Grease accumulates fast in your commercial kitchen hood. Dirty hoods aren’t ventilating properly, and they create a severe fire hazard. Restaurant fires are caused by failure to clean hoods and ducts over close to 30% of the time.
When grease has piled up in your exhaust hood, it doesn’t just capture heat and smoke – it fuels flames. Kitchen exhaust hood cleaning isn’t optional – fire codes and health departments require it.
Why restaurant hood cleaning is important
Ok, why should you clean restaurant kitchen hoods? Because it keeps your kitchen hood clean, and it keeps your employees, patrons and business safe. A clean hood helps prevent fires. It also helps your ventilation work properly to provide good air quality by extracting smoke, odors, and grease vapor when it isn’t filled with grease.
That means your back-of-house team can breathe easier and work in a safer, more comfortable environment. And it means the company’s restaurant’s cooking area will stay up to fire code.
You can get fined heavily or even shut down if an inspector finds too much grease buildup during a surprise visit. Don’t let your kitchen fall behind on required cleaning just to save time or money. Your fire marshal will make you close if your restaurant hood cleaning is overdue.
Recommended frequency of restaurant hood cleaning
“How often should restaurant hoods be cleaned?” is a common question we hear from kitchen owners.
NFPA fire codes based on volume of cooking:
- Monthly: solid-fuel cooking (think wood or charcoal grills)
- Quarterly: high-volume kitchens (24/7 cooking, charbroiling, wok cooking)
- Semiannually: moderate-volume cooking (most kitchens fall into this category)
- Annually: low-volume cooking or seasonal kitchens (church kitchens, soup kitchens/shelters, etc.)
Keep in mind that these NFPA 96 cleaning suggestions are minimum standards. If you cook a lot, you may find yourself needing professional kitchen hood cleaning more frequently. Follow your fire code’s recommendations and clean whenever grease builds up enough that you can clearly see it. If you cook enough, that could mean every month or every few weeks.
Don’t skip needed cleanings. The hassle and potential fines just aren’t worth it.
NFPA 96 restaurant kitchen hood cleaning frequency recommendations.
Of course, along with cleaning the hood itself, you’ll need to clean or replace grease filters much more frequently. Some kitchens run their filter cartridges through the dishwasher or degrease them weekly.
Regular filter cleaning prevents grease from traveling further into your ductwork. Taking 5 minutes to perform this simple task can dramatically reduce your fire risk and helps your entire exhaust system function properly.
How to clean a restaurant kitchen hood
Cleaning your own commercial kitchen hood can be messy work. You’ll need to allow time for the job, clean up, and allow the kitchen hood to dry before lighting up burners again. Dress for the job too – rubber gloves, goggles, and an apron will protect you from caustic degreaser and splashing grease.
If your kitchen staff are in maintenance mode and you want to take care of some basic restaurant hood cleaning steps yourself, follow this step-by-step guide:
Step 1: Shut off and prep
Turn off all gas burners/stoves and electrical components under the hood. Ensure everything under and in the hood is cooled down before starting. Remove or cover vents, surrounding kitchen equipment and surfaces with plastic sheeting or tarps. This helps prevent accidental exposure to caustic hood cleaning chemicals and nasty greasy water from spilling on countertop appliances or other food preparation areas.
Remove any grease traps (aka grease drip trays or cups) and baffle filters (metal grease filters) from underneath the hood carefully and set them aside. If your system has grease catch/drain trays, empty the liquid grease into a metal container. Pouring grease down the drain is a big no-no.
Step 2: Soak the filters
Next, you’ll make a degreasing solution to soak your metal filters and grease drip trays in. In your largest kitchen sink or bathtub, combine warm water and a degreaser intended for use in commercial kitchens. Check the bottle for proper mix ratio of water to degreaser. Place filters and grease drip trays/pans into soapy water to soak and let sit. If you have heavy grease buildup, you may want to allow them to soak 2–3 hours or even overnight.
Step 3: Scrub hood interior
Grab a non-abrasive scrub pad/brush or soft bristle brush and plenty of degreaser. Start scrubbing the inside of your hood canopy and wipe away grease with your soapy solution. Start at the back, top of the hood and work your way down since you will only be fighting gravity when grease begins to drip down.
Use firm pressure to loosen up grease buildup but take care not to scratch your stainless steel hood. Take your time during this step. You want to remove all grease and get into the corners and seams of the hood interior where grease likes to collect. The goal here is to have all visible grease removed from the stainless-steel surfaces on the inside of the hood.
