Thurrock · Kitchen extract cleaning
Kitchen extract cleaning in Grays, Thurrock
Kitchen extract cleaning in Grays from ventilation hygiene specialists trading since 2009. Evenings, overnight and weekends, plus a 24/7 emergency line.
- A system with no record of a TR19 clean
- An overdue clean flagged by an EHO or fire officer
- A new tenancy or takeover with no cleaning history
Why act early in Grays
There’s no law that names TR19, but the Fire Safety Order 2005 still applies. The responsible person must assess and reduce fire risk, which in a kitchen includes the grease in the extract. Cleaning to TR19 is the recognised way to show you’ve done it. Whatever the system, dirt and wear only get worse.
What you pay depends on the size of the system, the condition it’s in and access to every part of it. You get a fixed price before work begins, so there are no surprises.
What you get with us
- Ventilation hygiene specialists since 2009
- Member of BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite, cleaning to BESA TR19® Grease
- One number for every site across the South East and London
- Work around your opening hours, with 24/7 emergency cover
Take a look at what affects the cost or our accreditations and certificates.
How we handle kitchen extract cleaning in Grays
Duct Doctor has been cleaning kitchen extract systems 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. If you have an extract that no longer clears the smoke and extraction mentioned at an environmental health visit, we can help, from plenums and filters, horizontal duct runs and canopies and hoods onwards. Most calls from Grays come after an insurer, an EHO or a fire officer asks to see the last TR19 certificate. Either way, the answer is the same: a proper clean and the paperwork to match.
We clean every reachable part of the system in Grays: canopy, plenum, filters, ducts, risers and fan, then record anything that couldn’t be reached.
Kitchens in towns like Grays are often in older buildings that were never designed for them, which can mean awkward duct routes, long flat runs and not enough access panels. Where the duct can’t be reached, new panels can be fitted, and anything left uncleaned is recorded on the report.
The report is your system’s health record: dated, with pictures, and showing what was done. Grease extract cleans are also certificated to TR19® Grease through the BESCA VHE portal, ready for your insurer.
Part by part
Canopy and plenum
Behind the grease filters sits the plenum, which daily cleaning never reaches. We take the filters out and clean the plenum and housing thoroughly.
Grease filters
Between TR19 cleans, filters still need regular cleaning, and a filter exchange service can take that off your hands. Clean filters slow the build-up further down the system.
What affects the quote in Grays
The quote reflects the site in front of us. We consider:
- Access, including roofs, risers and ceiling voids
- Where the site is and how we reach it
- Site rules, permits and inductions
- How many systems or sites are involved
The price reflects the work, not guesswork. That’s why every job is surveyed first, and the price is agreed before work begins.
What we need to know
You do not need the technical terms. It helps if you can send:
- The site address and the type of premises
- A few general shots of the system
- The paperwork from the last visit, if you have it
- Problems your staff have spotted
We don’t publish a price list, because every site is different. We look at your system first, from photos or on a visit, and then give you a fixed quote. To start, give us a ring on 0345 646 2711 or drop us a line.
Do you need kitchen extract cleaning in Grays?
What’s on the menu matters as much as how much is cooked. Frying, grilling and roasting send far more fat into the canopy than steaming or boiling, which is why grease readings matter more than the calendar.
What we’re most often called out for:
- An extract that no longer clears the smoke
- Grease drips onto cooking equipment
- A system with no record of a TR19 clean
- Ductwork thick with old, hardened grease
Bursars and site managers at schools such as Quarry Hill Academy tend to book extract cleaning for when the kitchen is empty.
Before booking anyone
- Their accreditations, such as BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite, CHAS or SafeContractor
- Whether the quote shows VAT
- What insurance they carry
- How they set the interval to the next visit
How it works
Night work is normal for us. A lot of visits happen overnight or at weekends, so the site can open as normal afterwards. On site, the work takes a few hours for a small kitchen, longer for a large system. We arrive in Grays once you’ve closed and leave the site ready for the morning.
- First the diagnosis: a survey of the whole system and its access points.
- We record grease levels at set points, then fix the price.
- After the kitchen closes, we sheet the area and set up to contain grease and water.
- Heavy deposits are scraped by hand and the system degreased to TR19® Grease.
- The sign-off: post-clean readings, a TR19 certificate and a photo report with the next clean date.
How to prepare
- Let us know about parking and loading
- Find the previous report, if there is one
- Make sure someone can let us in and lock up afterwards
Getting a quote
Photos are enough for some jobs, while others need a look on site. Larger sites, and anything hidden behind walls, ceilings or floors, are normally surveyed first. Either way, the quote is fixed before any work is booked.
