Kitchen chimneys are indispensable to American kitchens. They have become so popular that, apart from beautifying the look of the kitchen, vents are exceptional in keeping our kitchen fresh, and free from oil. Chimneys are exposed to more use when the food is spicy and fried, in comparison to the boiled or half boiled foods. Kitchen chimneys suck in smoke caused due to cooking, clean the cooking area, and keep our kitchens fresh. But, as time goes by, oil, grease, and dirt collect in the chimney, making them dirty. It lessens their efficiency to absorb the cooking smoke. A kitchen chimney sweep should be hired at that time to fix the inefficient fireplace. Chimney sweeps are most reliable as they take proper care of the machines by cleaning every nook and corner so that you get optimal benefits of using a kitchen chimney at home.

Cleaning the kitchen is a time-consuming task, and most Americans remain very busy, daily. We prefer handing over the cleaning responsibility to a reputed chimney sweep. The smoke and steam released while cooking, make the chimney filters and stove area greasy. It is a good practice to hire a chimney sweep twice or at least once in a month as this will make the chimney more effective.

How can a chimney sweep clean mesh and baffle filters in natural ways?

When a chimney sweep is hired for cleaning the chimney filters, first of all, he removes the filters from the hood. Mesh filters are sheets made up of aluminum threads. An efficient kitchen chimney sweep can clean your filters in some of the ways listed below.

When chemicals, harsh soap, and detergents are used to clean the aluminum mesh, it gets discolored. Chimney sweeps prefer to clean them naturally. Here we will discuss all possible natural ways.

1. They use dishwashing liquid to clean the filters. They take boiling water in a bucket or tub and immerse the chimney filters to clean them.

2. The second method requires using baking soda, salt, and vinegar. The personnel takes the filters into the tub and add hot boiling water, measured amounts of baking soda, a few tablespoons of salt, and 2 cups of vinegar to it. It cleanses the wire mesh quite thoroughly.

3. Another right choice of these chimney sweeps is to use Paint thinner to clean oily and greasy materials. This is an easy and hassle-free way to clean the chimney filters as they do not consume much time. They just soak a small piece of cloth in the thinner and scrub it on the filters to remove all dirt.

4. The last way is to spray caustic soda on the filters and pour the boiling water in the tray. Fumes are released in that process, which cleans the filter. After that, the chimney is allowed to rest it for 2-3 hours.

How frequently should we clean kitchen chimney filters?

The usage and type of kitchen chimney determine how frequently we should hire a chimney sweep to clean it.

However, the rate of cleaning also depends on the type of filters present in the chimney.

• Cassette Filters – These filters are constructed of several layers of aluminum. They contain small pores, where grease sticks and blocks. We should clean them once in 8 – 10 days.
• Baffle Filters – These modern-day filters can separate smoke and grease. They don’t get jammed easily. So, you can hire a chimney sweep to clean them once in 2 – 3 weeks.
• Charcoal Filters – Charcoal granules are present in charcoal filters that absorb smoke, odor, and grease from cooking. As we cannot clean them, we can hire a chimney sweep to replace one.

Cooking produces smoke and lets the chimneys collect a lot of dirt and grease in the kitchen. These deposits clog the filters and reduce the suction power, eventually diminishing the efficacy of a kitchen chimney. That is why cleanliness is of vital importance to sustain chimney’s efficiency for a long time.

People assume that cleaning a kitchen hood is an easy task. But that is not true. It just requires time, patience, and the skill of a good chimney sweep. Chimney sweeps should follow some of the procedures mentioned above to provide excellent quality service.