The kitchen is often the most populated area in an establishment, especially in the food industry. Typically, employees rush to create different dishes to satisfy their customers’ cravings.
However, the presence of grease and other wastes due to prolonged usage can be a fire hazard, which you must always avoid to prevent damage, casualties, and unwanted injuries.
You can do a lot to avert kitchen fires. Although you can’t remove every tiny causative agent of a kitchen fire, you can decrease this instance by using the tips we’ve listed below!
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Install Grease Duct Access Doors
Grease fires commonly occur in kitchens and are significantly more challenging. Due to the fuel burning during a grease fire, extinguishing one of these catastrophes will require a series of steps and counterintuitive actions. The best way to prevent this unwanted instance is by installing grease duct access doors.
Grease duct access doors allow you to easily access your grease ducts to remove the grease and dirt to avoid any build-up. You also need to ensure that your vents are regularly inspected and cleaned.
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Unplug Electric Appliances When Not In Use
Commercial kitchens have different electrical cooking equipment, such as large ovens, toasters, blenders, mixers, fryers, and many more. These pieces of equipment continue to draw electricity even when you turn them off. This can be a fire hazard, especially if you have old electrical equipment with faulty wiring.
After every cooking session, before closing your establishment, ensure you unplug all electric appliances inside to avoid unwanted fires that can destroy your business and be a safety concern to the neighboring structures.
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Installing A Smoke Detector Near Your Kitchen
Smoke detectors can be one of your wisest investments if you want your kitchen to remain fire-hazard free. We don’t mean that you install the smoke detector inside your kitchen because it can trigger the alarm if it detects any small amount of smoke or steam when you or your employees are cooking. But you should install it near your kitchen so it can sense an actual kitchen fire before it becomes a much bigger problem.
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Always Watch What You Cook
All professional cooks know it is not wise to leave cooking food unattended. As much as possible, you have to keep your attention to what you’re cooking; you may not know when accidents can occur, such as accidental grease spillage, a curtain getting over the flame, or maybe an overcooked apple pie can burst into flames.
Stay in the kitchen, primarily if you use grease when cooking or your baking oven is on maximum heat. If ever you’re needed elsewhere, make sure to turn off your cooking equipment.
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Keep Flammable Materials Away From Stoves Or Burners
This is one of the most common causes of kitchen fires. Many kitchen materials can catch flames if left in a combustible area. You should securely store materials such as dish towels, tissues, paper towels, and others. Built-up heat from an unattended burner could ignite flammable materials left near or on the stove or oven.
In addition, when cooking, you should always roll up long sleeves if you’re ever using one and tie back long hair to avoid unwanted accidents.
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Keep Your Kitchen Area Clean
This is not only to keep your kitchen looking spotless and prevent unbearable odors; regularly cleaning your kitchen can avoid accidents that can lead to a fire incident. Here are the things you should keep in mind:
- Ensure that your appliances are functioning well and regularly checked.
- Your kitchen counter should be clean with no grease marks in sight.
- Clean out the crumbs inside your toaster after every use.
- Wipe your microwave clean after every use, similar to other appliances such as ovens.
- Wipe up spills from previous dishes and never cook on a dirty stove.
Keeping your kitchen area clean will not only avoid fire incidents but is also mandatory for sanitary purposes. These kitchen safety tips in mind will help you minimize the chances of fire occurrence and will boost your business’s customer review and employee satisfaction.
