Essex · Ductwork cleaning
Duct cleaning in Great Horkesley
Cleaning of kitchen extract ductwork, horizontal runs and vertical risers through access panels for commercial sites in Great Horkesley and across Essex. BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite member, cleaning to BESA TR19® Grease.
- Hardened, baked-on grease in long horizontal runs
- Ductwork that has never been cleaned
- An insurer asking for TR19 evidence
How we handle ductwork cleaning in Great Horkesley
The ductwork is where an extract clean is won or lost. Sections with no way in can go uncleaned for years. Each section we can reach is cleaned, and any we cannot is written down, so you know exactly where you stand. The work covers attenuators, vertical risers and bends and junctions, and people most often call us about a rancid smell from the extract duct and sections of duct with no access panels.
In a smaller place like Great Horkesley, the kitchens with extract systems are more likely to be a pub, a café, a takeaway or a school or care home kitchen than a big restaurant. A kitchen that cooks fewer hours still builds up grease, so the interval is set by hours of use and grease readings.
The paperwork matters as much as the work. Each visit is written up with pictures, listing what was done, anything we couldn’t reach and when the next visit is due. Keep it with your fire safety records so it’s ready for an insurer, fire officer or EHO.
- Location
- Great Horkesley (CO6)
- Wider area
- Essex
- Reporting
- TR19® certificate and photo report
- Price
- A fixed quote up front
- When we work
- Nights, weekends or holidays to suit you
- Phone
- 0345 646 2711
- Reviewed
- 30 October 2026
Why it’s worth doing now in Great Horkesley
A partly blocked duct slows the airflow. The fan works harder, the kitchen gets hotter and smoke lingers at the canopy, and grease may start to leak from joints. Even a site near Great Horkesley that is only busy part of the week needs its system checked on a schedule.
Working hours, access and the scale of the site can all change the price. Each of those is built into the quote, and the price is fixed before work begins.
Why book with us
- One contact for all your sites in London and the South East
- Evenings, overnight and weekends, plus 24/7 emergency callout
- In business since 2009
- A written report with photos after every visit
Take a look at how cleaning jobs are priced and our accreditations.
Also near Great Horkesley
More services for Great Horkesley
Kitchen extracts in Great Horkesley
Look up Great Horkesley on the FSA’s food hygiene register and you’ll find about 15 restaurants, cafés and canteens within roughly a mile and a half of the centre of Great Horkesley. Each kitchen that cooks under a canopy sends grease-laden air into a duct, where it cools and settles. Fire safety in Great Horkesley falls to Essex County Fire and Rescue Service. In most workplaces, including commercial kitchens, it’s the fire and rescue authority that enforces the Fire Safety Order. Food hygiene inspections in Great Horkesley are the job of Colchester council’s environmental health team. A greasy canopy or dripping filters are the sort of thing an inspection can pick up. A TR19® certificate and photo report after each clean gives you a record to show an inspector.
A hall kitchen that only cooks for events, whether near Church of St John or elsewhere in Great Horkesley, still needs its extract cleaned, just less often. If you run catering at a healthcare site, such as a hospital like Severalls Hospital about 0.9 miles south-east, the extract may need cleaning more often than a part-time kitchen.
Great Horkesley is about 3 miles north of Colchester, in Essex. Every kind of commercial site in Great Horkesley, we can take on ductwork cleaning. We can work out of hours so trading is not interrupted. Across Essex, we cover 644 places, Great Horkesley among them. We also work in Chelmsford, around 21 miles away.
Every address in CO6 is within our area for ductwork cleaning, from the main roads to the quietest streets. Whether your site is on Exeter Close, Malvern Way and Keelers Way or a nearby road, we can help. Nearby, we also carry out ductwork cleaning in Mile End (1 mile south-east), West Bergholt (1 mile south-west), Little Horkesley (2 miles north-west), Wissington (3 miles north-west) and Fordham Heath (3 miles south-west). Further out, we also cover Colchester (3 miles south), Braintree (14 miles west), Clacton-on-Sea (15 miles south-east), Witham (13 miles south-west), Camulodunum (3 miles south) and Halstead (10 miles west).
Near you in Great Horkesley
We work in commercial kitchens and buildings around The Half Butt Inn and Gilberd School. Great Horkesley’s nearest station is Colchester station, roughly 1.9 miles south. Other landmarks nearby include Lion Walk (2.8 miles south) and Colchester Castle (2.8 miles south-east). Not far away are Westhouse Wood.
