Kitchen Exhaust Cleaning in Cambridge
Kitchen Exhaust Cleaning in Cambridge is the cleaning of the grease duct between the hood and the rooftop fan: the horizontal run above the kitchen ceiling, the vertical riser through the building, and the access panels that let a crew reach each section. Cambridge Hood Cleaning opens every panel, removes the grease layer from each section, checks the NFPA 96 limit of 0.078 inches along the whole path, and names each section on a signed certificate referencing the published standard. In the older downtown buildings of Galt, Preston and Hespeler, where a duct can cross two or three floors, the quote states who owns which section.
Kitchen exhaust cleaning services in Cambridge: the horizontal run, the riser and the access panels
The horizontal run starts at the duct collar on top of the hood and travels above the ceiling to wherever the building lets it turn upward. Grease drops onto the duct floor as the air slows, and every elbow throws the airstream against its outer wall, where the thickest layer builds.
The riser is the vertical section that climbs to the fan. Grease that condenses on its walls drains down and collects in the turn at the bottom, where a crew looking in from the roof never sees it.
Access panels are gasketed openings cut into the duct wall. A section with no panel cannot be cleaned or measured. The canopy, filters and plenum are on the hood cleaning services page, and the fan is on the exhaust fan repair page.
Hood-only vs full-system kitchen exhaust cleaning in Cambridge
The two scopes read very differently when an inspector asks for the record.
| Section of the system | Hood-only vs full-system: hood-only scope | Full-system scope |
|---|---|---|
| Duct collar and first elbow | Wiped as far as an arm reaches from the plenum. | Opened, cleaned to the metal, depth read and photographed. |
| Horizontal run above the ceiling | Not entered. | Every panel opened, each section cleaned and photographed inside. |
| Foot of the riser | Not reached. | Pooled grease removed from the turn and the depth read after cleaning. |
| Fan inlet on the roof | Not part of the visit. | Measured as the last point on the path before discharge. |
| What the certificate names | The hood. | Every section cleaned, and every section not reached, with the reason. |
What the certificate asserts is on the NFPA 96 guide.
Hood vent cleaning in Cambridge: the first section of the run, not the end of the job
Hood vent cleaning is the phrase most owners use for the duct directly behind the filters: the collar and the first length of horizontal run.
The vent is the part a cook can see with a flashlight after the filters come out, and the part a hood-only visit wipes from below. Cambridge Hood Cleaning treats it as the start of the run: the collar is opened, the first elbow is reached, and the depth reading there goes on the certificate beside the readings taken further along.
A vent that looks clean from the kitchen side says nothing about the twenty feet of duct behind it. Ask any hood vent cleaning quote in Cambridge how far past the collar the crew goes.
Best exhaust hood cleaning in Cambridge for a ground-floor kitchen in Galt, Preston or Hespeler
The restaurants on Main Street and Water Street in Galt, King Street in Preston and Queen Street in Hespeler sit in buildings older than the hoods inside them.
The kitchen is on the ground floor. Apartments or offices are above it. The duct leaves the kitchen, turns into an old chase or a boxed stairwell corner, and climbs through two or three floors of brick or stone to the roof. Panels were rarely fitted when the duct went in, so long stretches of the run are blind.
Two things follow. The walk-through traces the duct floor by floor, marks each section that can and cannot be reached, and prices the missing panels before the visit is booked. And when two kitchens in one block feed a single riser, or the riser climbs through space the restaurant does not lease, the quote states who owns which section. The tenant owns the hood and the branch duct to the junction. The building owns the shared riser and the fan, and that part of the quote goes to the landlord with proof of WSIB coverage and liability insurance. Where the landlord declines, the tenant's certificate records the riser as outside the scope.
The franchise units along Hespeler Road are the opposite case: short, new, panelled runs. Both are on the who we serve page.
Commercial kitchen exhaust cleaning in Cambridge: where the 0.078 inch reading is taken
NFPA 96 sets the acceptable grease depth at 0.078 inches, and the figure applies to the whole path.
Cambridge Hood Cleaning reads the depth at fixed points along the path: the collar, the outer wall of each elbow, the foot of the riser and the inlet to the fan. Each reading is photographed and listed by location, and a section that fails is cleaned again before the certificate is signed. A section with no panel gets no reading, and the certificate says so rather than implying the whole run passed. The intervals NFPA 96 publishes are on the NFPA 96 guide.
Filter exchange service in Cambridge: clean baffles between full visits
Filter exchange is the service between cleanings: a clean set of baffle filters fitted while the loaded set goes away for cleaning.
The exchange keeps airflow up on a busy line and keeps grease from riding past the filters into the run. Stainless and aluminum baffles both go through it. The schedule is priced weekly to monthly by cooking volume, and the filter types are on the hood cleaning services page.
Where to find kitchen exhaust cleaning near me in Cambridge
Cambridge Hood Cleaning traces duct runs across Galt, Preston, Hespeler and Blair, and out to Ayr and Paris, on one price list.
The three downtowns carry the long masonry runs. Hespeler Road, Pinebush Road and Franklin Boulevard carry the short franchise runs. The food plants and wholesale bakeries near Highway 401 carry the longest horizontal runs of all. The corridor detail is on the areas served page.
How much does kitchen exhaust cleaning cost in Cambridge in 2026?
Kitchen exhaust cleaning in Cambridge starts from $585 per visit for a single-hood kitchen up to ten feet and from $995 per visit for a multi-hood kitchen of two to four canopies. Larger systems are quoted on site after a free walk-through, with the written quote back within 24 hours.
The duct sets the hours. Length, elbow count, riser height and usable panels each move the figure, and new panels are their own line. A downtown run with no panels costs more on the first visit than on any after it, because the panels are fitted once.
Next step: call 226-917-4064 or request a written quote. Say how many floors sit above the kitchen. The other services are on the services page.
Kitchen exhaust cleaning in Cambridge: frequently asked questions
What is the difference between hood cleaning and kitchen exhaust cleaning?
Hood cleaning covers the canopy, filters and plenum in the kitchen. Kitchen exhaust cleaning covers the duct behind them: the horizontal run, the riser and the fan inlet. A full-system visit does both.
How do I know whether my duct has access panels?
Lift a ceiling tile near the hood and follow the duct. A panel is a framed rectangle with fasteners on the side or bottom. Most runs that have never been opened have one near the collar or none.
Who is responsible for the shared riser in a downtown Galt or Preston building?
The building owner, in most leases. Each tenant owns the hood and the branch duct to the junction; the riser and fan above are common elements, quoted separately.
Can the duct be cleaned from the hood and the roof without opening panels?
No. Reaching in from the collar and down from the fan leaves the middle of the run untouched, and the middle holds the elbows where grease builds fastest.
Does kitchen exhaust cleaning include the rooftop fan?
The fan inlet is measured as the last point on the path. Repairs, replacement and hinge kits are on the exhaust fan repair page.