Duct Cleaning in London
The hidden ductwork is where extract fires take hold. We arrange full duct-run cleans for London kitchens, right out to the discharge point.
Grease that gets past the filters does not disappear. It cools and settles along the ductwork — in the horizontal runs, at every bend and up the risers — and that layer is the fuel an extract fire needs to travel through a building. It is also the part of the system nobody sees, which is why it is so often missed.
We arrange complete ductwork cleaning quotes for kitchens across central, east, north, south and west London, through a specialist provider who cleans the full run to the discharge and records the result.
Why it matters in older buildings
Plenty of London kitchens sit in basements or on the ground floor of period buildings with flats, offices or hotel rooms above, so the duct climbs several floors to the roof or runs through voids shared with other occupiers. In July 2022 a fire at a restaurant on Monument Street in the City destroyed the ducting from the basement to the fourth floor, and London Fire Brigade said it was caused by grease in the ducting igniting and spreading. In May 2023 kitchen ducting from the plant room to the roof of a six-storey building on Shoreditch High Street was destroyed in a fire the Brigade put down to grease and cooking deposits inside it. Long, hidden runs are exactly where a canopy-only clean falls short.
What is involved
The provider surveys the route, opens up the access points and fits new panels where sections cannot otherwise be reached, then cleans each section mechanically — scraping, wiping and vacuuming, with food-safe chemicals for heavy deposits. Readings and photographs at each access point go into the report and certificate.
Access panels
If your ductwork has never had access panels, the first clean may include fitting them. It is a one-off cost that makes every later clean faster and makes the whole run inspectable. The quote will show it separately.
Related services: Kitchen Canopy Cleaning · TR19 Extract Cleaning · Extract Fan Cleaning · Filter Cleaning & Replacement · Inspection & Reporting
By sector: Restaurants · Takeaways · Pubs and Bars · Hotels · Cafés · Care Homes · Schools and Universities · Fish and Chip Shops
Popular areas: Soho · City of London · Shoreditch · Canary Wharf · Brixton · Croydon · Ealing · all areas
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the whole duct run cleaned?
Yes, from the canopy to the external discharge. Where a section cannot be reached, access panels are fitted so it can be.
Do you need to go into neighbouring units?
Sometimes, where the duct passes through another tenancy or a shared riser. The provider will flag this at survey so access can be arranged in advance.
How is the clean proven?
Grease readings and photographs are taken before and after at the access points and included in the post-clean report and certificate.
Get a Free London Kitchen Extract Cleaning Quote
Send us your kitchen details and we'll arrange a tailored, no-obligation quote from a specialist TR19 provider — usually the same day.