TR19 Grease and the Fire Safety Order 2005
What does commercial duct cleaning cost?
Duct cleaning is priced from the length and complexity of the run, how much access there is, how bad the deposits are and when you can shut the kitchen down, so nobody can quote it properly over the phone. What matters more than the price is what you get back: grease in kitchen extract ductwork is a fire risk your fire risk assessment has to deal with, and a clean with no verification report is not evidence of anything. Tell us about the system and duct cleaning contractors will quote you their actual price.
What happens next
- Tell us what system it is, how big it is and when the work can happen. Two minutes, no account.
- We pass your details to duct cleaning contractors covering your postcode, and to no one else.
- They quote you directly, usually after a survey. Compare the scope and the verification report, not just the price.
Duct Cleaning Quotes is a free introduction service operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd; we pass your details to relevant duct cleaning contractors who quote you directly. We may receive a fee from providers; you pay nothing and are under no obligation. We are not a cleaning contractor, we are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Building Engineering Services Association or any fire authority, and nothing here is fire safety or legal advice. TR19 and TR19 Grease are industry guidance, not legislation, and we publish cost drivers rather than prices because duct cleaning is priced from a survey.
What drives a duct cleaning price, 2026
Last updated
Duct cleaning quotes vary more by scope than by contractor, and two prices for the same building are often for two different jobs. This is the cost-driver table: what moves the number, why, and the scope question to settle before you compare quotes. The last rows are about evidence, which is what you are really buying on a kitchen extract system.
We do not publish a price per metre or per canopy for duct cleaning, because the same run of ductwork can differ by a large multiple depending on access, deposit levels and when the work can be done, and most contractors price only after a survey. This table sets out the drivers contractors quote against and the deliverables that make two quotes comparable. Regulatory statements are taken from the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005; TR19 and TR19 Grease are industry guidance published by BESA and are not law. Get quotes for your actual system via the form above.
| Cost driver | Why it moves the price | What to settle in the quote |
|---|---|---|
| Length and complexity of the duct run | A canopy with a short vertical riser to the roof is a different job from a run that crosses a building, changes direction repeatedly and passes through other tenancies. Time on site scales with both length and the number of bends. | The run described in the quote, ideally from a survey, with the sections that are and are not included |
| Access to the inside of the duct | Ductwork can only be cleaned where it can be reached. Systems without adequate access panels need panels cut and fitted, which is a separate cost and sometimes the largest single item on the first clean. | Whether new access panels are included, how many, and who makes good afterwards |
| How heavy the deposits are | A system on a regular schedule cleans quickly. One that has never been cleaned, or has no records, may need repeat passes, more chemical and longer on site, and it is more likely to reveal problems behind the panels. | Whether the price assumes a routine clean or a first deep clean, and what happens if the deposits are worse than surveyed |
| When the work can happen | Kitchen extract cleaning normally happens after service, so overnight and early-morning working is the norm and is priced accordingly. Work that must fit a single closed period carries its own premium. | The working window assumed in the price, and the uplift for overnight or weekend attendance |
| How much of the system is in scope | Canopy and filters only, canopy plus the accessible duct, the full run to the fan, or the full run including the fan and discharge point. These are four different prices and they are easy to confuse. | A scope written as canopy, filters, ductwork, fan and discharge, with each item marked in or out |
| The fan and the discharge point | The extract fan is often the dirtiest component and the hardest to reach, sometimes needing roof access, harnesses or a hoist. Some quotes quietly exclude it. | Whether the fan is cleaned, whether it is dismantled to do so, and what access equipment is included |
| Height and access equipment | Roof-level plant, high-level ductwork above ceilings and anything needing a mobile tower, hoist or permit adds hours and equipment hire before cleaning starts. | Access equipment, permits and any specialist working-at-height requirements named in the price |
| Building type and disruption control | Occupied hotels, hospitals and schools need protection, dust control, noise management and coordination that a standalone restaurant does not. | What protection, waste handling and reinstatement are included, and who signs off the area afterwards |
| Verification and reporting | Post-clean verification is what turns a clean into evidence: before and after photographs at recorded locations, measured deposit readings and a report you can hand to an insurer or a fire risk assessor. It takes time and it is the first thing a cheap quote drops. | A sample report before you order, and confirmation that deposit measurements and photographs are included |
| Why the evidence matters | Grease accumulation in kitchen extract ductwork is a fire risk, and under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 the responsible person's fire risk assessment has to address it. Insurers commonly ask for evidence of cleaning to TR19 Grease as part of the cover conditions. | That the report states what was cleaned, what could not be reached and why, and when the next clean is recommended |
- Duct cleaning is priced from the length and complexity of the run, the amount of internal access available, the deposit level and the working window, which is why most contractors survey before quoting.
