Greater London · Ductwork cleaning
Ductwork cleaning in Old Coulsdon, Greater London
Ductwork cleaning for businesses, landlords and public buildings in Old Coulsdon. CHAS, SafeContractor and ISO 9001, and fully insured.
- Heavy grease at the base of a riser
- Fat dripping from the ductwork
- A grease test showing the duct is overdue
Ductwork cleaning for kitchens and businesses in Old Coulsdon
Duct cleaning is the hardest part of an extract clean, and the part most often skipped. Without enough access panels, long stretches can go years without being touched. Each section we can reach is cleaned, and any we can’t is written down, so you know exactly where you stand. Common call-outs are for a grease test showing the duct is overdue and grease seeping out of the duct seams, on multi-storey ducts, bends and junctions and vertical risers.
London kitchens are often tucked into basements or the back of a building, with extract ducts that can climb several floors to discharge at roof level. For a kitchen in Old Coulsdon, that normally means a longer system to clean and more access panels to plan around.
It’s worth checking any contractor’s accreditations. Ours are BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite membership, cleaning to BESA TR19® Grease, plus CHAS, SafeContractor and ISO 9001, with full insurance on top.
- Place
- Old Coulsdon (CR5, CR3, CR8)
- Wider area
- Greater London
- Paperwork
- Certificate plus before-and-after pictures
- Quote
- A fixed quote up front
- When we work
- Nights, weekends or holidays to suit you
- Call
- 0345 646 2711
- Reviewed
- 30 October 2026
The process
The visit has three parts: set-up, the treatment itself and the sign-off. Getting ready means protecting surfaces and switching off what needs to be off, and the sign-off is a written report with pictures. The middle part takes longest, which takes a few hours for a short run, longer for long runs and tall risers. Many London buildings have a managing agent, a security desk or a permit-to-work system, so tell us who to contact in Old Coulsdon.
- First the duct route is traced and every access point noted.
- Grease readings are taken at set points along the duct.
- Access panels are opened and heavy deposits scraped out by hand.
- Next the ducts and risers are degreased, using whatever suits the deposit.
- Post-clean readings and photos go into the report, with any unreachable section listed.
Preparing for the visit
- Agree a time when the area can be out of use
- Clear loose items from the work area
- Mention any locked doors, roof access or ceiling voids
Get a fixed quote
The quickest way to a quote is to send photos: the system from a couple of angles, plus any access panels or hatches. Tell us what kind of site it is and when it’s open, and many jobs can be priced from that alone.
Related advice
What the work involves, part by part
Multi-storey and shared buildings
A duct that climbs several floors may be cleaned over more than one visit. Visits are planned around the building’s hours, out of hours where possible.
Attenuators and discharge
At the end of the duct is the discharge. It can gather grease and mark the wall or roof around it, so it’s cleaned as far as safe access allows.
What your team can do, and what needs us
If your staff spot something between visits, such as dripping grease, a noisy fan, a smell or a filter that won’t come clean, they should report it rather than try to fix it. We’ll take a look and give you a fixed quote.
Good housekeeping makes our visits easier, not unnecessary. Regular in-house cleaning slows the build-up, but hidden parts of the system still need specialist attention.
What ductwork cleaning cannot fix
Some problems need a different service or another trade:
- An extract fan that has stopped working
- Duct sealed behind fixed ceilings or walls
- A duct that is too small or badly routed for the kitchen (a design issue)
If you are not sure, just ring 0345 646 2711, or send details by email and we’ll give you a straight answer before you book.
Where we work
- Horizontal duct runs
- Bends and junctions
- Attenuators
- Access panels
- Multi-storey ducts
- Vertical risers
Do you need ductwork cleaning in Old Coulsdon?
A duct with too few access doors cannot be fully cleaned. Sections between panels go uncleaned, sometimes since the system was installed, and grease there keeps thickening unseen.
It’s time to book a visit if you see:
- Grease seeping out of the duct seams
- Hardened, baked-on grease in long horizontal runs
- Ductwork that has never been cleaned
- Smells of old cooking grease from the ductwork
Bursars and site managers at schools such as Keston Primary School tend to book extract cleaning for when the kitchen is empty.
Comparing quotes
- How areas they can’t reach will be recorded
- Exactly which parts of the system are covered
- What paperwork you get at the end
- When they can work, and whether that is outside your opening hours
Towns and villages near Old Coulsdon
What else we do in Old Coulsdon
Aftercare tips
Here’s the after-treatment advice, short and simple:
- Flag drips from the duct right away
- Don’t switch the extract off early
- Keep to the interval on the report
- Get panels fitted where the duct couldn’t be cleaned
Access panels are closed and sealed back up after cleaning, and the area around them is cleaned down. Grease and dirty water are contained and removed.
