The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is a global nonprofit organization, established in 1896, devoted to eliminating death, injury, property and economic loss due to fire, electrical and related hazards. NFPA delivers information and knowledge through more than 300 consensus codes and standards, research, training, education, outreach and advocacy; and by partnering with others who share an interest in furthering our mission. Our mission is to help save lives and reduce loss with information, knowledge and passion.

The NFPA 96 Code is the standard for ventilation control and fire protection for commercial cooking operations. It is related to the design, installation, operation, inspection, and maintenance of all public and private cooking operations.

The most common hood cleaning frequency is every 3 months. This can vary, however. The commercial kitchen/restaurant exhaust systems that needs cleaningmost often are those over wood-burning or charcoal-burning stoves. These should be cleaned every month at least, and in some cases as often as every 2 weeks.

Overtime grease collects in your exhaust system and will become a fire hazard if not removed. The fire department and your insurance company require regular kitchen exhaust cleaning.

NFPA 96 states, “The entire exhaust system shall be cleaned by a properly trained, qualified and certified company or persons” Work of this nature takes special tools, equipment, and expertise to properly and thoroughly clean.