Hertfordshire · Grease filter exchange
Colney Heath grease filter exchange
For grease filter exchange in Colney Heath, one call is all it takes: survey, fixed quote, work and sign-off. Fully insured, with CHAS, SafeContractor and ISO 9001.
- Grease collecting in the filter channels
- Gaps where filters have been removed
- Filters so greasy the air can barely pass
About our grease filter exchange in Colney Heath
Grease filters are the first line of defence in a kitchen extract. They catch grease before it reaches the plenum and ductwork and they do it best when they’re clean. Our grease filter exchange service swaps dirty filters for clean ones on a schedule. We are often asked to deal with poor airflow through the filters and staff short of time to wash filters, across school and hospital kitchens, island canopies and mesh filters.
In a village or hamlet like Colney Heath, 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.
We’ve been trading since 2009, as a BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite member, cleaning to BESA TR19® Grease. We also hold CHAS, SafeContractor and ISO 9001, and we carry full insurance.
- Where
- Colney Heath (AL4)
- Wider area
- Hertfordshire
- Records
- Written report with photos
- Price
- A fixed price before we start
- Working hours
- After hours by arrangement; emergencies any time
- Phone
- 0345 646 2711
- Page updated
- 30 October 2026
How it works
There are three stages on the day: getting the area ready, doing the work and signing it off. Set-up means sheeting and making equipment safe, and the sign-off is a written report with pictures. Most of the time goes on the work itself, which takes anything from a few minutes to an hour or so, depending on the number of filters. In a small place like Colney Heath, the journey is planned ahead and the visit arranged around the site’s hours.
- The filters in each canopy are measured and counted.
- We set the interval with you.
- On each visit, we remove the greasy filters.
- Clean filters go in and we check they sit snugly.
- We take the greasy set away and confirm the next date.
Getting ready for the visit
- Tell us where we can park and unload
- Let us know how we reach the system, including roofs, risers and plant rooms
- Agree a time when the area can be out of use
Ask for a quote
Some systems can be priced from photos; others need a survey. Big or complicated sites, and systems that are hard to see in photos, get a survey first. Either way, the quote is fixed before any work is booked.
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Common questions in Colney Heath
Can you clean school kitchen extracts in Colney Heath during the holidays?
Yes, and it’s the easiest time to do it. Food Standards Agency records list about 5 schools, colleges and universities with registered kitchens within about a mile and a half of Colney Heath. Just ring 0345 646 2711 or email us with your term dates and we’ll plan around them.
Which council inspects kitchens in Colney Heath?
The local authority for Colney Heath is St Albans City council, and its environmental health team does the inspecting. Have your latest TR19® certificate and photo report to hand, as an officer may ask how the extract is maintained.
Does the report say when we need you again?
Yes. The report recommends when the next visit should be, based on use and what we found.
Do you cover Colney Heath?
Yes. We cover Colney Heath and the rest of Hertfordshire, as part of our work across South East England and London. For a fixed quote, ring 0345 646 2711 or drop us a line.
Is filter exchange enough instead of a full extract clean?
It does not. Some grease passes the filters as vapour and settles in the ducts and the whole system still needs its TR19 clean.
Can we book visits on a schedule?
Yes. Scheduled maintenance plans are part of what we do, set at the interval the system needs. Each report recommends when the next visit should be.
What do you do with what you remove?
We take it away when we go. During the work, it’s contained so the area stays clean.
Can one contract cover all our sites?
Yes. We work across South East England and London, so sites at different addresses can be planned together as one programme. Every site has its own report.
Landlords, agents and facilities managers
We also work for facilities teams across offices, schools and healthcare in Colney Heath and across Hertfordshire. Work can be phased by floor, building or site around the people who use them.
Landlords, managing agents and facilities managers book us, not only the businesses that use the systems. Where a system serves more than one tenant, such as a shared riser, it helps to agree who arranges the work, and we can quote for the whole system.
What the work involves, part by part
Baffle filters
In a baffle filter, the air zigzags through metal baffles. Grease is thrown out of the airstream and collects on the baffles.
Busy restaurant and pub kitchens
The more a kitchen cooks, the more grease the filters see. Changing them on time protects the ducts behind.
