Medway · Extract fan cleaning
Extract fan cleaning in Lower Upnor, Medway
Need extract fan cleaning in Lower Upnor? We diagnose first, fix the price and book the work around your hours, then sign off with a report and pictures.
- A smell of hot grease from the extract
- Grease stains around the discharge
- A fan that has never been cleaned
Managing agents and facilities teams in Lower Upnor
Where a tenant occupies the premises but the landlord owns the building, the lease normally sets out who maintains what. We are happy to deal with either side, and the report can go to both.
We also work for facilities teams across offices, schools and healthcare in Lower Upnor and across Medway. Work can be phased by floor, building or site around the people who use them.
How we handle extract fan cleaning in Lower Upnor
Duct Doctor has been cleaning kitchen extract fans since 2009. We’re a BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite member, cleaning to BESA TR19® Grease, and we’re fully insured, with CHAS, SafeContractor and ISO 9001. We are often asked to deal with a fan left out of previous cleans and a motor area thick with grease, across axial fans, roof-mounted fans and fan housings.
In a village or hamlet like Lower Upnor, the kitchens that need extract cleaning are typically a pub, a school, a care home or a hall kitchen, wherever there is one. Each still has a canopy and duct that collect grease, whatever the size of the place.
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.
- Location
- Lower Upnor (ME2)
- Region
- Medway
- Paperwork
- Certificate and photo report
- Quotes
- Fixed quote, typically within a working day
- When we work
- Out of hours as standard, 24/7 emergency line
- Telephone
- 0345 646 2711
- Updated
- 30 October 2026
What affects the cost of extract fan cleaning
You’ll get a fixed price before we start. It takes into account:
- How many systems or sites are involved
- What state the system is in
- Where the site is and how we reach it
- A single visit or a regular plan
Working hours, access and the scale of the site all affect the cost. Each of those is built into the quote and give you a fixed price before work begins.
What to send for a quote
The more you tell us, the more accurate the quote. With your enquiry, please include:
- Anything you’ve noticed, such as smells, noise, drips or poor airflow
- The times we could work without disrupting the site
- Photos showing the whole system and its surroundings
- Your last certificate, test record or report
Photos are the quickest way to a quote: wide shots of the system, close-ups of anything that worries you and how we’d get to it. Add the site type and your opening hours, and we can price many jobs without a visit.
Grease, kitchens and Lower Upnor
At about 2 miles from the coast, Lower Upnor is close enough for sea air to matter. Salt air speeds up corrosion of roof-level fans, discharge cowls and their fixings. Food Standards Agency records include about 15 pubs and bars across Lower Upnor and its immediate surroundings (about a mile and a half). A pub or hotel kitchen that cooks every day builds up grease in its extract like any other. Lower Upnor is covered by Kent Fire and Rescue Service. The Fire Safety Order puts the duty on whoever runs a kitchen to control its fire risk, and a greasy duct is fuel.
Healthcare kitchens, like those at hospitals such as French Hospital (about 1.9 miles south-west), often cook for long hours, which puts them in BESA’s heavier-use bands. If your kitchen is in a listed or historic building, like the houses around Lower Upnor (Restoration House is about 2 miles south-west), fitting access panels needs care.
Lower Upnor is about 2 miles north-east of Rochester, in Medway. From the centre of Lower Upnor to the outskirts, we cover extract fan cleaning for every kind of premises, from small sites to large estates. Our Medway coverage runs to 68 places, Lower Upnor among them. Our Maidstone page covers sites nearby (10 miles or so).
Our technicians cover all of ME2 for extract fan cleaning and the roads nearby. Whether your site is on Galleon Way, Cutter Close and Schooner Walk or anywhere close by, we can help. We also cover the places around Lower Upnor: Upper Upnor (1 mile south-west), Chattenden (1 mile north), Wainscott (1 mile west), Hoo St Werburgh (2 miles north-east) and Cooling Street (2 miles north). Further out, we also cover Gillingham (3 miles south-east), Chatham (4 miles south), Rainham (5 miles south-east), Strood (3 miles south-west), Luton (3 miles south) and Park Wood (5 miles south-east).
Local landmarks in Lower Upnor
In Lower Upnor, that means kitchens and buildings near Former Ordnance Store At Chatham Gun Wharf, The Hundred of Hoo Academy and Waterfront University Technical College. You’ll also find Lower Lines Park (1.3 miles south-east) and The Ship pub (within half a mile east). Lower Upnor’s nearest station is Strood station, about 1.6 miles south-west of the centre. A little further out are Upnor Castle (under half a mile south) and Pentagon Shopping Centre (1.9 miles south). The countryside around Lower Upnor includes Rede Common and Gad's Hill.
