Essex · TR19 inspections and grease testing
East Mersea TR19 inspection
TR19 inspection across East Mersea and nearby, booked around your opening hours and signed off in writing with pictures.
- Kitchens taken over with no cleaning records
- Insurance renewals needing proof of TR19 cleaning
- Pre-clean surveys before a first TR19 clean
Keeping the system healthy
Results last longer with the right care. Here’s what we suggest:
- Never cook with filters missing
- Flag oily drips near the extract
- Keep canopy edges and gutters wiped down
- File every inspection report with your certificates
Any access problems we found are listed with a suggested fix. Fitting them before the next clean means the whole system gets done.
Keep all TR19 records together so you can produce them quickly.
TR19 inspection in East Mersea, done properly
A grease test measures how thick the grease is inside a kitchen extract system. We use the Wet Film Thickness Test (WFTT) or the Deposit Thickness Test (DTT), taking readings at set points. The results show whether the system needs cleaning and how soon. The work covers insurer audits, post-clean checks and access surveys, and the jobs we see most are missing access panels found on survey and extracts that may be over the 200 micron mean.
Work in a small place like East Mersea starts with a call to agree access and timings, and the clean covers the whole system, as it would anywhere: canopy, filters, duct, fan and discharge, with a certificate and photo report at the end.
A written report with photos follows every visit, 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
- East Mersea (CO5)
- Wider area
- Essex
- Reporting
- TR19® certificate and photo report
- Quotes
- A fixed price before work begins
- Working hours
- Nights, weekends or holidays to suit you
- Phone
- 0345 646 2711
- Checked
- 30 October 2026
Staff cleaning versus specialist work
Day-to-day cleaning is something your team can do: wiping down canopy surfaces, cleaning filters and keeping a simple log. What they can’t safely do is clean inside the ductwork, the fan or the risers, which is where we come in.
Some jobs should never be done in-house: opening up ductwork, cleaning fans, drop testing fire dampers and measuring grease call for the right kit, training and safe access. Leave those to us.
How the visit works
We’re used to working while the site is closed. A lot of visits happen overnight or at weekends, so the site can open as normal afterwards. The visit itself takes a morning or less for one kitchen, more where there are several systems. In a small place like East Mersea, the journey is planned ahead and the visit arranged around the site’s hours.
- First we look at the system’s cleaning history, if there is one.
- We follow the extract from canopy to discharge.
- Access panels are located and any missing ones noted.
- We measure the grease and photograph each point.
- We report back with readings and a fixed quote.
How to prepare
- Mention any parking or loading restrictions
- Let us know about permits to work or site inductions
- Tell us the best time to work, such as after service or at a weekend
Ask for a 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
Grease, kitchens and East Mersea
The coast is only about 2 miles from East Mersea. Metal on the roof weathers faster close to the coast, and the extract fan and cowl are no exception. Food Standards Agency records list about 4 cafés, restaurants and staff canteens within roughly a mile and a half of the centre of East Mersea. Kitchens like these cook for very different hours, and grease testing shows which extracts need cleaning soonest. Food hygiene inspections in East Mersea are the job of Colchester council’s environmental health team. An officer looking round a kitchen will see the canopy, and grease there is hard to miss. A TR19® certificate and photo report after each clean gives you a record to show an inspector.
Where a hall near Parish Church of St Edmund King and Martyr, or anywhere in East Mersea, hosts lunch clubs or events, its extract gathers grease just as a café’s does.
East Mersea is about 7 miles west of Clacton-on-Sea, in Essex. Whether your site is in the middle of East Mersea or further out, TR19 inspection is available to all kinds of commercial premises, from small sites to large estates. Our Essex coverage runs to 644 places, East Mersea among them. For sites nearby, see our Chelmsford page (22 miles or so).
