Air Conditioning Duct Work Cleaning – Rats in Ductwork

How To Tackle Rats In Your Duct Work

From pollen to mites, mould, and household dust, all sorts of nasties can be lurking in your duct work…including rats and mice. If you have rats you might have already heard the patter of tiny feet, but as you get preoccupied with day-to-day activities this may well go unnoticed until a foul smell emerges from your ceiling. Regular air conditioning duct work cleaning, however, will ensure that your business premises stays in pristine condition – even the areas not visible to staff or customers.

Duct work cleaning is so vital because unclean duct work will impinge on the health of staff and customers. As unclean air circulates through your business, it can aggravate existing problems such as asthma and allergies, which has a knock on affect through staff sickness and absenteeism. According to NHS statistics, as many as 5.4 million people in the UK receive treatment for breathing problems or asthma. Research shows that air quality inside homes and buildings have higher levels of certain pollutants in comparison to outside air. Since we spend the majority of our working day – and nights – indoors this can worsen the problem.

So, to keep your staff healthy and happy, it’s important to prioritise air conditioning duct work cleaning and not to leave it on the back burner. Here we take a look at what you can do to solve the problem of rats in the duct work.

Why Rats Get into the Duct Work

Rats and mice are attracted to duct work as it creates the ideal conditions for survival. Duct work is not only colder in summer and warmer in winter, but it also keeps rodents safe from predators and, of course, rats like to inhabit places that are close to where humans live as it means easy access to food.

Why it is a Problem

Rats in your air conditioning can cause a number of problems: firstly they may chew holes in your duct work making your air conditioning less efficient, secondly there are a number of health problems associated with rats. For a start, rat faeces are toxic, and the excrement can attract other rats to inhabit the area, thus escalating the problem; also, if there is a dead rat in your duct work, not only is the smell hard to tolerate, but the carcass will attract flies which creates further health and safety issues. Thirdly, rats can urinate up to three gallons a year, and breathing in rat urine can put your staff or customers at risk of contracting diseases such as Hantavirus, which is deadly to humans.

How to Tackle it

There are several ways to tackle rats in your duct work. One is by organising regular duct work cleaning from a reputable company such as Ingot Services. During the cleaning process they will check for holes in the duct work to ensure it is in full working order. Regular duct work cleaning will improve the air quality in your building, ensure your duct system runs at a more comfortable level. It saves money in the long run as you won’t have to carry out major repairs.  However, if your building frequently attracts rats or mice, it is also time to think about calling in the pest control services who will tackle the problem at source.

Over the years Ingot Services has seen a number of incidents at first hand where rats and mice have chewed holes in the ductwork and generally created havoc. Although it is tempting to tackle the problem yourself, a proper cleanup is essential and is best tackled by the experts. 

Call Ingot Services for a free quotation on 0800 731 7892.

Cleaning Kitchen Service – 9 Kitchen Hygiene Essentials

Nine At-a-Glance Rules for Commercial Kitchen Hygiene

Complying with health and safety rules is vital in any kitchen, particularly in commercial kitchens where it is important to eliminate risk of the sickness and injury to protect your establishment’s reputation.

Here Ingot Services, who offer deep kitchen cleaning services, has compiled a list of nine commercial kitchen hygiene essentials that should never be ignored. These include the day-to-day requirements – such as keeping surfaces clean – and activities that are less frequent but none-the-less still necessary, such as organising professional duct work cleaning.

We have only just covered the basics as there are a host of ways to keep your commercial kitchen healthy. For more information on up-to-date commercial kitchen hygiene, view the Health and Safety website.

Personal Hygiene

Keeping yourself clean, wearing clean clothing, and washing your hands often is one of the top tips to prevent the transfer of bacteria and viruses onto food, crockery or kitchen surfaces. Bacteria can spread quickly, so to comply with health and safety rules it is vital to wash your hands at every stage of the food preparation process, including before and after preparing food, touching raw food, handling waste or chemicals, eating or touching your face, and after every work break.

Illnesses

If you have illnesses such as cold or flu, a skin related disease, infected wound, diarrhoea or stomach problems, you should tell your supervisor in advance of attending work. If you don’t inform your supervisor, you are breaking the law. Staff who handle food and are ill are advised to stay off work until they are symptom free for at least two full days.