Kitchen extracts in Colney Heath
Food Standards Agency records list about 37 restaurants, cafés and canteens and about 14 takeaways within 1.5 miles or so of the middle of Colney Heath. Any of those kitchens with a canopy relies on its filters to catch grease before it reaches the duct. In Colney Heath, food businesses are inspected by environmental health officers from St Albans City council. Extraction counts as kitchen equipment, so its condition can come up on the day. Keeping each certificate and photo report on file helps show the extract is looked after. The fire and rescue service for Colney Heath is Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service. Fire and rescue authorities enforce the Fire Safety Order in most non-domestic premises, and in a kitchen that fire risk includes the grease in the extract.
Bursars and site managers at schools such as Colney Heath Junior Mixed Infant and Nursery School tend to book extract cleaning for when the kitchen is empty. Church and community hall kitchens, near Church of St Mark or anywhere around Colney Heath, are easy to forget, but their extracts collect grease like any other.
Colney Heath is about 2 miles south-west of Hatfield, in Hertfordshire. From the centre of Colney Heath to the outskirts, we cover grease filter exchange for every kind of premises, from a single unit to a large public building. We cover 381 places across Hertfordshire, from busy centres to quieter spots. We also work in London, about 18 miles from Colney Heath.
Our technicians cover all of the AL4 postcode area for grease filter exchange and the roads nearby. Grease filter exchange is available to premises on High Street, Fair View and Roestock Lane and the roads around them. Other places close to Colney Heath include Sleapshyde (1 mile north-west), Welham Green (1 mile east), Smallford (1 mile north-west), Hatfield (2 miles north-east) and Tyttenhanger (2 miles west). We also work in nearby towns such as Watford (8 miles south-west), Hemel Hempstead (9 miles west), Stevenage (12 miles north), St Albans (3 miles west), Welwyn Garden City (5 miles north-east) and Harpenden (7 miles north-west).
Near you in Colney Heath
Locally, jobs take us to businesses close to Chalkdrawers Arms, Bishop's Hatfield Girls' School and North Mimms Park, among other places. Colney Heath’s nearest station is Welham Green station, about 1.7 miles east. Nearby you will also find Hill End Hospital (2.3 miles west) and The Bunker at Hatfield Police Station (1.9 miles north). For a walk, there’s Verulamium Lake and Colney Heath Local Nature Reserve.
Aftercare tips
Here’s the after-treatment advice, short and simple:
- Make sure we can reach the canopy on exchange day
- Let us know if your cooking hours increase
- Keep filter exchange and TR19 cleaning on the same plan
- Look out for drips from the canopy
Fresh filters improve airflow at the canopy from the moment they’re fitted. Always run the extract during cooking so the filters do their job.
Bent or missing filters let grease straight past. Sorting them now keeps grease where it can be caught.
Towns and villages near Colney Heath
Also in Colney Heath
What staff can safely do
Good housekeeping makes our visits easier, not unnecessary. Regular in-house cleaning slows the build-up, but the parts you cannot see still need a specialist at the right interval.
Staff cleaning and specialist work aren’t the same thing. Wiping filters daily and washing them weekly keeps the visible parts in order, but they do not reach the grease that builds up further in. Reaching it takes a specialist with the right equipment.
How we price grease filter exchange
We quote each job individually. These are the things that affect it:
- What state the system is in
- The size of the system
- When the work can happen, such as evenings, overnight or weekends
- Travel, parking and unloading
Putting the work off seldom saves money. Problems in a system tend to grow, and a neglected system can mean more work. If you’re not sure what’s needed, ring 0345 646 2711 or email us for straight advice and a fixed quote.
What to send for a quote
Photos let us diagnose from a distance. The most useful are:
- The paperwork from the last visit, if you have it
- Your opening hours and when the area is out of use
- Any symptoms, from odd noises to smells or leaks
- Detail shots of panels, filters and grilles
Photos are the quickest way to a quote: 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 we can price many jobs without a visit.
Common problems we fix in Colney Heath
Missing filters are more common than you’d think. A missing filter leaves an open route into the system and on into the ductwork.
It’s time to book a visit if you see:
- Weak extraction at the canopy
- Grease dripping from the canopy
- Damaged filters letting grease past
- Missing filters in the filter bank
Historic houses near Colney Heath, such as Hatfield House about 2.3 miles north-east, are a reminder that older buildings with event kitchens can have long, awkward duct routes.
What to look for in a quote
- Proof of insurance
- When the next visit should be, and why
- How areas they can’t reach will be recorded
- What’s included in the scope, part by part