Commercial Kitchen Ventilation - The Basics

Commercial kitchen ventilation is required to keep people safe during indoor cooking. This includes the capture of airborne contaminantes 

 free of the effluent produced by the cooking processs. 

Cooking effluent includes:

Heat generated from the cooking appliances that is not absorbed by the food.

Smoke - Particulate and invisible Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)  produced during high temperature charring and frying.

Byproducts of combustion from Natural Gas / Methane fueled cooking equipment

Fats – Solid at room temperature, usually from animal products (butter, lard).

Oils – Liquid at room temperature, often from plants (vegetable, canola). 

Grease – The combination of fats and oils after cooking that also include residues from food particles. 

with hoods and fans, balances exhaust and makeup air, adjusts airflow with demand control, and protects against fire with filters and suppression systems.