Also near Lower Upnor
Other services in Lower Upnor
Common problems we fix in Lower Upnor
Grease on a fan is a fire risk, in Lower Upnor as anywhere. A fire in the duct can reach the fan and the grease around it and an overworked motor runs hotter.
Most sites get in touch after spotting something like this:
- Hot, greasy smells near the fan
- Grease stains around the discharge
- Thick grease on the impeller and casing
- Less air being pulled from the kitchen
If you look after a school kitchen, at a school such as Chattenden Primary School or anywhere near Lower Upnor, the holidays are the usual time for a TR19® clean.
Comparing quotes
- Whether the whole system is included, or only the parts that are easy to reach
- Their accreditations, such as BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite, CHAS or SafeContractor
- Whether the work can be done while the site is closed
- How VAT is shown on the quote
Looking after it afterwards
Think of this as the after-treatment advice, short and simple:
- Make sure the fan is included each time
- Check filters are seated before cooking
- Leave a clear route to the fan
- File the fan’s report with your other records
You get before and after pictures of the impeller and housing. It notes what was done and anything that couldn’t be reached, along with the recommended next clean date.
Keep the route to the fan clear. Clear access means it’s never left out of a clean, whether it’s on a roof, in a ceiling or on a wall.
In-house cleaning or a specialist?
Your own staff can handle the daily basics: wiping canopies, washing grease filters and recording it in a log. Inside the ducts, risers and fan is specialist work, and that’s where we come in.
Away from the kitchen, the in-house job is mainly checking: keeping grilles clear, noting unusual noise or smells and logging filter changes. Cleaning inside ducts and units is specialist work.
FAQs for Lower Upnor
Which fire authority looks after Lower Upnor?
Kent Fire and Rescue Service is the fire and rescue service for Lower Upnor. If a fire safety officer visits a commercial kitchen, they may ask about the fire risk assessment and how the extract is kept clean.
Which environmental health team covers Lower Upnor?
Kitchens in Lower Upnor are inspected by Medway council’s environmental health officers. It helps to keep the extract cleaning records with your food safety paperwork, so they’re ready if asked for.
What is TR19?
It’s BESA’s specification and the benchmark insurers, fire officers and EHOs look to. It covers how systems are inspected, cleaned and checked and expects a risk-based approach.
What makes a kitchen extract fan vibrate?
A common cause is grease. Grease collects unevenly and unbalances the impeller, causing vibration and noise. If cleaning does not, the bearings or motor may need attention.
Who has the legal duty for fire safety?
That depends on who controls the premises. Under the Fire Safety Order 2005, it’s the responsible person, which may be the employer, owner, landlord, facilities manager or managing agent.
What do you do with what you remove?
It leaves the site with us at the end of the visit. During the work, it’s contained to keep the area clean.
Do we lose a day’s trading?
Usually not. Out-of-hours visits keep the disruption down. Bigger sites can be done in stages so parts stay in use.
What about areas you can’t get to?
Anything we can’t reach goes on the report, with a note of where it is, and we explain what access is needed, such as extra access panels in ductwork.
The process
A visit follows the same order every time: sheeting and protection first, isolate whatever needs isolating, do the work, clear away and leave you the report. On site, the work takes an hour or two for most single fans. If the van will struggle with a lane or gateway near Lower Upnor, let us know and we’ll plan around it.
- The fan is found and its type, access and isolation checked.
- It’s isolated so it can’t run while we work.
- Grease is scraped off the impeller blades and casing.
- Blades, housing and surrounds are degreased with care around the electrics.
- It’s closed up, run, checked and photographed for the report.
Getting ready for the visit
- Arrange a key holder or contact on site
- Clear loose items from the work area
- Tell us about access, such as roof hatches, plant rooms, ceilings or locked areas
How to get a quote
To help us quote: where the site is, what it is and its opening hours, photos of the system and any previous report or certificate. Then call us on 0345 646 2711, or send details by email.
Advice
Why it’s worth doing now in Lower Upnor
An unbalanced fan gets worse, not better. It can wear the bearings and lead to failure, which may leave the kitchen without extraction. A planned clean beats an emergency. In a small place like Lower Upnor, a system that fails can take a site out of use.
Whatever the type of site, the quote works the same way: how much there is, how we reach it, what state it’s in and when we can work. Ask for a fixed quote and we will explain each part.
Why us?
- We’re fully insured
- BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite member, cleaning to BESA TR19® Grease
- Evenings, overnight and weekends, plus 24/7 emergency callout
- Photo reports with every job
Take a look at what affects the cost or how to check a contractor.