If your kitchen hood has access panels into the ducting, wipe out the duct portion that you can reach with degreaser a foot or two above the hood. You should never climb into a duct or take it completely apart yourself. Professional cleaning companies have special tools and trucks for thorough duct and fan cleaning. However, wiping down the duct section that is accessible just above the hood will help.
Code now requires access doors in ductwork and hinges kits installed on fans for easier cleaning. If you don’t currently have them, don’t take unnecessary risks or go beyond your comfort level attempting to clean.
Step 4: Wash & rinse
Once interior of hood is scrubbed clean, use a clean towel or rag and warm water to go over all the same surfaces you just scrubbed. This will remove any degreaser and dissolved grime. Change your rinse water frequently and then follow up with a dry towel or paper towels to leave all metal surfaces nice and dry. You don’t want to leave moisture on surfaces that can create rust or hard water streaks.
Step 5: Scrub exterior of hood
Grease and dust also build up on the exterior of your hood. Grab your trusty degreaser solution and go to town on the exterior top, sides and front of the hood. Keeping the exterior of your hood looking nice helps prevent grease from working its way into seams on your hood. Rinse and dry outside of hood too.
Step 6: Wipe down exhaust fan (optional)
If you have easy access to your exhaust fan blades, you can wipe down your exhaust fan as well. Some rooftop mounted fans can be opened by pulling a hinge pin. You can carefully wipe fan blades with a cloth soaked with degreaser. Be sure to power off your fan at the circuit breaker and lock it out. But do not attempt to take your entire fan apart! Many times, fans are professionally cleaned with steam pressure or power washers. But you can at least clear away any grease you can see without too much trouble.
Step 7: Scrub & rinse filters
Hopefully by now your baffle filters have soaked for a few hours and all that grease is loosened up. Remove each filter from grease solution and scrub away any leftover residue with a brush. Rinse each filter thoroughly with hot water and inspect each filter by holding it up to the light – it should be completely grease free and allow light to shine through. Allow your filters to air dry or dry with clean towels before reinserting them.
Step 8: Reassemble
Put your clean dry filters and grease drip trays back into place. Remove plastic sheeting/tarps off surrounding areas and clean up any overspray. Turn your exhaust fan back on and do a quick test while watching your hood. You should see good air flow and no water dripping.
Congratulations! You have completed cleaning your kitchen hood!
Steps for cleaning your restaurant hood.
Bonus tip: If manually scrubbing your kitchen hood sounds like too much work, there are other methods that can speed up the process for large kitchen hoods. Power washing and steam cleaning are both effective ways to quickly clean large areas or stubborn grease that just won’t budge with basic soap and water. These methods can create quite a mess however. Power washing should almost always be performed by trained professionals who know how not to destroy sensitive kitchen equipment. Many restaurants invest in automated cleaning systems that hook into your ventilation system and spray cleanser on a timer. Cleaning your hood manually is effective and most kitchens can easily keep up with regular cleaning by staff or a local hood cleaning service.
What NOT To Do When Cleaning Restaurant Kitchen Hoods
It can also help to know what not to do. Don’t let these cleaning mistakes sabotage your fire safety plans.
- Don’t wait too long between cleanings: You may think you’ll get a few more weeks out of going to the deep clean your kitchen hood. Unfortunately, waiting too long will result in very heavy grease buildup that is much harder to clean. Worse, allowing grease to build up in your hood, ducts and exhaust fan is just asking for a grease fire. Do your deep cleaning regularly, and only minor buildup in between.
- Don’t think DIY is enough for periodic deep cleaning: Believe it or not, you should not assume your staff can adequately degrease the entire exhaust system. Certified kitchen hood cleaning companies are required by law for a reason. If you don’t have the correct tools, you might miss cleaning some critical areas. Trying to take apart ductwork or your exhaust fan without training yourself can result in injury or permanent damage to the system.
- Don’t use chemicals or tools that can harm your kitchen: You should never use chemicals that are not intended to be used in food preparation areas. For example, mixing degreasers with bleach or using flammable solvents on your kitchen grease hood can contaminate your chemicals. Only use food-safe degreasers and follow the manufacturers guidelines when using them. Also, don’t use metal scrubbers or steel wool on any part of your hood. These can scratch stainless steel and remove factory applied coatings. Only use plastic scrapers and nylon brushes/pads to remove stubborn residue.
- Don’t get lazy and only clean the hood: This one is bad if you hire someone to come in and clean your kitchen hood. Stick with certified kitchen hood cleaning companies that know how to clean the entire system properly. We’ve seen many companies come into a restaurant and just wipe down the inside of the hood and replace filters before they leave. But grease stuck in ductwork or on the exhaust fan still poses a major fire hazard. Paying extra for a company that does the job right protects you and your employees.
