Hood Cleaning Frequency: Monthly, Quarterly, Twice a Year or Once a Year
Hood cleaning frequency is set by how much grease your kitchen produces. Solid fuel kitchens clean monthly, high-volume kitchens quarterly, most restaurants twice a year and low-volume kitchens once a year. The rest of this guide explains which group you are in and what inspectors look for.
The four cooking volume groups
| Cooking volume | Example kitchen | Cleaning frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Solid fuel | A pizzeria with a wood fired oven | Monthly |
| High volume | A 24-hour diner, a charbroil grill house or a wok line | Quarterly |
| Moderate volume | A typical full-service restaurant | Every 6 months |
| Low volume | A church kitchen, a seasonal camp or a low-use break room | Annually |
How to tell which group your kitchen is in
Look at your hours of operation, your cooking methods and how fast grease builds up on the filters. Charbroiling, woks and solid fuel push you toward the more frequent groups. When in doubt, the cleaning company’s inspection of the ductwork decides, and the schedule can tighten after an inspection finds heavy buildup.
What a full hood cleaning covers
The hood, filters, plenum, ductwork to the roof and the exhaust fan, cleaned to bare metal. The company then puts a dated certificate or sticker on the hood.
What inspectors check
- The dated sticker and the company that did the work
- The cleaning report
- Grease on surfaces they can reach
- Whether the schedule matches your cooking volume
Hood cleaning and your suppression system
These are separate jobs, often done by different companies. The wet chemical suppression system has its own service every six months.
Requirements depend on the code edition your state and local fire marshal have adopted. Confirm with your authority having jurisdiction.