- TR19 and TR19 Grease are guidance published by the Building Engineering Services Association, not legislation: the legal duty comes from the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, under which the responsible person must make a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment.
- The deliverable that matters on a kitchen extract clean is the post-clean verification report: before and after photographs at recorded locations, measured deposit readings, and a written record of anything that could not be reached.
- Ductwork can only be cleaned where it can be accessed, so on a first clean the cost of cutting and fitting access panels is often a larger line than the cleaning itself.
Cite this page
“What drives a duct cleaning price, 2026”, Duct Cleaning Quotes, https://ductcleaningquotes.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-14). We do not publish a price per metre or per canopy for duct cleaning, because the same run of ductwork can differ by a large multiple depending on access, deposit levels and when the work can be done, and most contractors price only after a survey. This table sets out the drivers contractors quote against and the deliverables that make two quotes comparable. Regulatory statements are taken from the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005; TR19 and TR19 Grease are industry guidance published by BESA and are not law. Get quotes for your actual system via the form above.
Read next
Every figure sourced and dated.
- TR19 Grease: what it is, what it is not, and what to ask for
TR19 and TR19 Grease explained for building managers: guidance rather than law, how it relates to the Fire Safety Order 2005, and the verification evidence to insist on.
- How often should kitchen extract ductwork be cleaned?
Kitchen extract cleaning frequency explained: the usage-based approach in TR19 Grease guidance, what raises the frequency, and why no statutory interval exists.
- Duct cleaning cost: what a quote is actually built from
Why commercial duct cleaning has no price per metre, the drivers that move a quote, the scope items that get quietly excluded, and how to compare two prices fairly.
- How commercial ductwork cleaning is actually done
The duct cleaning process step by step: survey, access panels, isolation, mechanical and chemical cleaning, the fan and discharge, and post-clean verification.
Questions, answered directly
How much does duct cleaning cost?
Contractors price from the length and complexity of the duct run, how much internal access exists, how heavy the deposits are, when the work can happen and how much of the system is in scope, which is why they normally survey first. We publish the cost drivers rather than a rate per metre, because the same length of ductwork can differ by a large multiple between a simple canopy run and a multi-riser building.
Is TR19 Grease a legal requirement?
No. TR19 Grease is guidance published by the Building Engineering Services Association, not law. The legal duty sits in the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005: the responsible person must make a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment and maintain fire safety measures. Grease in kitchen extract ductwork is a fire risk that assessment has to address, and TR19 Grease is the recognised method for doing so.
How often should kitchen extract ductwork be cleaned?
There is no statutory interval. Industry guidance links frequency to usage, commonly every 3 months for heavy use of around 12–16 hours of cooking a day, every 6 months for moderate use of around 6–12 hours, and every 12 months for light use of around 2–6 hours. Those are guidance bands, not law. Check the current guidance and your insurance policy wording, which often sets its own condition.
What should a duct cleaning report include?
Before and after photographs taken at recorded locations, measured deposit readings rather than a visual opinion, a description of what was cleaned section by section, an explicit list of anything that could not be reached and why, a record of access panels, a recommended next clean date, and the names of the company and operatives with dates. Ask to see a sample report before you place the order.
Does my insurer require duct cleaning evidence?
Many do. Insurers commonly ask for evidence of kitchen extract cleaning to TR19 Grease, and policy wordings for restaurants and hotels often make cleaning at a stated frequency a condition of cover. That is a contractual requirement rather than a statutory one, but a declined claim after a fire is a serious outcome. Read your own policy wording rather than relying on a contractor's summary of it.
Which parts of the system should be cleaned?
For kitchen extract: the canopy and filters, the accessible ductwork along its full run, the extract fan and the discharge point. Quotes commonly stop short of the fan and the discharge, which are usually the dirtiest parts. Ask for the scope broken into those five elements with each marked in or out, so two quotes can be compared on the same basis.