Commercial kitchens pose one of the greatest risks for fires. Your restaurant is full of industrial, high-heat equipment that often comes into contact with cooking oils and grease, all of which present a significant fire hazard. Protecting your kitchen staff and the equipment within your kitchen is paramount, but can be tricky. Fire extinguishers are cumbersome and not conducive to the cooking environment, and water only makes grease fires worse. This is why your restaurant fire suppression system is so important.
A restaurant fire protection system provides the safe, efficient solution your kitchen needs to quickly extinguish any fire hazard, directly at the source of most kitchen fires — the cooking surface.
If you’re new to the restaurant industry, or if you’re looking for a new commercial kitchen fire suppression system, this basic guide to commercial kitchen fire suppression systems will help you learn how restaurant fire suppression systems work and how you maintain them.
This 3 part article provides information that will help the reader better understand The Basics f Commercial Kitchen Fire Suppression Systems:
- The Basic Components of a Restaurant Fire Suppression System
- How Does A Restaurant Fire Suppression System Work
- Restaurant Fire Suppression Systems with Manual Pull Station
- When Does a Kitchen Need a Restaurant Fire Suppression System
- How Do I Maintain My Kitchen’s Restaurant Fire Suppression System
- How often should I clean my kitchen hood
Part 1 addressed The Basic Components of a Restaurant Fire Suppression System and How Does A Restaurant Fire Suppression System Work. Part 2 addressed Restaurant Fire Suppression Systems with Manual Pull Station and When Does a Kitchen Need a Restaurant Fire Suppression System. Part 3 addresses How Do I Maintain My Kitchen’s Restaurant Fire Suppression System and How often should I clean my kitchen hood.
How Do I Maintain My Kitchen’s Restaurant Fire Suppression System?
Like any fire suppression system, your kitchen’s system will require some regular maintenance. In general, you should have your restaurant fire suppression system inspected and serviced every six months, and any time you make a change to your cooking line. Check out our article Kitchen Hood Fire Suppression System Inspection: What to Expect, for more information on preparing for those regular inspections and service calls.
It’s also important to clean your kitchen hood regularly, to ensure your restaurant fire suppression system is able to perform as it is intended.
How often should I clean my kitchen hood?
Your kitchen is a hot, humid place, full of all kinds of cooking oils and grease. Your kitchen hood works every day to pull out dirty, smoky air from your kitchen. As it does this, grease and oils collect in the hood, which can cause a fire hazard in its own right if you’re not regularly cleaning it.
We mentioned earlier that one of the key components of a restaurant fire suppression system is its ability to shut off the gas that’s fueling a kitchen fire. If your kitchen hood isn’t regularly cleaned, it’s a significant source of grease and oil that can contribute to the spread of a kitchen fire. Even if your system shuts off the gas, all of that grease and oil that’s built up on your kitchen hood can add more fuel to a kitchen fire, which can have devastating results.
To ensure your kitchen is as safe as possible from fire hazards, it’s important to keep your kitchen hood on a regular cleaning schedule. Here are a few guidelines to help you determine how often to clean that kitchen hood:
- Monthly — For 24-hour restaurants, fast-food establishments, and kitchens with wood or charcoal-burning stoves.
- Quarterly — for high to average volumes and kitchens on 24-hour schedules.
- Semi-Annually — for pizza restaurants, sit-down restaurants, and kitchens with an average volume
- Annually — for kitchens hoods over non-grease appliances, for kitchens that produce low volumes of food, and for kitchens that operate only occasionally or seasonally.
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Contact Jay L. Harman Fire Equipment in El Paso TX at 915-533-7021 or Las Cruces NM at 575-523-8880.
Since 1925, we have protected businesses throughout the area from the harms and hazards of fires. Every Jay L Harman technician is licensed and regulated by the Texas Department of Insurance State Fire Marshal’s Office. Each of these technicians continually receives the most up-to-date factory training and certifications by our manufacturers. Contact Jay L Harman Fire Equipment today. Let our friendly and knowledgeable staff tell you more about our fire suppression systems and help you find the ideal fire suppression system for your needs. Learn more about our full offering of fire extinguisher training, firefighting services, firefighting products, request a quote, ask a question or request additional information.