TR19 Grease Compliance for Hertfordshire Kitchens

If you run a commercial kitchen in Hertfordshire, North London, Luton, Bedford or Harlow, the standard your extract system is judged against is TR19 Grease. This guide explains what it asks for, how often a kitchen needs cleaning, and what paperwork you should have.

Page reviewed 1 October 2026 by Hertfordshire Canopy Cleaning, a quote-arranging service. The cleaning is carried out by an independent specialist provider.

What TR19 Grease is

TR19 Grease is a specification published by BESA in 2019 for managing the fire risk from grease in kitchen extract systems. It replaced the grease section of the older TR19 document, which now covers general ventilation hygiene. It sets out how often systems should be cleaned, how clean is clean enough, how the work should be done and what the post-clean report should contain.

How often a kitchen needs cleaning

These are minimums. The real interval should come from the grease readings taken at each clean, the type of cooking and how the menu changes through the year. London Fire Brigade guidance adds that kitchens producing a lot of fried or chargrilled food build up grease much faster than those that mostly bake or boil.

How clean is clean enough

TR19 Grease sets a limit of a mean 200 microns of grease across the system between cleans — roughly half the thickness of a business card. Any reading of 500 microns or more needs an immediate spot clean. Deposits are measured with a wet film thickness test or a deposit thickness test before and after the clean, so the certificate proves the result.

What has to be cleaned

The whole extraction route: canopies, filters, plenums, risers, horizontal ductwork, the extract fan and the discharge point. Access panels are fitted at regular intervals — typically every two to three metres where the layout allows — so every section can be reached. A canopy-only clean does not meet the standard. See TR19 extract cleaning, ductwork cleaning and fan cleaning.

The post-clean report

You should receive before-and-after photographs from matching positions, the grease test results, a written summary including any areas that could not be reached, and a hygiene certificate with the date, the location and the name of the technician. Keep it with your fire risk assessment — it is the first thing a loss adjuster asks for after a fire.

Why it matters locally

London Fire Brigade guidance on catering kitchen extract systems quotes its Fire Investigation Team: “by far the most common problem and cause of ducting fires is the lack of proper cleaning and maintenance” (LFB guidance note GN86). In May 2020 a fire at a takeaway with flats above on Station Road, Edgware, spread through heavy grease in the extraction system after oil ignited in a deep fat fryer (LFB incident report). In July 2025 a takeaway fire on Sterling Way, Edmonton, was believed to have been caused by grease igniting in the ducting (LFB incident report). In August 2026 a fire service investigation found that a fire at Futures House in Luton started in a takeaway's extractor system, and that grease deposits helped it spread through ducts across three floors (Luton Today).

Insurance and the Fire Safety Order

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 requires the responsible person to assess and reduce fire risk, and kitchen extract belongs in that assessment. Most commercial kitchen insurance policies also carry a condition that the extract is cleaned to a recognised standard. Without the certificates, a claim after a grease fire can be reduced or refused.

Food hygiene

Council food safety officers score the condition and cleanliness of the premises, and a greasy canopy and dripping filters count against you. In England you do not have to display your food hygiene rating sticker, but customers can look it up online and on delivery apps.

Frequently Asked Questions

Ready for a quote? Send us your kitchen details or read what it costs.