on everyone’s minds more than ever because of the coronavirus pandemic, we developed a new sanitizing surfaces and touchpoints cleaning service. When Office Keepers is on the job, you know it will be done right! 

We provide a full menu of professional cleaning services, including general cleaning, window cleaning, carpet cleaning, janitorial services, and more. We’re efficient and affordable without sacrificing quality service, and we clean on your schedule, not ours. We’ll get to know your business and your cleaning needs, then create a custom cleaning plant to fit your schedule and your budget. Call us at 317-577-6877 to start the conversation or fill out the request a quote form on our website. We’re here to help!