Kitchen Surfaces

The best way to keep on top of cleanliness is to clean equipment and food surfaces as you go along. For a more thorough clean, Ingot Services offers a deep kitchen cleaning service, where all equipment is dismantled and cleaned and all areas of the kitchen – including hard to reach places – are thoroughly cleansed.

Reheating Food

If you are reheating food, it is important to heat it to the right temperature and ensure that it is piping hot before serving. Red meat should have a temperature of 70C in the middle and white meat, 80C. You shouldn’t reheat food more than once, and any leftovers should be thrown away.

Raw Food

It is vital for health reasons to keep the preparation of fresh and raw food entirely separate to prevent any contamination. Use colour coded chopping boards to prevent any mix-ups when food is being prepared.

Refrigeration

It goes without saying that food shouldn’t be left out and should be covered and refrigerated overnight. Keep a record of storage and expiry dates so you know exactly when food should be thrown away.

Duct Cleaning

Regular duct work cleaning should be organised to prevent the build-up of grease and grime, which can pose a fire risk. This is a legal requirement for commercial kitchens and can prove life-saving.

Cuts

Handling sharp knives can lead to minor injuries. If you do get a small cut or wound during food preparation, you are obliged to cover it with a waterproof dressing. Highly visible blue plasters are available for this purpose.

Safety

It is vital to follow procedures when making food and to work safely so you don’t put yourself or anyone else at risk. Equipment – such as sharp knives – should be stored safely and deliveries shouldn’t be left in corridors where they could be a tripping hazard. If you feel something is wrong, flag it up with your supervisor.

To find out about more duct work and deep kitchen cleaning, contact Ingot Services

Duct Work Cleaning – Commercial Kitchen Cleaning in Peak Summer

Don't Neglect Kitchen and Duct Work Cleaning During Peak Summer Season

Duct work cleaning and hygiene in commercial kitchens is important for customer safety – and the reputation of your business – all year round. But for many food businesses, summer is the busiest time of the year, as well as being the hottest, making maintaining hygiene levels a bigger challenge than normal. 

Many restaurants and food outlets experience a summer surge in business for a number of reasons, and summer 2014 is no exception:

•  Restaurants, cafes and takeaways located in popular tourist locations will usually have a summer season and some will even close over the winter.
• As well as serving the local population, there is usually an influx of tourists to many UK cities and attractions.
• The school holidays – combined with an increase in families taking holidays at home in the UK – means that there are more people out and about during the day, looking for places to eat.
• The World Cup and Commonwealth Games, both taking place this summer, mean more people opting for takeaways or combining watching football on a big screen with a pub meal.
• The economic upturn is encouraging people to eat out more often, even if it's only a high street takeaway.
• Finally, this summer is already delivering far better weather than last year, and many people are keen to make the most of it, encouraging them to take advantage of longer summer evenings to socialise with friends and eat out more often.

But while food businesses relish the prospect of a summer boom, maintaining hygiene at this time of year is more challenging for a number of reasons:

• Higher use of kitchens means waste, dirt and grease build up more quickly – perhaps faster than daily cleaning can cope with.
• Kitchen staff are under extra pressure to deliver more meals to more customers, leaving them less time than usual to carry out vital daily cleaning.
• Summer is a time when staff are more likely to take their holidays, and when it is most likely that the business takes on temporary staff – which means that cleaning standards can easily slip.
• Higher ambient temperatures means food can go off more quickly and any bacteria present on surfaces can multiply to dangerous levels in a very short time.
• Higher temperatures also means that food smells are stronger and can attract unwanted pests from much further afield.
• Higher temperatures, even at night, within duct work means that any bacteria or mould present will breed faster; and, contaminated air is more likely to get back into the main kitchen (especially when the ventilation is turned off overnight), causing invisible but potentially serious hygiene problems.
• Insects and bugs of all kinds are in peak breeding season and looking for easy food sources for their eggs and larvae. This means there is an increased chance of infestations which simply adds to the hygiene problem as well as attracting unwanted attention from customers and hygiene inspectors.

