I think it needs a good flush!

S

safeclean

New member
I was in NYC the other day and stopped in a deli in a pretty upscale area to grab some breakfast and started talking to the owner.He had an 8' hood with a 6' lateral that went to a 90 degree elbow then straight up,and the fan was on the roof.The store was on the ground floor of a 5 story building.I asked him what he pays to clean his exhaust system.He told me he used to pay $275,but then another guy came in and did it for $195,then he started using a third guy who comes in from Queens and does it for $125.I said $125!!,does he clean the whole system including the ductwork leading up to the fan and the fan itself.He said no they just clean the hood and to the elbow!I asked him how long these companies just cleaned to the elbow,he said about 8 years,"I think the rest of the system needs a good flush!" he said.He was from the middle east,but a pretty nice guy nonetheless.Amazingly he said the requirement in NYC was quarterly cleanings,and they are pretty strict with the frequency. $125!!! I think it does need a good flush!! I think if this guy ever got a quote from a legitimate company to properly clean this system and install access panels he would faint!I almost offered to inspect it and give him an estimate,but my gut told me not too ,I was late to where I had to go as it was.
 
The Answer is a Digital Camera.. It takes a few minutes to take a few shots up the ductwork , the fan, and down the duct work. Then you tell them you will have a complete report and price for them by the morning.. When you get home print up the photos , go back the next morning show him the photos and then tell him how you propose to clean the venthood.. After and if you get the job take after pictures .. Then show him how you clean the hood. You can easily get an extra $ 150.00 to $ 200.00 by doing this and you will never lose him to a less equipt company...

But what do I know I'm just a Hood Cleaner
 
Every large city I have ever been in has this kind of thing going on. They all look at you like you are crazy when you explain this to them what it will take to clean it. I have found no one willing to pay what it will take to clean up one of those system that runs through the building into other tenant spaces and then up 10 floors. Tell someone that has been paying $300 to get their system cleaned that you need a couple grand and two nights. You had better be running out the door before you finish the sentence.
 
I agree John.I was in the city on business for another business that I am involved in and was running a little late because of traffic.I got the feeling it was not worth pursueing even if I had the time.These guys are notorious hagglers and acted like $275 was too high from his first guy.I would have had to get access to the roof,which was a five story building,and I was running late,and the 5 story duct work and fan had not been touched in 8 years.I would would have not touched it for under $1000 probably more considering he needed access panels,and it is a two hour drive from me.
If I had more time I would have pursued it further,you never know,he might have went for it,but unless the fire inspector was going to shut him down,I don't think he would want to pay what I would need to charge to do it.I was just amazed that someone would come into Manhattan from Queens to clean a hood for $125,even to do a sh#t job.A parking ticket in NYC cost that much!
 
Your right Bryan.Unless they are being shut down,they think your nuts.Because the guy in the 12 year old mini van with the $200 sears pressure washer blasting salsa music from is boom box,(who was probably working for a guy just like himself and seen how much money he can make "cleaning"hoods,considering the country he came from $125 is two months salary!lol!)who just cleans the hood and into the duct a little,can put a sticker on the hood for $125 and all the fire inspector looks for is the sticker.The crazy part is this is mid town Manhattan,like I said before a parking ticket costs over $100!I hate regulation,but this industry does need to be cleaned up.It's not like your cleaning bathrooms or windows.This is fire prevention,and that grease stuffed ductwork went through 4 stories which were all apartments and if and when that place goes up,more than a few lives could be lost.
 
Our Largest Hospitol in Mississippi has what they call an underground fan and duct system for the large vent hood.. Basically it is a room with a door to go inside.. the large 6 foot fan pulls the grease down from all the duct work and the room has a drain in the floor. So all the grease pulled in just gets washed down the drain.. The Trick is cleaning the fan Motor Because it is an open frame motor , probably something someone had replaced years ago..
I went into the hospitol and talked to the head chef..
The Vent Hood is 22feet wide by 52 feet long and has like 42 filters.....
They are currently paying a guy $ 800.00 per month.. From what I can see he wipes and polishes the hood and then steam cleans the filters.. The Security Guard says that he has watched them clean it and they use a electric machine that hooks to the sink and they wash the filters off in the mop bucket bay...

I told the security guard to go open the fan room .. When he tried to we had to pry the door open with a crowbar.. It was shovel thick full of grease and the belt was broken off the fan.. I quoted the an initial cleaning of $2500.00 then $ 2000.00 every 3 months .... What do you think happened.. Well I am still waiting for a call... I will wait till they get in trouble and then it will be at least $ 15000.00
 
This restaurant was unhappy with his current company because they had just raised their price to $400. What he did not know was that even though they were raising the price, they were still going to do the same shitty job. I don't know what Chris quoted this guy but it will be well over the $400 that the current company has raised it to. The thing that really gets me is that this guy claims to be an IKECA member and follow their guidlines. If I was on the board at IKECA, I would be pretty pissed off.
 
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Matt-

Do you have your crews take b4 and after pictures at all jobs?
 
No way. Right now we are down to about 60-70 jobs per week that means 60-70 sets of pictures every week that mean I have to go through 60-70 set of pictures per week, no thanks. A couple of my guys take pictures on a regular basis but they are computer literate and do the pictures themselves (label, email etc). Here is a set of a job that one of them did the other night, he did the job, took the pictures and emailed them when he got home. His middle name is "The Man".
 
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