All of CO5 is covered for TR19 inspection, from busy streets to back roads. Local streets include East Road, Shop Lane and Broman's Lane, and we cover them all for TR19 inspection. If your site is just outside East Mersea, we cover Barrow Hill (2 miles west), Brightlingsea (2 miles north-east), Point Clear (2 miles east), West Mersea (3 miles west) and Lee-over-Sands (3 miles south-east). Further out, we also cover Colchester (8 miles north-west), Clacton-on-Sea (7 miles east), Maldon (14 miles west), Witham (15 miles west), Harwich (15 miles north-east) and Camulodunum (8 miles north-west).
What’s near East Mersea
We work in commercial kitchens and buildings around Dog And Pheasant Public House and the streets around them. The closest station to East Mersea is Alresford station, about 4.2 miles north of the centre. The countryside around East Mersea includes Fingringhoe Wick.
How the job changes from site to site
Restaurants, pubs and hotels
A kitchen running from breakfast to late service builds grease quickly. Regular testing shows whether the cleaning interval keeps up.
Vertical risers
In buildings with several floors, the riser may pass through other tenants’ space, so we arrange access ahead of time.
Honest limits
Before you book, it helps to know what’s not included:
- Installation problems, which fall under design guidance such as DW172
- The grease itself, which needs a full or spot clean
- Fire safety duties beyond the extract system
Not sure which it is? You can give us a ring on 0345 646 2711, or send details by email and we’ll tell you honestly before booking.
Where we work
- Insurer audits
- Deposit thickness tests
- Post-clean checks
- Wet film thickness tests
- Pre-clean surveys
- Access surveys
Nearby places to East Mersea
Other services in East Mersea
East Mersea: your questions answered
Which environmental health team covers East Mersea?
In East Mersea, it’s Colchester council that carries out food hygiene inspections. An officer may look up into the canopy, so clean filters on the day and a recent certificate on file both help.
Which fire and rescue service is responsible for East Mersea?
Essex County Fire and Rescue Service is the fire and rescue service for East Mersea. Records of extract cleaning are a sensible thing to have ready if a fire safety officer carries out an audit.
What about areas you can’t get to?
Anything we can’t reach goes on the report, with photos where possible, and we explain what access is needed, such as extra access panels in ductwork.
What does TR19 mean?
It’s BESA’s specification and the benchmark insurers, fire officers and EHOs look to. It sets out inspection, cleaning and record keeping, and it takes a risk-based approach.
What do the grease readings need to be?
Two figures matter: a mean of no more than 200 microns between cleans, and 500 microns at any single point, which needs immediate spot cleaning. We show your readings against those figures.
How do you measure grease in a kitchen extract?
WFTT and DTT are the two methods for measuring grease thickness, in microns. Readings are taken at set points through the system.
How far ahead should we book?
It depends on the time you need and how big the job is. Mention your preferred dates with your enquiry, and if it’s an emergency, call us any time.
Do you survey before quoting?
Yes. We always survey first, from your photos and details, or with a visit where needed. A fixed quote follows.
Signs you need TR19 inspection in East Mersea
Not every section of a kitchen extract is easy to get to, and grease can be missed there clean after clean. An inspection of a system in East Mersea shows where access panels are missing, so panels can be fitted.
Common reasons sites call us are:
- Pre-clean surveys before a first TR19 clean
- Kitchen extract systems with no recent grease readings
- Sites with gaps in their extract records
- Ductwork where grease may be over the TR19 limits
Whether the kitchen is in East Mersea itself or nearby, a TR19® clean covers the whole system, canopy to discharge.
What to look for in a quote
- What insurance they carry
- If they look at the system before pricing
- Whether inaccessible sections are listed on the report
- Whether the figure could change on the day
Multi-site and managed buildings
Running several sites is easier with one contractor. We work across London and the South East, so a run of sites can go into one programme and kept on a regular cycle.
We work for landlords, managing agents and facilities managers as well as the people running the site. Shared systems, like a riser serving several units, need a clear agreement on who books the work, and we can quote for the whole system.