How to Prevent Commercial Kitchen Fires

Preventing a kitchen fire is one of the most important things you can do as the owner of a commercial kitchen. Throughout the hustle and bustle of preparing and delivering meals, the safety of your kitchen and the staff should always be in the back of your mind. Preventing commercial kitchen fires takes constant vigilance; it requires proper cleaning procedures, safety systems and regular inspections to ensure everything is running smoothly. However, with careful planning and regular maintenance, you can greatly reduce the chance of a commercial kitchen fire in your restaurant.

Tips to Prevent Kitchen Fires

Kitchen fires can be caused by a number of things in commercial kitchens, including unsafe cooking practices, dirty equipment or poor training. Fire can be dangerous and costly, and not something you ever want to have to deal with in your commercial kitchen. To avoid the disaster, follow these tips to prevent kitchen fires.

Keep It Clean

Grease built up is one of the main causes of kitchen fires, especially in commercial kitchens. Grease is highly flammable, and when fire begins to get out of control, grease provides the perfect source of combustible energy. Grease that builds up around ducts, vents or on equipment is fuel for these fires.
In addition to regularly cleaning all visible areas in your kitchen, you should have your ventilation system regularly cleaned by a professional duct work cleaning company. The overhead hood, fans and duct work are often the biggest traps for grease, smoke and particles that are most combustible. Regularly scheduled professional maintenance and duct work cleaning will greatly reduce the chance of fire.

Maintain Equipment

In addition to keeping all the equipment in the kitchen clean, you should also perform routine maintenance on all equipment to ensure they are running correctly. More than half of restaurant fires happen due to cooking equipment.

In addition to regular maintenance on your stoves, ovens, mixers and any other commercial equipment, make sure all your equipment is fitted with an up-to-date fire suppression system, which will shut down gas and electrical in the case of a fire. Have this system inspected regularly by a professional.

Keep Flammable Material Away From Flames

Most kitchens will have heat in some way or another, some in the form of open flames. However, to keep these from starting a bigger, unwanted fire, keep potential fuel sources away from these flames, which could include food, clothing, paper or towel. Keeping the restaurant kitchen organized is crucial to preventing fires.

Have A Safety System In Place

Sometimes, mistakes happen and sometime may catch on fire. Having a safety system in place could be the difference between a huge, raging blaze or a small fire that is contained and extinguished quickly. Ensure that automatic safety systems, like sprinkler systems and fire suppression systems, are up to date and working properly, and that your kitchen is equip with up-to-date fire extinguishers. Make sure your entire staff, from cooks to front of house, are trained on what to do in an emergency and hold training refreshers regularly.

Dispose of Cigarettes Properly

Another source of fires, be it in commercial kitchens or in homes, comes from cigarettes. Those who smoke should dispose of their cigarettes in a metal receptacle that contains no combustible materials (like a trash can with other papers). Cigarettes often appear to have been fully extinguished but may still have embers lit internally.

Putting A Fire Prevention Plan Into motion

Are you ready to make your commercial kitchen safer from fire hazards? The top things you can do to keep fire out of your kitchen is to implement safe standards of operations, keep vents and HVAC systems clean and have emergency safety systems in place.

Cleaning Commercial Kitchen HVAC System

If it is time to schedule your regular duct work cleaning for your commercial kitchen, call the team at Airpro Indoor Air Solutions. Remember, grease build up in fans, hoods and ducts is one of the leading causes of fire for commercial kitchens, as is malfunctioning machinery, so ensuring your HVAC system and ductwork are functioning properly is extremely important for the health and safety of your kitchen. Contact the team at Airpro Indoor Air Solutions today to schedule your regular maintenance.