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Hood Cleaning Services in Louisville, KY
Grease accumulates every shift — in the hood plenum, through the duct run, and around the exhaust fan housing. For restaurants, bars, hotels, and institutional kitchens in Louisville, that buildup is both a fire hazard and a compliance liability. Kitchen Guard of Louisville cleans the entire exhaust system, not just the visible surfaces, on every visit.
We operate to NFPA 96, the national standard for commercial kitchen ventilation systems. After each service, we leave time-stamped before-and-after photos and a signed service report — the documentation Louisville Metro Fire Department, Hardin County, Bullitt County, and Indiana State Fire Marshal inspectors ask to see.
What Our Hood Cleaning Service Includes
A complete exhaust system cleaning is more than wiping down the visible hood face. Our technicians work through every component where grease accumulates and can ignite.
Hood & Plenum Cleaning
We start by removing filters — baffle filters, mesh filters, or cassette filters depending on your system — and soaking them in chemical degreaser. The hood interior, plenum chamber, and grease collection troughs are cleaned using hot water pressure equipment and NFPA 96-approved degreasers. Filters are cleaned or replaced and reinstalled before we leave. If your hood has a UL 300 suppression system, we work around all nozzles and components without disturbing them.
Duct & Exhaust Fan Cleaning
The duct run from the hood to the rooftop and the exhaust fan housing are where the most dangerous grease deposits build. We access the full duct interior — including horizontal runs, elbows, and risers — using duct spinner tools and a magnetic duct scraper for longer runs. The fan blades, housing, and roof curb are cleaned and inspected. These are the components most commonly skipped by incomplete service providers.
Grease Filter Exchange
NFPA 96 requires filters to be kept clean between full system cleanings. For high-volume Louisville restaurants running fryers, charbroilers, or flat-top grills, filters can saturate faster than a quarterly cleaning schedule addresses. We offer scheduled filter exchange programs — monthly or bi-monthly — so grease never accumulates to a compliance liability between visits.
Exhaust Fan Inspection & Servicing
A grease-saturated exhaust fan reduces airflow, strains the motor, and creates rooftop fire risk. During every service we inspect fan bearings, belts, and measured airflow performance alongside cleaning. If we identify mechanical issues — worn belts, bearing play, inadequate airflow — we document them in the service report so you can act before they become failures. For fans needing repair, see our kitchen exhaust repair service.
Cleaning Frequency by Kitchen Type
NFPA 96 Table 11.4 sets minimum cleaning frequency based on cooking equipment and volume. Solid fuel operations (wood-fired, charcoal) and high-volume wok stations require monthly service. Most Louisville restaurants running fryers, charbroilers, or multiple commercial ranges need quarterly cleaning. Lower-output operations — catering facilities, seasonal kitchens, ice cream shops — may qualify for semi-annual service. We assess your specific equipment load and recommend a compliant schedule based on actual output, not a generic calendar.
Compliance Documentation on Every Visit
Every Kitchen Guard service produces a complete documentation package: time-stamped before-and-after photos of every system component, a signed NFPA 96 service report listing the date, technician, and areas cleaned, and grease depth readings where applicable. This package satisfies Louisville Metro Fire, Hardin County, Bullitt County, and Indiana State Fire Marshal inspection requirements. It also protects your insurance coverage — carriers can deny grease fire claims when documentation of regular cleaning cannot be produced.
Louisville Restaurants & Commercial Kitchens We Serve
We clean hood systems for full-service restaurants, fast-casual operations, hotel and event kitchens, school and university cafeterias, nursing home and hospital food service, brewery and distillery kitchens, and ghost kitchen facilities throughout Louisville and Jefferson County. Every account receives the same NFPA 96-compliant service with jurisdiction-specific documentation for their fire marshal.
We also serve commercial kitchens in Elizabethtown and Hardin County, Shepherdsville and Bullitt County, Prospect and Oldham County, and Jeffersonville and Southern Indiana. All locations receive the same documentation package required by their respective fire jurisdictions.
Call 502-418-8095 to schedule a service assessment or set up a recurring cleaning program.
Kitchen Guard of Louisville Answers All Your Hood Cleaning Questions
Here are answers to some of the most common questions about our hood cleaning services, designed to keep your kitchen safe, compliant, and running smoothly.
NFPA 96 sets exhaust hood cleaning frequency based on cooking volume and equipment type. High-volume kitchens using solid fuel or wok cooking need monthly service. Most Louisville restaurants running charbroilers or fryers need quarterly cleaning. Lower-volume operations such as catering kitchens or seasonal facilities may qualify for semi-annual service. We assess your specific kitchen and recommend a schedule based on your actual output — not a one-size calendar.
NFPA 96 is the national standard for commercial kitchen ventilation systems and exhaust hood cleaning frequency. Louisville Metro Fire Department, Hardin County, Bullitt County, and Indiana State Fire Marshal all reference NFPA 96 during kitchen inspections. Non-compliance can result in failed health inspections, insurance claim denials after a grease fire, and forced closure. Every Kitchen Guard service is performed to NFPA 96 standards with signed documentation left on-site.
A complete exhaust hood cleaning service covers the hood interior and plenum, grease troughs, filters, the full duct run from hood to rooftop, the exhaust fan housing and wheel, and the rooftop curb area. We photograph every component before and after so you have visual proof of condition — not just a signature on a form. If your ductwork lacks proper NFPA 96 access panels, we can install them during the service visit.
Yes. Every exhaust hood cleaning service includes time-stamped before-and-after photos of all system components, a signed NFPA 96 service report, and a dated sticker affixed to the hood showing the next recommended service date. This documentation package satisfies Louisville Metro Fire Department inspectors, Kentucky and Indiana health license renewal requirements, and commercial insurance documentation requests.
Yes. Kitchen Guard serves the entire Greater Louisville metro — Elizabethtown and Hardin County, Shepherdsville and Bullitt County, Prospect and Oldham County, and Jeffersonville, Clarksville, and New Albany in Southern Indiana. All areas receive the same NFPA 96-compliant exhaust hood cleaning with local compliance documentation for their specific jurisdiction.