Read more
When it’s something else
It’s worth knowing the limits before booking:
- A fan motor that has burnt out
- Ductwork that is corroded, split or leaking (that is for a ductwork contractor)
- A damper that sticks or has a damaged link
If you are not sure, just call 0345 646 2711, or send details by email and we will give you a straight answer before booking.
Parts of the system we cover
- Horizontal duct runs
- Discharge points
- Plenums and filters
- Vertical risers
- Extract fans
- Canopies and hoods
Grays kitchens: local notes
The coast is only about 3 miles from Grays. Corrosion on the fan housing and cowl is worth a look at every clean, alongside the grease. Look up Grays on the FSA’s food hygiene register and you will find about 62 cafés, restaurants and staff canteens and about 51 takeaways across Grays and its immediate surroundings (about a mile and a half). Any of them cooking under a canopy is sending grease into its ductwork every service. Environmental health officers from Thurrock council inspect food businesses in Grays. 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.
A hospital like Thurrock Community Hospital, about 0.9 miles north, is the kind of site where a kitchen may cook for patients, staff and visitors all day. A kitchen near Grays station that serves breakfast and dinner can run its extract twelve hours or more, which shortens the cleaning interval.
Grays is about 5 miles north-east of Dartford, in Thurrock. Whether your site is in the middle of Grays or further out, we cover kitchen extract cleaning for every kind of premises, from a single unit to a large public building. Grays is one of 26 places in Thurrock we cover for commercial clients. Maidstone is in our area too, around 17 miles away.
We cover every part of RM17, RM16, RM20 and RM18 for kitchen extract cleaning and the streets around it. Streets in the area include London Road, College Avenue and Cresthill Avenue, and we cover them all for kitchen extract cleaning. With the A126 and B149 close by, Grays is simple for us to get to for kitchen extract cleaning. We also cover Little Thurrock (1 mile north-east), Chafford Hundred (1 mile north-west), Orsett Heath (1 mile north-east), North Stifford (2 miles north-west) and Chadwell St Mary (2 miles east). We also work in nearby towns such as Stanford-le-Hope (5 miles north-east), South Ockendon (3 miles north-west), Balstonia (5 miles north-east), Corringham (6 miles north-east), Aveley (4 miles west) and Purfleet-on-Thames (4 miles west).
What’s near Grays
We work in commercial kitchens and buildings around Thurrock and Basildon College, Grays Convent High School and The Traitors Gate pub and the streets around them. Grays’s nearest station is Grays station, roughly 0.6 miles south-west. Other landmarks nearby include Stone Castle (3.6 miles south-west) and Thurrock Community Hospital (0.9 miles north). The countryside around Grays includes Chafford Gorges Nature Park and Sawyers Lake.
Questions from Grays
Can sea air affect kitchen extract cleaning in Grays?
It can. Being within about 3 miles of the sea means more corrosion on metalwork in Grays than inland. Corroded fixings and housings are noted on the report so they can be dealt with.
Do you clean school canteen extracts around Grays out of term?
Yes. The holidays are the usual time for school work. With about 24 schools and colleges on the FSA’s register within roughly a mile and a half of Grays, it pays to plan holiday dates ahead. Just give us a ring on 0345 646 2711 or use the quote form with your term dates and we will plan around them.
What do you do with what you remove?
It leaves the site with us when we go. While we work, it’s kept contained to keep the area clean.
What does kitchen extract cleaning cost?
It depends on the site, so we quote each one individually. For a quote, call us on 0345 646 2711, or send details by email and tell us about the site and its opening hours.
What do I get after the clean?
You get both a certificate and a photo report. Keep them in the maintenance log with the fire risk assessment, ready for your insurer or an inspection.
How much notice do you need?
Book as early as you can for planned work, especially if the next clean or test is due soon. Emergencies are different, because our line is open 24/7.
Do you look at the system first?
Yes. For many sites, photos and a few details are enough, while bigger or harder-to-see systems are surveyed on site.
What do you need from me for a quote?
A short description and a few photos, with the address and opening hours. If we need more, we will ask.
Looking after it afterwards
Looking after the system between visits is straightforward, and it makes the next visit easier:
- Report grease drips, smells or fan noise straight away
- Wash or exchange the filters often
- Keep grease collection points emptied
- File each certificate with the fire risk assessment
The kitchen is left clean and ready for the next service. Waste grease and water are contained and removed, so you can start cooking as normal.
Regular filter cleaning is the simplest thing a kitchen can do. Clean, well-fitted filters catch more fat before it reaches the duct, which slows build-up further down the system.