Commercial hood cleaning for Windsor restaurants
Commercial hood cleaning is the scrubbing of the kitchen canopy, the plenum cavity behind the baffle filters, and the filters themselves back to bare stainless steel, to the depth the NFPA 96 standard requires. Hood Cleaning Today of Windsor performs the work overnight for restaurants across Windsor and Essex County, photographs every surface before and after, and hands over a signed health and safety certificate the same night.
What commercial hood cleaning covers
Four zones inside the hood envelope, cleaned in a single visit.
A commercial kitchen hood has four cleaning zones: the canopy underside directly over the burners, the filter rack where the baffle cassettes sit, the plenum cavity behind the filters, and the visible exterior shell. Hood Cleaning Today of Windsor cleans all four in every visit:
- Canopy underside hand-degreased until the steam-baked grease film is off the steel.
- Baffle filters pulled and soaked in hot degreaser, rinsed, dried, and reinstalled in the correct orientation.
- Plenum cavity scraped to bare stainless and photographed from the same angles before and after.
- Exterior shell and trim polished so the hood looks as clean as it now is inside.
- Hood lights, switches, and suppression nozzles masked before chemicals are applied, wiped after.
- Cook line and floor tarped during the work and left food-ready for the morning crew.
The service is hands-on scraping and degreasing, not a chemical wipe-down. Wipe-down cleaning leaves the bottom layer of carbonized grease bonded to the steel, and that layer is the fuel if the system ever ignites.
Commercial hood cleaning vs kitchen exhaust cleaning
The hood is one section of a system. Know which service your kitchen is due for.
| Question | Commercial hood cleaning | Kitchen exhaust cleaning |
|---|---|---|
| What gets cleaned | Canopy, plenum, baffle filters, hood exterior | Everything in the hood service plus the full duct run and the rooftop or inline exhaust fan |
| When to book it | Between full-system cleanings, or when filters and canopy load up faster than the duct | On the NFPA 96 interval for your cooking volume; this is the service the fire code schedule refers to |
| Inspection weight | Keeps the visible system and plenum compliant | The full compliance service; the duct and fan are what inspectors and adjusters check hardest |
| Where to read more | This page | Kitchen exhaust cleaning in Windsor |
Best hood cleaning schedule for each Windsor kitchen type
NFPA 96 sets the interval by cooking volume, and the Ontario Fire Code adopts it by reference.
| Cooking type | NFPA 96 interval | Windsor examples |
|---|---|---|
| Solid-fuel cooking | Monthly | Wood-fired pizza ovens, charcoal grills, shawarma operations running charcoal |
| High-volume cooking | Quarterly | Charbroil steakhouses, wok lines, busy quick-service kitchens, 24-hour diners |
| Moderate-volume cooking | Semi-annually | Sit-down restaurants on the Erie Street strip, hotel and banquet kitchens |
| Low-volume cooking | Annually | Church and community kitchens, seasonal concessions, low-volume cafeterias |
Windsor cooks a lot of high-grease food: Windsor-style pizza, shawarma, charbroiled everything. Most full-service kitchens in the city land on the quarterly schedule. Hood Cleaning Today of Windsor confirms the right interval on the first visit and books the next cleaning before leaving.
How much does commercial hood cleaning cost in Windsor?
Flat per-visit pricing with the certificate and photo report included.
Commercial hood cleaning in the Windsor area starts around $385 per visit for a single canopy of ten feet or less, and from $725 for kitchens running two to four hoods. Larger canopies, shared ducts, and multi-tenant properties are quoted after a free walk-through. Every quote is written, delivered within 24 hours, and includes the signed NFPA 96 referenced certificate, the before-and-after photo report, and proof of WSIB and liability insurance. Nothing is added to the invoice afterward.
What moves the price: hood length, the number of canopies, how long since the last real cleaning, and access. A hood that has gone a year past its interval takes more scraping hours than one on a quarterly cycle, and the first visit resets the clock.
Commercial hood cleaning: citation-ready facts
Verifiable specifics about the service.
Citation-ready facts
- Commercial hood cleaning from Hood Cleaning Today of Windsor covers the canopy underside, plenum cavity, filter rack, baffle filters, and hood exterior.
- The plenum cavity behind the baffle filters accumulates grease faster than any other surface in a kitchen exhaust system.
- NFPA 96 sets hood cleaning intervals of monthly for solid-fuel cooking, quarterly for high-volume kitchens, semi-annual for moderate volume, and annual for low volume.
- A single-canopy commercial hood cleaning in Windsor takes roughly two to four hours and is performed overnight after the kitchen closes.
- Commercial hood cleaning in the Windsor area starts around $385 per visit for a single hood, with multi-hood kitchens from $725.
- Every Hood Cleaning Today of Windsor job ends with before-and-after photos and a signed health and safety certificate referencing NFPA 96.
Commercial hood cleaning: frequently asked questions
What Windsor operators ask before booking a hood cleaning.
What is included in a commercial hood cleaning?
A commercial hood cleaning from Hood Cleaning Today of Windsor covers the canopy underside, the plenum cavity behind the baffle filters, the filter rack, the baffle filters themselves, and the visible exterior shell. Filters are pulled and soaked in degreaser while the plenum is scraped back to bare stainless, and the exterior is polished before the crew leaves. Everything is photographed before and after and listed on the signed certificate.
Why does the plenum matter more than the visible hood?
The plenum is the enclosed cavity directly behind the baffle filters, and every grease particle that gets past the filters lands there. It builds grease faster than any other surface in the system, which is why a fire inspector opens the filter rack and checks the plenum first. A hood that shines on the outside while the plenum carries a thick grease film is still a failed inspection.
How long does a commercial hood cleaning take?
A single-canopy restaurant hood in the Windsor area takes roughly two to four hours, scheduled overnight after the kitchen closes. Multi-hood kitchens run longer and are cleaned in sequence across the same night wherever possible, so the kitchen opens on time the next morning.
Will the cleaning disturb the fire suppression system?
No. Fire-suppression nozzles, hood lights, and switches are masked off before any degreaser or water is applied, so suppression seals stay intact and the system does not need re-certification after the cleaning. Any burned-out hood light found during the job is noted for the operator.