This letter was emailed to
Attn: Secretary, Standards Council NFPA
1 Batterymarch Park
P.O. BOX 9101
Quincy, MA 02269-9101
By Ed From Hood Pros in Massachusetts. I thought it was a very
good idea because aluminum hood filters are dangerous for restaurants.
They need to be removed from under the hood.
I have been in the grease exhaust system cleaning business
in Massachusetts for 22 years. This year the MA Dept of Fire Services
mandated that hood cleaners be licensed by the state. This licensing
brought on more open lines of communication between hood cleaners and
the Fire Marshals than ever before. We came upon an issue which it was
recommended by the Fire Marshals, that it be brought to the NFPA’s
attention.
Regarding filters. It
seems that most hood cleaners on various forums are in agreement that
aluminum baffle filters do not meet the codes. They only meet one,
they are ul listed. UL standards require that the filter be able to
condense airborne grease and run it off. No testing for strength or
resistance to a fire! As for being made of an equivalent material to
steel, no. As to holding up to the rough treatment common in the
industry. no. Additionally each time we clean the filters they
degrade, actually very quickly. If the restaurant runs them thru the
dishwasher where the chemical strength is very high they fall apart
even quicker. With the combination of being a weak metal at the start
and constant degradation from cleaning they become much to thin to
offer much resistance to a fire. In conjunction the filter is usually
held together with aluminum rivets which are weakened even more
quickly than the filter itself.
After doing some research I found that filter companys will
offer the fact that galvanized filters can stand up to 450 degrees and
stainless steel 900. Aluminum……. not a word. The
temperature at which aluminum breaks down in conspicuously omitted.
Everywhere, not a word. Could it be the temperature is lower than the
average fire? Imagine the reduction in effectiveness after several
cleanings. Baffles much thinner than when they were initially
purchased.
Another concern I thought you might consider is, say a fire
breaks out in a hood. All the personnel evacuate and the firemen come
in. The aluminum filters, when they break down and burn emit toxic
fumes that can kill. The only people exposed to these fumes will be
the firefighters. Not a good thing. Their job is dangerous enough
without this oversight.
Hopefully you will take this into consideration during the next
NFPA 96 codes meeting.
I’m reprinting this post with his permission. If you feel the
same way, follow this link and email the NFPA, yourself.
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