Grease duct

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A grease duct is a purpose-designed duct that is used to vent grease-laden vapours from commercial cooking equipment such as a stove, "double-decker" pizza oven, deep fryer or wok to the outside of a building or mobile food preparation trailer. Grease ducts are regulated both in terms of their construction and maintenance, forming part of the building's passive fire protection system. Even the cleaning schedule is typically dictated by the fire code and evidence of compliance must be kept on file by the owner.

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[edit] Special hazard

Kitchen exhaust hood interior view, before and after cleaning.

Rooftop fan on top of grease duct being cleaned in order to remove congealed grease.

Top view of kitchen exhaust fan assembly on top of a grease duct - before and after cleaning.

Bucket of kitchen exhaust grease after removal from commercial restaurant grease duct.

The grease laden vapors are hot, to begin with. As the vapours cool down, the grease settles on colder items. It is thus important for occupational safety and health as well as compliance with local fire codes to vent such vapours outside the kitchen and outside the building where the kitchen is located.

Grease, of course, is not only slippery, but also highly flammable. In fact, it qualifies as a hydrocarbon due to its inherent chemistry. Regardless of what state it is in, vapour, liquid or solid, it ignites easily and burns very rapidly, necessitating special provisions to accomplish a fire-resistance rating based on an internal grease fire as well as an external fire. Special provisions also include the necessity for proof that any adjacent firestop must be compatible with the grease duct system.

[edit] Requirements

In North America, grease ducts must be in compliance with NFPA 96 as well as the local building codes and fire codes. Cleaning takes place typically every 3 months, 6 months or annually, depending on the nature of the appliances below the hood. For instance, woks require quarterly grease duct cleaning, whereas normal stoves may necessitate the grease duct to be cleaned only every 6 months. Compliance must be proven through certificates issued by the cleaning and maintenance contractors. Purpose-designed fire suppression systems inside the hoods must also be routinely maintained. Proper cleaning must be enabled through the use of approved, fire-resistant access panels. Grease ducts should be kept as short as possible to minimise grease build-up.

[edit] Systems

A proprietary duct system that has its own inherent fire-resistance rating can be used, or a metallic duct, typically from 16 gauge sheet metal, all welded, per local codes, which is then externally treated with fireproofing. Typical materials used for fireproofing are:

[edit] Trade jurisdiction

In North American unionised construction sites, metallic ducts are typically installed by the sheet metal trade, whereas external wraps are usually installed by the insulators. Inherently fire-resistant systems are likewise installed by the sheet metal trade.

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