Our advice:

These extra summer hygiene challenges can be easily minimised and managed with a strong daily cleaning regime, combined with extra help from a professional cleaning company. We recommend:

• Carrying out thorough duct work and kitchen extract cleaning at the start and end of the summer season. This is especially important for restaurants and takeaways with a high output of fried goods.
• Minimising the build up of hygiene problems in the rest of the kitchen with regular commercial kitchen cleaning – at least pre-season and end of season. This should include areas inaccessible to daily cleaning such as behind and under cooking and preparation units – even small amounts of food left in these spaces can attract insects, mice and so on.
• Minimising the impact on your business by choosing contractors willing to carry out cleaning at times to suit your opening hours. Ingot Services can arrange to clean overnight or at other times to minimise disruption to your business. If in doubt about the state of your duct work or other inaccessible places within the kitchen, get an inspection from a professional kitchen and ductwork cleaning contractor.

Call Ingot Services to arrange a visit on 0800 731 7892.

Commercial Kitchen Cleaners – Restaurants Fined for Poor Hygiene

Restaurants Fined Thousands for Poor Hygiene – Commercial Kitchen Cleaners Would Have Been Cheaper

Arranging regular, scheduled cleaning by commercial kitchen cleaners can be a sound investment in your food business, in more ways than one – as some restaurants have recently discovered to their cost.

Courts are taking hygiene in restaurants seriously and are not afraid to impose significant fines on offenders. Here are just a few examples from the first half of 2014:

• A French "fine-dining" restaurant in Hove was fined a whopping £10,000 in May this year after inspectors found a number of serious hygiene problems, including a fruit fly infestation, a dangerous build up of grease in duct work, and food waste left on floors.

• In April, an Indian restaurant in Gillingham was fined £800, plus £2000 in costs, after cockroaches were discovered in a kitchen described as "filthy".

• Meanwhile, a Brighton restaurant was fined nearly £9000 in January, after inspectors found extensive evidence of mouse droppings within the kitchen. In addition the restaurant was forced to close down while the premises were cleaned and treated.

In the case of the Hove restaurant, inspectors gave the restaurant notice of the problems which needed to be addressed and only proceeded to prosecute when it was clear on a further inspection, a few weeks later, that many of the hygiene issues had still not been dealt with. A single call to commercial cleaning contractor could have resolved the entire issue for them in a weekend – and saved them several thousand pounds.

The Real Cost of Prosecution

The fines that are possible following a successful prosecution for poor hygiene can be high enough to make a severe impact on the cashflow of a business. Not many small businesses can easily find £10,000, for instance, and in some cases this type of fine could even threaten the viability of your business.

But financial cost aside, a more serious – and long-lasting – problem is probably the negative publicity surrounding a hygiene prosecution. All such cases are a matter of public record and a court case inevitably means press attention.

Local papers are always on the lookout for items relating to the local area and won't hesitate to publish the details of the case and a picture of the premises in question. And it's not hard to predict the likely effect on customers of this type of publicity.

Even if the hygiene problem itself is sorted out quickly and thoroughly, a bad reputation can take years to recover from. In many cases the only solution may be to sell up or to completely rename and relaunch the business – with obvious costs involved.

Commercial Kitchen Cleaners – Business Insurance for Restaurants

Using professional kitchen cleaners on a regular basis effectively acts as a form of business insurance for restaurants, takeaways and other food outlets:

Regular, scheduled, professional cleans can help to prevent prosecutions, fines and negative publicity by preventing hygiene problems building up to serious levels. Kitchen deep cleaning also makes it far easier for kitchen staff to maintain good daily hygiene practices afterwards.

Even when staff are vigilant about cleaning in the areas they can reasonably access (worktops, floors etc), they can't get everywhere. It is often the invisible places (under and behind appliances) where dirt can build up to a point that it can attract pests, leading to infestations.

In addition, being able to demonstrate that your premises are cleaned regularly by professionals (in addition to a good daily cleaning regime, of course) is invaluable in the event of a hygiene inspection.

Protect your business and make a professional kitchen cleaning service part of your hygiene solution by calling Ingot Services today or visiting our site at www.ingotservices.co.uk.

