Ductwork & ductwork cleaning
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or ‘elbows’. These sections also tend to accumulate more FOG deposits. Access is equally important either side of a
Retrofit with care – the ductwork conundrum
The BESA, very wisely, has called for a year of retrofit, ensuring that we have a perceptible increase in high quality, competently designed and installed building services. There is one area, however, in which we should be trying hard to avoid the need for retrofit, says Gary Nicholls, managing director of ventilation compliance experts, Swiftclean, and co-author of TR19 ductwork cleaning guidance.
I
n addition to the call for retrofitted systems, we should also be planning ahead for their future compliance. This is particularly relevant for
ventilation and extraction ductwork systems, as it is still entirely possible to design and install them in accordance with DW144 for ordinary ductwork or DW172 for kitchen extract ductwork, and still have insufficient access to clean thoroughly to TR19 and TR19 Grease requirements. For many years, we have been advocating for ventilation ductwork systems to be designed and installed in accordance with TR19 and TR19 Grease, in order that we can, quite literally, access all areas when cleaning. Clean ventilation ductwork is essential for ensuring good indoor air quality, while the removal
Left: Gary Nicholls, managing director of ventilation compliance experts
fire damper in ventilation systems. Fire dampers comprise of a set of steel louvres installed at the point at which ventilation ductwork passes through an internal fire-resistant wall. Because the ventilation ductwork creates a potential for fire to travel through an opening in a fire-resistant wall, fire dampers are installed to restore compartmentalisation in the event of a fire. The steel louvres, normally open to allow air flow, must be tested annually to ensure that they will close automatically to form a fire and smoke resistant barrier when the need arises. Of course, we also need access to clean and maintain the fire dampers themselves. If we cannot reach every part of the system, we
can retrofit access hatches so that the system may be thoroughly cleaned and made compliant, but retrofitting them comes at a cost to the property owner or manager. It is more cost effective to include sufficient access hatches at the design stage to facilitate compliance with TR19 and TR19 Grease as the years go by. We do have a lot of older ventilation and
of fat, oil and grease (FOG) deposits from kitchen extract ductwork systems is now clearly recognised as a major fire prevention measure. Indeed, many insurance providers not only will insist on TR19 Grease compliance, but will also refuse to pay out after a fire if ductwork is found to be non-compliant. It is estimated that 70% of fires in commercial kitchens originate in faulty extract ventilation systems due to the build-up of grease, so it is not surprising that compliance with TR19 Grease is now a stipulation in many insurance policies. In order to ensure compliance, we must be able
to access every part of each system, including the canopy, plenum, fans, vertical and horizontal ductwork. This is especially important at points in the system when ductwork turns through angles,
12 February 2024
extraction systems in the UK, some of which may never have been serviced or maintained. Ventilation systems in, particular, have, in the past, too often been out of sight and out of mind when it comes to maintenance. Thankfully, this has changed a great deal thanks to the advent of TR19. We will soon see the publication of the new TR19 Air, which should help to put ductwork hygiene more firmly on the facilities manager’s to do list on a regular basis. Perhaps we might see a final burst of positive retrofitting of access doors in neglected older systems to help bring them up to compliance. Hopefully, non-compliant, inaccessible systems will soon be a thing of the past, especially with the BESA’s encouragement. When retrofitting other services and systems, it is essential not to obscure or restrict the access to a ventilation system. This might sound obvious, but we have seen many cases of fixed ceilings being used to hide the system, and even walls and staircases added at later dates. Screening may be understandable from an aesthetic point of view, but it must be removable to keep the ductwork accessible.
What we definitely don’t want is any more
new systems which require the retrofitting of access doors at their first – or any subsequent – compliance clean.
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