Tips For Cleaning Your Commercial Kitchen Vent Hood

If you are in the restaurant business, then you already know how quickly your kitchen hood vents can get greasy and dirty. We’ve done all the necessary research for you to provide the best hood cleaning tips that will help keep your kitchen clean and grease-free at all times! If you follow these five helpful tips we have gathered below, your valuable kitchen equipment will perform more efficiently and last much longer.

1. The right filter makes all the difference

Your hood needs not only the right type of filter but also the right number of them to capture and contain all of the oils, fats, and grease that get emitted when you cook. Make sure the filters you use are the correct size for your vent. You will want one that can cover the entire opening of your vent. This allows all of the grease and dirt that gets pushed up from the oven and stove to stick directly to the filter.

You can have the right type of filter but you can be somewhat confused about the size of the filter that should be attached to your hood. In a great need like this, you can also use certain filter sizing calculators so that you can measure all the necessary measurements like the height, weight, and the depth of your hood before attaching a filter to the hood.  Even after doing all the fitting calculation you might still end up in circumstances where if you will notice that your current filters are slightly smaller than what you should have.

Then for solving a problem like this you can invest in a hood filter spacer instead of wasting the filters you already own or attaching some new filters. A hood filter spacer allows your hood to be up to code without having to shell out more money than you would want to.

2. A duct access door will help keep things clean

Have you ever tried to clean, or keep clean, the inside of the ducts? If you have, you already know how difficult it can be. A duct access door should be installed along your duct work as evenly spaced as possible. They are simple to install and will make it easier for your ducts to be inspected, cleaned, and maintained. After the installation of a duct access door, whenever you want to clean the insides of the ducts, you can do it by applying some liquid degreaser in some warm water.

For cleaning, you should make use of nonabrasive scrub pads or soft bristle pads or some clothing material. Make sure that you are scrubbing thoroughly to remove all the dirty grease inside the duct. Now a damp towel can be used to get rid of the soapy residue inside the ducts and then in the end dry the whole duct with the help of a different towel which is dry.

You’ll be able to effortlessly remove any grease, oil, or fat that has been collected in your ductwork, decreasing the risk of a duct fire in the future. Plus, your vent hood will work that much better! A clean duct will help decrease the number of bacteria, mold growth, and dust that your ducts collect every day.

3. Clean your vents on a regular basis

How much you clean your commercial hood vents will depend on the type of cooking your restaurant does as well as the volume of cooking your restaurant does. For example, a fast food chain with higher volume and longer hours will need to have their hoods cleaned much more frequently than a small sandwich shop that only grills occasionally. Some restaurants clean their hoods every day while others wait for weeks. However, it’s always better to clean too much than not enough.

Most commercial hood filters can be cleaned by hand using hot, soapy water. They can also be run through a commercial dishwasher or submerged overnight in water in a soak tank. Before you clean your hood filters, always consult the manufacturer’s recommendations to determine the best method to use as some cleaning chemicals can adversely affect a filter made from aluminum or galvanized steel. If it does, your hood could become damaged or discolored.

4. Install an access panel to your exhaust fan

An exhaust fan access panel is very similar to a duct access panel. These access panels are another easy way to keep your ventilation system clean at all times. They are also known as exhaust fan access ports in some areas. As an access point, you’ll find it much easier to reach the very interior of the fan to clean and maintain it successfully. An exhaust fan access panel can be installed very quickly and will exhaust the fan blades to be free of ridiculous amounts of dirt and grease buildup. Plus, they are affordable. This simple solution allows you to avoid the many problems that can occur when there is a buildup of grease in your exhaust. This includes vibration, unbalanced fan blades, and excessive wear and tear on your fan belts.

5. Mount an exhaust fan hinge kit

An upblast fan hinge kit can be mounted in to help with your vent hood cleaning duties. Not only will it make it that much simpler to clean the exhaust fan, but it will also make your equipment much safer to operate. It will protect your fan, fan base, and roof from incurring damage during a routine cleaning, maintenance, or inspection. A hinge kit will form a hinge between the base of the fan and the fan bowl. It keeps the exhaust fan tightly locked in the open position. And while it doesn’t open too far, it won’t slam back onto anyone trying to get to the interior of the fan. A hinge kit will also help protect the wiring of your fan as you won’t have to keep taking the fan on and off of its base.