Duct Cleaning: Advice from Commercial Kitchen Cleaners Ingot

Duct Cleaning: A guide to fire safety in restaurants and catering premises from commercial kitchen cleaners Ingot Services 

Taking Steps to Ensure Fire Safety in Commercial Kitchens

Fires are a risk which people operating commercial kitchens must constantly guard against. There are various regulations which need to be borne in mind, covering everything from alarms to duct cleaning.

Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, it's a legal requirement for business owners, including those running catering establishments, to carry out a fire safety risk assessment. This involves identifying any potential hazards and planning escape routes in the event of a fire. These routes must then be kept clear of obstructions, and fire doors must not be wedged open. Fuel and combustible items must be safely stored, well away from any potential sources of heat.

Staff also need to be trained in how to react if fire does break out. If five or more people work in the premises or the restaurant is licensed, then records have to be kept of the fire risk assessment, which is also good practice in any case.

Fire Alarms: Having working fire alarms is a legal obligation and restaurant owners have been fined for failing to do this. There have been cases of people in restaurant kitchens turning off alarms to avoid them being set off during cooking, but this is a dangerous practice, as well as being illegal. It is possible to install specialist alarm systems which won't be set off by ordinary cooking, and to site them in a way which will also avoid this. 

Fire Extinguishers: It is essential that all restaurants have fire extinguishers installed, which must be suitable for the size of premises and the type of cooking carried out. You will need at least one wet chemical extinguisher and a fire blanket. Increasingly, restaurants are choosing to install specialist fire suppression systems, which can both detect a fire in a commercial kitchen and immediately act to extinguish it. These systems are especially advisable if you use deep fat fryers. 

Safe Use of Equipment: All equipment in commercial kitchens needs to be installed in line with manufacturers' instructions, but that is just the start. The equipment must also be well-maintained. Gas Safe registered engineers are needed to service gas cookers, while an automatic shut-off at high temperatures is a valuable precaution for fryers. Keeping cooking equipment clean and avoiding grease and fat build-up is also essential, not only from a hygiene point of view, but to avoid fire risks. This is one of the many reasons why industrial oven cleaning and regularly-scheduled deep kitchen cleaning are both musts.

Kitchen Extract Systems: Extract duct systems in restaurant kitchens must be properly installed, with the correct clearance from ceilings. Kitchen ductwork also needs to be kept clean and free of dirt and grease build-up, which poses both health and fire hazards. As experts in duct cleaning, Ingot can advise you on the best cleaning schedule for your kitchen extracts. We issue certificates and keep full records for your peace of mind so you can prove that your extraction system is being kept properly clean. 

Ingot's industrial and commercial cleaning service is available to businesses across the UK, including those in Ipswich, Suffolk, Norwich, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Essex and London. Get in touch now to find out more about our duct cleaning service.

Commercial Kitchen Cleaners: Keeping Restaurant Equipment Clean with Ingot

Commercial Kitchen Cleaners: Ingot's guide to choosing top items of equipment for a restaurant and arranging deep kitchen cleaning

5 Top Items of Equipment for a Restaurant Kitchen

Whether you are opening up a new catering establishment or updating an existing kitchen, it is important to make sure you have equipment which will do the job. Commercial kitchen cleaners Ingot have drawn up a list of some of the items which will help to keep you ahead of the field.

1. Industrial Ovens. The type of oven you choose will depend on the types of food you want to prepare – and also on the space you have available. Convection ovens not only cook more quickly than conventional ones, but also spread the heat more evenly, so you save time and get better results too. Induction hobs are similarly effective. Combination ovens are highly versatile pieces of equipment for a restaurant kitchen, while specialist pizza ovens can be used not just for pizzas, but also for other large dishes.
2. Deep Fat Fryers. While fried food admittedly isn't the healthiest option on the menu, it is still popular, and most restaurant kitchens will need commercial fryers. These items can be difficult to keep clean, so you need to choose a quality model which can easily be dismantled when necessary for kitchen deep cleaning.
3.  Commercial Dishwashers. Some smaller restaurants have a designated team of staff who wash up all the dishes by hand, but this is very time-consuming. Specialist commercial machines can wash at much higher temperatures and get through large volumes of crockery. It's possible to buy smaller commercial dishwashers if space is at a premium. Choose an energy-efficient machine which is also high on performance as dirty dishes and cutlery can damage the reputation of your restaurant.
4. Fridges, Freezers and Ice-Making Machines. In a commercial kitchen, refrigerators and freezers are needed which can maintain a steady temperature. This will guard against any danger of food becoming too warm when the machines have to be opened and closed regularly. A supply of ice is another kitchen essential, especially in summer, with many uses ranging from food storage and preparation to popping cubes in a drink. Various different types are available to choose from, including cube and flake ice machines.
5. Stainless Steel Sinks. These will be in constant use, with sinks needed not just for washing dishes but also for hand-washing and food preparation. It is essential that you plan your kitchen with enough sinks, conveniently placed, at the right distance from food prep areas, and that they can easily be kept clean. 

