TR19 Compliance

As your kitchen staff fry and cook the meals your customers enjoy, there’s a rising problem hidden away above their heads. This silent danger increases by the day and whilst it might be out of sight, it shouldn’t be out of mind. Duct cleaning and ensuring compliance with TR19 specification is key for commercial kitchens. In this post we’ll outline the issues commercial kitchens face and how you can keep your ducts clean.

Fire Risks with Dirty Ducts

Cooking in commercial kitchens generates airborne grease which condenses on the inner walls of kitchen extract duct work. This then accumulates meal after meal, day after day creating an ever-looming fire risk. If regular deep cleans of the ventilation system are not carried out, then all it could take is a single flame from the fryers to ignite the grease causing fire to quickly spread throughout your entire ventilation system.

TR19 – A New Stand-alone Specification

The building engineering services association (BESA) have recently updated TR19®, the specification for fire risk management of grease accumulation within kitchen extraction systems. Commercial kitchens have grown in number over recent years and fires within premises involving commercial kitchen extract systems is also on the rise. This has focused the attention of insurers, property owners and landlords to ensuring the kitchen extraction systems are correctly cleaned and maintained. BESA now expects caterers to be far more vigilant and if they don’t, they increase their risk of prosecution.

This has focused the attention of insurers, property owners and landlords to ensuring the kitchen extraction systems are correctly

cleaned and maintained.

The Wet Film Thickness Test

Professional duct cleaning companies are now expected to take a wet film thickness test to verify the cleanliness of kitchen extract systems against TR19 compliance. This involves scraping a comb-like gauge across several sections of the ductwork to measure the grease build up within the extract system.

BESA TR19 Standards Requirements

Under 200μm (as a mean across the system): compliant
Over 200μm: complete cleaning required
Any single measurement over 500μm: Urgent cleaning required

If you run a commercial kitchen then it goes without saying that you need to be compliant with the TR19 standards or if not you are taking both legal and health and safety risks. We have the technology and experience to make sure your kitchen is compliant and safe.

What is TR19?

TR19 is the required standard to which ductwork should be cleaned, tested, and inspected. All employers have a legal obligation to ensure working environments are clean and safe as well as meet the requirements of insurance companies. The Building Engineering Services Association defined TR19 in 1988 to ensure duct cleaning and other extraction system maintenance would meet an industry-approved set of criteria. Requirements for ductwork cleaning have been categorised under high, medium, and low depending on the environment. Different organisations will need varying levels of ductwork cleaning depending on the type of company and air quality specifications. Facilities that require high levels of cleanliness, such as a hospital will have a “high” classification whereas an office space would likely fall under the “medium” category. Duct cleaning companies use the guidance outlined in the TR19 standard to determine the level and frequency of maintenance and testing required.

What does the TR19 Standard Entail

The TR19 Standard is a protocol that sets out how to properly and comprehensively clean kitchen extract and ventilation ductwork systems. It’s the most commonly used standard for this kind of cleaning and is recognised by most insurers and building engineering service providers.

The key elements of the TR19 standard are:

Access Mechanisms

The ductwork should be designed in such a way that it can be easily accessed for cleaning purposes. This typically involves having easily accessible and removable access panels or hatches that allow cleaners to get inside the ductwork to clean it properly.

It’s vital to ensure that all parts of the access mechanism are cleaned thoroughly to prevent dirt and grease from building up and causing blockages.

The TR19 regulations state that all access mechanisms must be cleaned:

At least once a year
More frequently if there is evidence of excessive dirt or grease build-up
Whenever the system is serviced or repaired

Inspection Mechanisms

Ductwork must be inspected regularly to ensure that it is still clean and meets the required standards. This typically involves using a borescope or other visual inspection tool to look inside the ductwork and check for any dirt, debris or grease build-up. Tests such as Wet Film Thickness (WFT) can also be used to measure the amount of grease build-up on surfaces, while Deposit Thickness Ratio (DTR) can be used to assess the level of debris in the ductwork.

TR19 duct cleaning standards advise that inspections should be carried out periodically and not exceeding 12-month intervals.

Cleaning Processes

There are a number of different cleaning processes that can be used to clean ductwork, depending on the type of system and the level of contamination. The most common methods recommended by TR19 guidance include:

Manual Cleaning
Air-washing
Brush Cleaning
Vacuuming
Chemical Cleaning

In order to ensure that the cleaning process is effective, the TR19 regulations require that all cleaners are trained and competent in using the chosen cleaning method. They must also have the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) to protect themselves from any potential hazards.

Post-Cleaning Verification Methods

Once the cleaning process is complete, it’s important to verify that the system has been cleaned effectively and meets the required standards. This involves carrying out another visual inspection using a borescope or other similar tool. The surfaces should be visibly clean with no evidence of dirt, debris or grease build-up. Further WFT and DTR tests can also be used to verify that the system has been cleaned effectively.

A Post Cleaning Report should be generated after each duct cleaning session, detailing the methods used, the results of any inspections or tests, and any actions that need to be taken. This report should be signed off by both the cleaners and the building owner/manager. This report can provide evidence that the system has been cleaned to the required standard should it ever be requested by an insurer or other organisation.

Meet TR19 Standards & Regulations

At Deduct, our professional teams are equipped with the training and experience needed to meet TR19 standards and regulations. We’ll provide a no-obligation quote that’s bespoke to your requirements. Our highly recommended and reputable service makes use of the latest duct cleaning processes and technologies to deliver outstanding results.

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