- Don’t skip daily/weekly inspections: Just because you schedule regular cleaning doesn’t mean you shouldn’t inspect your hood system. Keep an eye on your filters, inside the hood, and around the fan for grease buildup. Catching large amounts of grease early can mean the difference in DIY cleaning or having to pay for professional service. And when you do get professional cleaning, make sure you read the report/sticker they leave. Reputable services will leave before and after photos documenting the cleaning they performed. If it looks like they skipped areas, give them a call. Act if you feel something wasn’t completed.
Restaurant Hood Cleaning Tips: What NOT To Do
What DO Fire Marshals Look for During Restaurant Hood Cleaning Inspection?
When your fire marshal or health inspector walks into your kitchen they aren’t just looking at your floors. In fact, they know most people “clean” kitchens by just pushing grease around on the floor. Taking care of your hood system is one of the first things they will investigate.
Here are some items they look for when visiting your restaurant or commercial kitchen:
- Certificates from most recent cleaning
- Deep grease buildup inside hood or large grease stains dripping from filters
- Are filters cleaned frequently enough for your cooking volume/type?
- Filter condition – are they clean, intact and securely fastened to hood?
- Duct access panel (If accessible)
- Kitchen exhaust fan – is it equipped with a hinge kit? (Many places require this now)
- Kitchen fire suppression system – do you have current tags up?
If your inspector walks into your kitchen and can easily spot filters that are caked in grease, rusted over access panels, and no record of the last time it was cleaned… they will automatically write you up. At best you’ll be forced to get it cleaned that day. Worst case? They may issue an order shutting you down until it is done. If you can pull out your log, show them your last service date, and it looks clean – you’re already ahead of the game.
Tips for Restaurant Fire Safety (beyond hood cleaning)
Cleaning your hood is only one aspect of keeping your kitchen safe from fires. Implement these simple procedures to further reduce fire hazards.
- Run your exhaust fan anytime you are cooking.
- Store paper towels, oils and flammable liquids away from cooking equipment.
- Never operate kitchen equipment with missing or clogged filters.
- Train all employees on how to use your Class K fire extinguisher(s).
- Check your kitchen fire suppression system tags for expiration.
- Fire up your exhaust hood fan BEFORE the restaurant opens. Inspect it each day as part of your safety checklist.
Fire safety in the kitchen starts with training new employees on grease fire hazards and prevention during their onboarding process.
Restaurant Hood Cleaning Cost & Certified Company Guidelines
Cleaning your entire exhaust system, including hood, filters, ducts, and exhaust fan can be a daunting task. This is why many restaurants hire kitchen hood cleaning services.
These services will come in with pressure washers and steam cleaning trucks. They can take apart most components of your system and degrease them right down to the screws. Many companies will even come overnight when your kitchen is closed. Because the systems typically need to cool down before use, cleaning will shut down your kitchen for several hours.
They will come in, lay down plastic to protect your floors, cover appliances, and then blast everything with hot water pressure washers. Everything from your hood to ductwork to rooftop fan gets sprayed and wiped down. You wake up in the morning and you’re ready to go.
Do I need a certified company to clean restaurant hoods?
Should you hire someone to clean your restaurant hood? In short, yes, you should. Fire code usually requires that hood cleanings, and their accompanying inspections be performed by a certified company. Your city may even require you to keep the certificate or proof of cleaning onsite for the fire inspector.
This doesn’t mean your employees cannot perform in-between cleaning. But the official cleaning service used for your fire insurance and certifications should be performed by a professional.
Professional kitchen exhaust cleaning companies have technicians that know NFPA 96 fire codes backwards and forwards. Your ductwork and filters will be cleaned from hood to rooftop fan. And after the cleaning is done, you should receive either a certificate or sticker that documents the cleaning date and what was cleaned. Hang this certificate with your fire safety records.
How much does restaurant hood cleaning cost?
Costs will vary from city to state and size of your kitchen. How dirty your system is will factor in too. Check out these averages for hood cleaning services:
- Small restaurants with one or two hoods may cost about $150 to $600 per cleaning.
- Medium restaurants may pay between $750 and $1200 to clean the entire system.
- Large volume establishments can range from $1500 to $5000 per cleaning.
- Horribly dirty or large kitchens with multiple hoods could cost $5,000+ to get everything scrubbed down.
On average most restaurants spend a few hundred dollars for a routine service. Remember that most kitchens complete this cleaning 2–4 times per year depending on fire code recommendations and cooking volume.
Manual, Professional, or Automated Restaurant Hood Cleaning: Which is best?