When something else is needed
It’s worth knowing the limits before booking:
- A failed fan motor at the end of the duct (a fan repair job)
- Sections that cannot be reached safely without new access (those are recorded, and panels can be fitted)
- A damper stuck open in the duct
If in doubt, call 0345 646 2711 or drop us a line and we’ll say what we think.
What we work on in Great Horkesley
- Horizontal duct runs
- Multi-storey ducts
- Vertical risers
- Access panels
- Attenuators
- Bends and junctions
How it works
Before we leave, we walk the area with whoever is on site. Anything we couldn’t reach or that needs attention is pointed out there and then, and the same goes into the written report. The visit takes from a few hours to more than one visit, depending on duct length and access. Visits to a place like Great Horkesley are planned ahead, so we arrive with what the survey says the job needs.
- We map the duct route and check where the access panels are.
- Set points along the runs are tested for grease.
- Access panels are opened and heavy deposits scraped out by hand.
- Horizontal runs and risers are then degreased by the method that suits the deposit.
- We test again, take pictures and note any part that couldn’t be reached.
Before we arrive
- Name a contact who can let us in at the agreed time
- Find the previous report, if there is one
- Let us know how we reach the system, including roofs, risers and plant rooms
Get a fixed quote
Getting a quote doesn’t take long. Call or email with a few details and you will typically have a fixed price within one working day. If we need to see the system first, we book a survey around your hours.
Related advice
Managing agents and facilities teams in Great Horkesley
From a single site to a large estate, the standard is the same: diagnosis, a fixed price, work booked around your hours and a written report with pictures.
We also work for facilities teams across offices, schools and healthcare across Essex. Larger estates can be phased building by building to keep disruption down.
Great Horkesley: your questions answered
Can the work in Great Horkesley be done at night or at weekends?
Yes, out-of-hours work is a big part of what we do. It means the site in Great Horkesley keeps running as normal. Your opening times are the first thing we ask for.
Who would carry out a food hygiene inspection at a kitchen in Great Horkesley?
In Great Horkesley, it’s Colchester council that carries out food hygiene inspections. Ratings are published by the Food Standards Agency, so a clean extract and good records are worth keeping up.
Where does the waste go?
We take it away when we go. During the work, it’s contained so the area stays clean.
Will I get a report after the ducts are cleaned?
Readings, pictures and, for a full clean, a TR19 certificate. It also gives a recommended next clean date.
What if parts of the system can’t be reached?
The report shows them clearly. Often the fix is extra access, such as new panels in ductwork, which we can install.
What’s the cleaning interval for extract ductwork?
It depends mostly on daily cooking hours. Kitchens cooking 12 to 16 hours a day need it at least every 3 months, while lighter use can go longer.
Do you install duct access panels?
Yes. We’ll point out where panels are needed, and fitting them means future cleans are more complete.
Can you come out in an emergency?
Yes. Our emergency line runs 24/7 for anything that can’t wait until a planned visit. Ring any time and tell us what’s happened.
How the job changes from site to site
Access panels
Every section of duct is cleaned through an access panel. Without them, parts of the duct cannot be reached and the report has to say so.
Attenuators and discharge
Some systems have attenuators to reduce noise, and their linings can soak up grease. We clean what can be reached and note anything that cannot.
In-house cleaning or a specialist?
When your team notices a problem between visits, like drips, unusual noise, smells or damaged filters, it’s best reported rather than tackled in-house. We can diagnose it and quote.
Day-to-day cleaning is something your team can do: wiping down canopy surfaces, cleaning filters and keeping a simple log. What they can’t safely do is clean inside the ductwork, the fan or the risers, which is where we come in.
Common problems we fix in Great Horkesley
A vertical riser can run up several floors. Grease clings to the walls and can run down to the base, where it can pool. Panels along the riser make proper cleaning possible.
Look out for any of the following:
- Grease pooling at the foot of the riser
- A duct nobody has opened in years
- Gaps where access panels were never fitted
- An insurer asking for TR19 evidence
Term dates shape school work: for a school like The Bishop William Ward Church of England Primary School, an extract clean fits neatly into a half-term or summer break.
Questions to ask before booking
- Whether the figure could change on the day
- How VAT is shown on the quote
- Whether a survey comes first
- When the next visit should be, and why