Fire Prevention Tips for Your Commercial Kitchen

11/30/2021 (Permalink)

Fire in commercial kitchen while cooking

If you own a bar, restaurant, or commercial kitchen in Acworth & Davis Crossroads, this article is for you. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) reports that fire departments responded to over 7,410 structure fires in the kitchen of restaurants and bars in 2017 alone. The majority of these fires were preventable, resulting in three deaths, 110 injuries, and $165 million in property damage annually in commercial kitchens. Don’t get caught unprepared with these quick and easy commercial kitchen maintenance tips.

Practice Proper Maintenance & Inspection in Your Commercial Facility

The first step towards proper maintenance to prevent a commercial kitchen fire in your facility is to create a regular plan for inspections. While you can do these yourself, it is often a good idea to consider outsourcing this service to a proper NICET Certified Fire Inspector. Depending on the volume of cooking in your commercial kitchen, they will likely recommend monthly, quarterly, or annual inspections to ensure compliance and safety.

On regular inspections, fire inspectors will provide the best guidance on where you should focus your team's routine maintenance time and resources. Ultimately, it is up to you as an owner or manager on how closely you implement those recommendations.

Typically, at least the vent, hood, and duct must be cleaned regularly to remove grease vapor and prevent combustible material build-up. Grease Filters should be cleaned at least once per week, and your automatic fire suppression system should be inspected at least every 6 months or as required by your local regulations. Regular cleaning according to equipment specifications should be observed as well.

What To Do If There Is a Fire In My Commercial Kitchen?

If you can, get everyone out safely. If you have an outdoor exit, have people leave that way. Do not open any interior doors or windows or use elevators during a fire. Even if it seems like it’s far away, do not stop to pick up personal belongings. Unless it’s your home, never go back inside during or after a fire. Once you are safe, call 911 immediately and stay on the line until help arrives. Once firefighters arrive on the scene they will assess if there is still a risk for injury within any structure fires before allowing you to re-enter your building.

Next, you should call a fire restoration expert like SERVPRO of NW Cobb to help you quickly restore your commercial kitchen to an operational state.

Our trained technicians are available 24/7/365, and ready to help. We also offer a special Emergency Response Plan to commercial facilities to reduce property damage in the case of an emergency commercial fire event. Call us today at (770) 966-1442 for emergency services or to schedule your free SERVPRO ERP.