Medway · TR19 inspections and grease testing
TR19 Inspection in Borstal
TR19 inspection across Borstal and nearby, booked around your opening hours and signed off in writing with photos.
- Systems cleaned on a calendar with no measurements
- Post-clean verification after another contractor’s clean
- Insurers asking for TR19 evidence
What happens on the day
A visit follows the same order every time: protect the area, isolate whatever needs isolating, do the work, clear away and hand over the paperwork. The visit itself takes an hour or two for a single kitchen, longer for a large or complex system. Because the survey comes first, a visit to Borstal can usually be finished without a second trip.
- We agree a time when the kitchen is closed or quiet.
- We look over the canopy, plenum, ducts, fan and discharge.
- Grease readings are taken at set points using WFTT or DTT.
- We photograph the test points and record any sections we cannot reach.
- We send a report setting out the readings, photos and next steps.
Getting ready for the visit
- Let us know how we reach the system, including roofs, risers and plant rooms
- Move anything stored near the system
- Have your last certificate or report to hand
How to get a quote
Need a price for TR19 inspection? Please phone us on 0345 646 2711 or use the quote form and tell us about the site. We will talk you through the work and give you a fixed quote before anything is booked.
Related advice
TR19 inspection in Borstal, done properly
Grease thickness testing tells you how much grease is sitting in the canopy, ducts and fan. Readings are taken at set points using the Wet Film Thickness Test (WFTT) or the Deposit Thickness Test (DTT). The results show whether the system needs cleaning and how soon. The work covers access surveys, wet film thickness tests and deposit thickness tests, and the jobs we see most are an insurer’s request for a TR19 audit and extracts that have never been grease tested.
Kitchens around a place like Borstal are often in older buildings or single-storey extensions, where the duct may cross a roof void or climb an outside wall. Flat runs collect grease and need proper access to clean.
Each visit ends with a written report and pictures, so you have a record of what was done and when. Where the work is a TR19® Grease clean, the certificate is issued through the BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite portal.
- Location
- Borstal (ME1, ME2)
- Region
- Medway
- Paperwork
- Certificate and photo report
- Quotes
- A fixed price before work begins
- Working hours
- Overnight and weekend work, 24/7 emergency callout
- Telephone
- 0345 646 2711
- Checked
- 30 October 2026
Between visits
Results last longer with the right care. Here’s what we suggest:
- Keep to the recommended interval
- Tell us if menus or opening hours change
- Report grease dripping from the canopy
- Never cook with filters missing
Each report suggests the next clean and the next test, based on the readings and how the kitchen is used.
Revisit the cleaning interval whenever the menu or hours change. A quick grease test answers the question.
Why deal with it now?
If there’s a fire or a claim, your insurer may ask for TR19 records. Missing records can put a claim at risk. An up-to-date inspection report is a good place to start. It’s better to plan the work at a site near Borstal than wait for a failure.
No two sites are the same, so each one gets its own fixed quote. Size, access, the condition of the system and when we can work all play a part.
What you get with us
- Accredited under CHAS and SafeContractor, with ISO 9001
- A written report with photos after each visit
- A single point of contact for sites across the South East and London
- We’re fully insured
Read our cost guide and our accreditations.
Borstal questions
Do you clean school canteen extracts around Borstal out of term?
Yes, out-of-term visits are normal for schools. Around Borstal, the Food Standards Agency lists about 13 schools and colleges with registered kitchens within a mile and a half or so. Send us your term dates when you phone us on 0345 646 2711, or email photos, and we’ll fit the work in.
Which fire authority looks after Borstal?
Kent Fire and Rescue Service is the fire and rescue service for Borstal. A recent cleaning certificate and a note of the next clean date show that grease in the extract is being managed.
What if parts of the system cannot be reached?
We never leave them off the paperwork. You will know exactly which parts weren’t reached and why, and we can quote to improve the access.
What’s TR19?
A BESA specification, with two parts that matter most here: TR19® Grease for kitchen extracts and TR19® Air for supply and extract systems. It isn’t law, but it’s the benchmark.
What do the grease readings need to be?
TR19® Grease says the mean shouldn’t exceed 200 microns between cleans, with 500 microns or more anywhere needing immediate spot cleaning.