The less grease gets past the canopy, the cleaner the duct stays. Keep the filters clean, well fitted and in place whenever you cook.
FAQs for Old Coulsdon
Who carries out food hygiene inspections in Old Coulsdon?
That’s Croydon council, whose environmental health officers carry out food hygiene inspections in Old Coulsdon. It helps to keep the extract cleaning records with your food safety paperwork, so they’re ready if asked for.
Do you do school kitchen extract cleaning in Old Coulsdon in the summer holidays?
Yes, out-of-term visits are normal for schools. Food Standards Agency records list about 15 schools, colleges and universities with registered kitchens within about a mile and a half of Old Coulsdon. Send us your term dates when you give us a ring on 0345 646 2711 or send us an email, and we will fit the work in.
Can you price the work without visiting?
Yes, where the pictures show enough. If not, a site survey comes first, then a fixed quote.
Which accreditations do you hold?
Duct Doctor is a BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite member, cleaning to BESA TR19® Grease. CHAS, SafeContractor and ISO 9001 are in place too, and we carry full insurance.
What do you do to protect the area?
We cover floors and nearby surfaces with sheeting before any work starts, and anything we remove is contained. Before we leave, we tidy up and clean down.
Where does the waste go?
It leaves the site with us at the end of the visit. During the work, it’s contained to keep the area clean.
How far ahead should we book?
The more notice, the better, especially for out-of-hours work. We typically quote within one working day, and there’s a 24/7 line for emergencies.
What do you need from me for a quote?
The site address, the type of premises and your opening hours, plus photos of the system and your last certificate or report if you have one.
Why deal with it now?
BESA guidance says grease shouldn’t exceed a mean of 200 microns between cleans. Anywhere that reaches 500 microns or more needs immediate spot cleaning. Putting off the clean only pushes readings higher. In Old Coulsdon, as across London, ductwork often passes through shared risers and other people’s space.
One small site or a whole estate, we price it on the same basis: what needs doing, how we get to it and when. The price is fixed before work begins.
Why choose Duct Doctor in Old Coulsdon
- We diagnose before we treat
- Out-of-hours work and a 24/7 emergency line
- Accredited under CHAS and SafeContractor, with ISO 9001
- In business since 2009
See our cost guide and our accreditations.
Old Coulsdon kitchens: local notes
The FSA’s data shows about 8 pubs, bars and clubs registered in Old Coulsdon and the streets around it, up to about 1.5 miles out. Wherever they cook, the canopy, duct and fan collect grease just as a restaurant’s do. Overnight is the normal time to clean a London kitchen extract, so trading isn’t affected. Old Coulsdon sits within the area of London Fire Brigade. Its fire safety officers can audit commercial kitchens, and grease in the extract is part of a kitchen’s fire risk.
If your kitchen is in a listed or historic building, like the houses around Old Coulsdon (Addington Palace is about 5 miles north-east), fitting access panels needs care. Kitchens that cook twelve hours or more a day, as some healthcare kitchens do, fall into BESA’s three-monthly minimum; St Lawrence's Hospital is the nearest hospital to Old Coulsdon, about 1.3 miles south-east.
Old Coulsdon is about 1 mile south-east of Coulsdon, in Greater London. Anywhere in CR5, we can take on ductwork cleaning. 764 places in Greater London are on our list, large and small. For sites nearby, see our London page, about 14 miles away.
Work in CR5, CR3 and CR8 follows the same survey, fixed quote and written report as everywhere else we cover. Ductwork cleaning is available to premises on Ellis Road, Tollers Lane and Court Avenue and the roads around them. Neighbouring places we cover for ductwork cleaning include Coulsdon (1 mile north-west), Chipstead (2 miles west), Purley (2 miles north), Woodcote (2 miles north-west) and Woodmansterne (3 miles west). We also work in nearby towns such as London (14 miles north), City of Westminster (15 miles north), Marylebone (15 miles north), Kensington (14 miles north), Whitechapel (15 miles north) and Brompton (14 miles north).
Near you in Old Coulsdon
Locally, jobs take us to businesses close to Sunnydown School, Dollypers Hill and The Tudor Rose pub and the streets around them. The closest station to Old Coulsdon is Coulsdon South station, roughly 1.4 miles north-west of the centre. Well-known places in the area include East Surrey Museum (2 miles south-east) and St Lawrence's Hospital (1.3 miles south-east). Not far away are Nore Hill and Mercers Lake.