Ensuring Proper Ventilation for Your Commercial Kitchen

July 27, 2018

Proper ventilation in a restaurant setting is imperative for both employee and customer health, as well as food sanitation. Improper ventilation can lead to a variety of issues including safety violations, higher utility bills, decreased employee productivity and more. Commercial kitchens have unique ventilation needs, from minimizing smoke and fumes to controlling food odors. Today's blog from Fast Fix LLC addresses some ways to ensure your restaurant is properly ventilated.

Keeping Your Restaurant Cool

The kitchen is the heart of your restaurant, and it is also the area that needs the most ventilation. With the variety of equipment in a commercial kitchen, it's easy for the temperature inside to rise to unbearable levels. High temperatures are not just an inconvenience for your employees, but they can affect your restaurant's bottom line. Studies have shown that employee productivity peaks at just over 71° and drops off above 77°. Outside of these optimal temperatures, employees exhibit a higher rate of mistakes. An overly heated kitchen also increases your utility bills, as your HVAC system is working harder to keep the place cool. The compressors on your refrigeration units also must work overtime in a hot environment. To keep the kitchen cool without freezing out your customers in the dining room, be sure to put your kitchen on a separate zone with its own thermostat.

Addressing Air Quality Concerns

Of all the places where air quality can become a concern, commercial kitchens rank toward the top of the list. Cooking releases grease, smoke and food particles into the air. This can be both unpleasant and unsafe. Health department regulations typically require ventilation hoods be installed over cooking equipment. However, codes vary from state to state, so be sure that you are using the proper size and grade of ventilation hood for your equipment. Maximize your hood's efficiency by setting your appliances as close to the wall as possible, to ensure the entire cooking area is covered. If preparing greasy foods in your kitchen, be sure to install a hood that's designed filter grease, because not all of them are. Be sure to regularly clean these vents

Ensuring Enough Makeup Air is Available

"Makeup Air" is outside air that's brought inside to compensate for the amount of air being exhausted. You want to make sure that you are bringing in enough of that outside air. Not enough makeup air can lead to a negative pressure condition in your kitchen. This can lead to a variety of problems such as poor air quality, reduced energy efficiency, areas that are stuffy or drafty, doors that slam, and back-venting of combustion gases from HVAC equipment. Proper makeup air regulation can go a long way toward optimizing ventilation, as well as temperature throughout your commercial kitchen and the entire restaurant.

A well-placed exhaust fan, portable fan or small air-conditioning unit may be all that's needed to fix ventilation issues in your commercial kitchen. Fast Fix LLC is here to help with repairs on your exhaust vents, makeup air and more! When HVAC repairs are needed, trust Missouri's best restaurant equipment repair company to get the job done right. Our experience and specialty doesn't stop with cooking equipment, we also have experience in HVAC, electrical, plumbing and more!