Can you price the work without visiting?
Yes, if we can see what we need. If not, a site survey comes first, and the quote follows that.
Do you work in Borstal?
Yes. We work in Borstal and across Medway, within our South East and London area. For a fixed quote, ring 0345 646 2711 or use the quote form.
How long does a TR19 inspection take?
Testing takes an hour or two for a single kitchen, longer for a large or complex system. Large or multiple systems take longer, and you can call 0345 646 2711, or send details by email to book it in.
When to call us in Borstal
Insurers, fire officers and environmental health officers look to TR19® as the benchmark. TR19® itself is not law, but the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 requires the responsible person to assess and reduce fire risk, and grease in the extract is part of that risk.
Common reasons sites call us include:
- Kitchens whose menu or hours have changed
- Systems that need surveying before cleaning
- Ductwork where grease may be over the TR19 limits
- Sites with gaps in their extract records
If you run catering at a healthcare site, such as a hospital like St. Catherine's Hospital about 1.1 miles north-east, the extract may need cleaning more often than a part-time kitchen.
Questions to ask before you book
- Whether VAT is included
- Whether a written report and pictures are included
- Which accreditations they hold, and whether you can check them
- Whether the work can be done while the site is closed
Managing agents and facilities teams in Borstal
Managing agents often deal with us directly. Tell us the site, the work and the access arrangements, and we will send a fixed quote.
When the building owner and the occupier are different, it’s worth checking the lease for who maintains the systems. We’re happy to deal with either side, and the report can go to both.
What the work involves, part by part
Horizontal duct runs
Sections without access are recorded so it can be fixed before the clean.
Restaurants, pubs and hotels
A kitchen running from breakfast to late service builds grease quickly. Readings show if the cleans are frequent enough.
What TR19 inspection looks like in Borstal
The FSA’s food hygiene register includes about 30 pubs and bars and about 4 hotels, B&Bs and guest houses across Borstal 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. Borstal sits within the area of Kent Fire and Rescue Service. In most workplaces, including commercial kitchens, it’s the fire and rescue authority that enforces the Fire Safety Order. In Borstal, food businesses are inspected by environmental health officers from Medway council. The cleanliness of the kitchen and its equipment, extraction included, is part of what they check. Before-and-after photos from each clean are a simple way to show the extract is in hand.
If you run catering at a historic house or estate in the area (Temple Manor is about 1 mile north), event kitchens in older buildings often have awkward duct runs that need planning. For schools such as St William of Perth Roman Catholic Primary School, kitchen extract cleaning is typically booked for the holidays, when the canteen is closed.
Borstal is about 1 mile south-west of Rochester, in Medway. From the centre of Borstal to the outskirts, we cover TR19 inspection for every kind of premises, from small sites to large estates. Our Medway coverage runs to 68 places, and Borstal is one of them. Maidstone is in our area too, about 8 miles from Borstal.
Here we cover the ME1 and ME2 postcode area for TR19 inspection. Streets in the area include Hill Road, Manor Lane and Mount Road, all of which we cover for TR19 inspection. Borstal sits on or near the M2, which makes travel easy for TR19 inspection. Neighbouring places we cover for TR19 inspection include Rochester (1 mile north-east), Strood (1 mile north), Cuxton (1 mile west), North Halling (2 miles west) and Wouldham (2 miles south-west). Larger places within reach include Gillingham (4 miles east), Rainham (5 miles east), Park Wood (5 miles east), Lordswood (4 miles south-east), Twydall (4 miles east) and Hoo St Werburgh (5 miles north-east).
Local landmarks in Borstal
Typical jobs here are in premises near Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School, Former Ordnance Store At Chatham Gun Wharf and St John Fisher RC Comprehensive School, among other places. The nearest railway station is Cuxton station, roughly 1 mile west. Other landmarks nearby include Six Poor Travellers House (1.3 miles north-east) and Rochester Castle (1.3 miles north-east). For a walk, there’s Blue Bell Hill and Ranscombe Farm.
Places near Borstal
Other services in Borstal
Staff cleaning versus specialist work
Some jobs should never be done in-house: entering ducts, working on fans, testing dampers and taking grease readings call for the right kit, training and safe access. That is our job.
If your staff spot something 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.