Installing all these essential items, and others in your kitchen, is just the start. To perform properly and to give a lasting service, they need to be kept in good condition. This means drawing up a regular cleaning and maintenance schedule, as well as calling in a kitchen deep cleaning company at regular intervals.

As commercial kitchen cleaners with many years of experience, Ingot can advise you on the best kitchen deep cleaning schedule for your premises. We offer a full range of kitchen equipment cleaning services including industrial oven cleaning, arranged at a time to suit you, and we provide full certification. Our service covers all of the UK, including Bristol, Newcastle, Cambridgeshire, Essex and London.

Commercial Kitchen Cleaners – Contact Ingot Services now to find out about our specialist equipment cleaning service

Deep Kitchen Cleaning – Maintaining a Healthy Commercial Environment

Keep Mice at Bay: How to Avoid Kitchen Nightmares with Deep Cleaning

If you are running a cafe, hotel or bar, the last thing you want is to find mice running about in the kitchen. One Brighton restaurant was landed a £10,000 bill after failing to tackle a mouse infestation. Yet the problem could easily have been avoided by imposing adequate hygiene measures including deep kitchen cleaning.

The restaurant was prosecuted twice by Brighton and Hove City Council and admitted five food hygiene offences. This incident underlines how important it is to maintain a clean kitchen environment in any catering establishment. Neglecting this basic duty of care can put staff and customers at risk, and damage your business reputation.  

Dealing with an Infestation

After someone reported a mouse problem at the restaurant in question, the Brighton and Hove Council food safety team paid a visit. Their discoveries included mouse droppings on shelves and floors and even on food. There was also poorly-wrapped food lying around, which attracted the mice, and unclean surfaces, with a build-up of grease on walls.

This type of incident is a particular worry because mice can spread illnesses, such as food poisoning. They taint not only the foods they actually nibble, but also other foodstuffs in the vicinity – as well as damaging equipment and cables. 

All this makes it vital to tackle an infestation quickly. At the first sign of mice, any restaurant should contact a pest control organisation. Expert pest controllers can quickly get rid of the rodents and also take preventative action to keep them out of the building.

Deep Kitchen Cleaning

Tackling the vermin themselves is only part of the answer to this type of incident, which also underlines the importance of basic kitchen hygiene. Aside from adequate pest control measures, to ensure complete cleanliness the only way to go forward after an infestation is to undertake deep kitchen cleaning. 

Deep cleaning gets to all the places you can't reach during daily kitchen cleaning, including hidden parts of cooking equipment and areas under and behind machinery. As a specialist kitchen deep cleaning company, Ingot can undertake a comprehensive service to ensure all these potential trouble spots are thoroughly cleaned. 

Working from the ceiling right down to the floor, we clean all preparation surfaces and strip down all equipment, reassembling it after the work. Deep cleans can be carried out as a one-off, for instance, at the end or start of a season or after a change of ownership. However, our advice would be to schedule regular deep cleaning, which underpins the daily cleaning by staff. Every catering business should have a deep clean at least annually, but Ingot can advise you on the optimum frequency for your business.

Deep kitchen cleaning reduces the risk of infestation by mice and other pests, but that is just one of its advantages. It will also lead to better hygiene all round, helping to protect customers and staff alike. Yet another plus is that it will demonstrate your commitment to cleanliness, potentially helping you to achieve a higher “score on the door” from environmental health officers. After every deep clean, Ingot provides a certificate to show  you have reached the highest standards of hygiene. 

Our service is available throughout the UK, in areas including Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, London, Manchester and Liverpool. 

Ingot Services  – Click here to find out more about our deep kitchen cleaning.