§ 174.500. Commercial hood and exhaust cleaning program.

(a) Permit fees authorized. Minneapolis Fire Inspection Services, based on authority granted to it by the Minnesota State Fire Code, Section 104.3 and state amendment 101.6, is hereby authorized to issue a commercial hood and exhaust cleaning permit for any commercial hood and exhaust cleaning required hereunder. The permit requirement imposed by this section shall be required every six (6) months, or upon system activation and apply to all commercial cooking and food service establishments utilizing Type-I and Type-II exhaust hoods inside any building or portion thereof; portable and/or stationary, or equipped motorized mobile food service vehicles conducting business within City of Minneapolis limits for the preparation and serving of food. The term "food service" shall include operations such as preparing, handling, cleaning, cooking, and packaging food items of any kind.

(b)

Hood cleaning/testing permit. A permit is required every six (6) months to conduct cleaning and/or testing of all Type-I and Type-II hoods to coincide with Minnesota State Fire Code Sections 904.11.6 to 904.11.6.5. Every application for such a permit shall be made in writing to Minneapolis Fire Inspection Services at least five (5) working days in advance of the proposed cleaning/testing date. Cleaning shall be required when exhaust systems contain combustible contaminate levels that exceed two thousand (2,000) microns (0.078 inches) upon examination by a city approved licensed contractor. All exhaust systems that fall below this measurable limit shall be exempt from the immediate cleaning cycle provided sufficient documentation is provided to fire inspection services of such condition by the licensed contractor and fire inspection services approves the same. Permits shall be obtained every six (6) months to correspond with Minnesota State Fire Code Section 904.11.6.4 and shall only be issued to approved City of Minneapolis licensed kitchen exhaust contractors after the fire code official or the fire code official's designee have reviewed and approved the application and the applicant has paid the required fee. Businesses and establishments with commercial hood systems that require quarterly or more frequent cleanings shall only be subject to the six (6) month permit requirements and fees.

(c)

Cleaning. All hoods, grease-removal devices, fans, ducts and other appurtenances shall be cleaned at intervals necessary to prevent the accumulation of grease, as specified by Minnesota State Fire Code Section 904.11.6.3 and NFPA-96 and 17A. Upon inspection, if exhaust system(s) are found to be contaminated with grease laden vapor deposits, the entire exhaust system shall be cleaned.

(d)

Type I and II exhaust systems. Type I and Type II exhaust systems shall only be cleaned by approved/certified City of Minneapolis licensed kitchen exhaust contractors.

(e)

Fee. The fee for any permit required by this section shall be as established in the director's fee schedule pursuant to section 91.70.

(f)

Required conditions authorized. The fire code official is authorized to place conditions upon kitchen exhaust contractor applicants requesting hood cleaning permits, including but not limited to the following:

(1)

The entire exhaust system shall be inspected for grease and residue buildup by an approved/certified City of Minneapolis licensed kitchen exhaust contractor.

(2)

Inspection and servicing of cooking equipment shall be completed at least annually. Cooking equipment that collects grease below the surface or behind the equipment, such as griddles or char broilers, shall be inspected and, if found with grease accumulation, cleaned to the manufacturer's recommendations.

(3)

Hoods, grease removal devices, fans, ducts, and other appurtenances shall be cleaned to remove combustible contaminants to a minimum of 0.002 inches pursuant to NFPA-96 Section 11.6.2

(4)

There shall be no grease or carbonized grease left in the hood, duct system, filters, or fan assemblies.

(5)

No coatings shall be sprayed or applied on the clean ductwork.

(6)

All exhaust/ductwork access panels/doors shall be properly reassembled and secured after cleaning.

(7)

Any portion of the exhaust hardware/appurtenances removed for cleaning and/or maintenance shall be reinstalled to code specifications.

(8)

Kitchen exhaust contractors shall identify all damaged equipment, deficiencies, missing parts, or lack of necessary access panels and notify in writing the tenant and owner and the fire code official upon completion.

(9)

Upon completion and submittal of each job, any portion of the hood, plenum, exhaust duct and associated building trunk-line system(s) found contaminated with grease-residue the entire system fails and shall not be approved.

(10)

Upon completion, and within thirty (30) days, kitchen exhaust contractors shall submit to fire inspection services cleaning photographs of the entire hood, plenum, exhaust duct, including associated building trunk-line system(s) and appurtenances in a format and specification designated by the fire code official.

(11)

At the discretion of the fire code official, periodic fire inspections shall be conducted. Each permitted cleaning shall only be approved pursuant to kitchen exhaust contractors submittal of documented photographs to fire inspection services. (2009-Or-075, § 17, 8-28-09; 2012-Or-009, § 1, 3-8-12; 2014-Or-045, 8-15-14; 2015-Or-052 , § 1, 7-10-15)