Remember how we said there are different methods to clean a restaurant kitchen hood? They each come with advantages and disadvantages. Take a look at this table to compare all three methods. Below we dive into what might work best for you and your kitchen.
Compare hood cleaning methods
How do you know which cleaning method is right for you?
Look at your kitchen setup and cooking volume and then decide from there
- Manual cleaning may be suitable for kitchens with very low volumes of grease output. If you have staff that can commit to the task and you have a simple setup – it could save you money as well. Just ensure someone is “owning” the task and completes it correctly.
- Professional cleaning is how most restaurants stay up to code. High-volume kitchens and those that cook with grease-heavy foods will benefit from professional cleanings.
- Automated cleaning makes most sense for very large kitchens or restaurants that cannot afford downtime (24/7 restaurants fall into this category). Automated cleaning systems spray your kitchen with degreaser on a timer. It’s expensive to install but will cut down on labor costs and manual labor.
There’s nothing wrong with a combination of all three. Some restaurants take care of wiping down the hood and replacing filters weekly. Then once a quarter they will hire professionals to come in for a deep clean.
Manually cleaning your hood will help extend the time between professional cleanings. But if you’re going to do this, keep good records and ensure your cleaning regularly.
Tips to find a good kitchen hood cleaning company
Anyone can say they clean restaurant hoods. But that doesn’t mean they’re qualified to do so. Some businesses will wipe down the visible parts of your hood and call it a day. Keep these tips in mind to find a qualified hood cleaner:
- Do they follow NFPA 96 standards? This is the fire code standard for commercial kitchens. If they follow NFPA 96, then it means they will clean your system from the hood to the exhaust fan mounted on your roof. It also means they are trained to know what the health inspector looks for during their visits.
- Do their technicians have certifications or training? Are they members of any industry trade groups like IKECA? (International Kitchen Exhaust Cleaning Association). This will ensure they follow professional standards for cleaning businesses.
- Will they provide you before/after photos? Reputable cleaning companies take before and after pictures of every job they perform. This doesn’t just give you peace of mind – it’s great for fire inspectors and insurance claims. If they wipe their hands of you after the job, that’s not a good sign.
- Do they clean the ductwork and fan? When most people think of “kitchen hood cleaning” they only picture someone wiping down the inside of the hood. A cheap hood cleaning service may try to offer this for very little cost. But grease trapped in your ducts or on the fan is a recipe for disaster. How will the company access your ductwork and fan for cleaning? Do they take them apart? Will they install panel doors or fan hinges if needed?
- Do they install fan hinges/access doors if needed? Speaking of which, if your current system doesn’t have access doors or fan hinges, proper cleaning is impossible. A quality kitchen exhaust cleaning company will alert you to this and offer to install them for you. Not only will this ensure they can clean your system, but it will also bring it up to code!
- Will they provide you with a detailed report/sticker? Any company that does not leave you a dated sticker on your hood isn’t doing a thorough job. Upon completion of your cleaning, they should also give you a cleaning report. Keep this with your other food safety documentation.
- When in doubt, ask questions. If something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. Hood cleaning should not be a guessing game. Pick a qualified company you feel comfortable with and one that takes safety seriously.
Maintenance Logs & Cleaning Checklists for Restaurant Kitchen Teams
No one enjoys cleaning. But making sure your kitchen passes inspection requires it. Cleaning checklists and maintenance logs help you stay organized, so the task isn’t so daunting. A checklist ensures daily, weekly, and monthly tasks (like wiping down kitchen equipment, cleaning grease traps, and yes… cleaning your hood & filters) don’t get skipped.
An example restaurant deep cleaning checklist may state your exhaust hoods and vents should be cleaned monthly. Filters should be changed or cleaned quarterly. Having a task list broken down by frequency and job will help your kitchen staff keep up with the work without getting overwhelmed.
You may even want to keep a kitchen hood cleaning log as part of your overall maintenance records. Every time your hood or exhaust system is cleaned – whether by your staff or an outside company – log the date it was done, what was cleaned, and by who.
Maintaining this kind of log serves two very important purposes. First, it holds your cleaning crew accountable that the task was completed. Secondly, it provides physical documentation you can pull for authorities or insurance purposes.
Final Thoughts on Professional Hood Cleaning Services Expectation
When was the last time your kitchen passed inspection and an inspector didn’t come in? If you can pull out a cleaning log and show the fire marshal your hood was professionally cleaned last month, that will make a difference. Inspectors will feel more confident your kitchen is run safely and clean. Many kitchen managers tack the latest cleaning certificate next to their copy of the cleaning log for easy access.