Guide
How to read a line-item hood cleaning invoice
The invoice lands the morning after the crew leaves. One line says “Hood cleaning — $650,” three more lines you didn’t expect are underneath it, and the report hasn’t arrived yet. This page goes through the lines that show up on kitchen exhaust invoices and service agreements, gives the figures vendors publish where we found them, and explains how to check each line against the service report before you pay.
Short answer
A good invoice prices each system (hood, filters, duct, fan) by an ID that matches the report. Add-ons such as access panels, first-clean surcharges, return trips, and filing fees each get their own line. Before you pay, check three things: every billed component appears on the report, every “not cleaned” or “inaccessible” note on the report is reflected in the price, and every one-time charge (panels, hinge kit, deep clean) won’t show up again next visit. A single line that just says “hood cleaned” doesn’t prove what was done.
Common invoice lines and what to check
| Line | What it should say | Published figures we found | Check before paying |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base cleaning, per system | Hood and plenum, duct, and fan, listed by hood/fan ID (for example “Hood 1 / EF-1”) | Per-component pricing one tool supplier gives cleaners: $10–$20 per linear ft of hood, $40–$60 per fan, duct at $5+ per linear ft (Bryan) | IDs and counts match the report. A bare “hood cleaned” line is a documentation gap (KitchenGuard). |
| Filters | Count of filters cleaned, or exchanged | Cleaned: $5–$40 each depending on market (Bryan). Exchange service in NYC: $15–$30 per filter (Empire Hoods) | Your count. Some terms exclude disposable or broken filters entirely (Hood-Pro), so ask what happened to those. |
| Trip / minimum charge | A stated minimum, or nothing if the base covers it | Bryan says most companies won’t send a crew for less than $300–$450 | Not billed as both a minimum and a full base price for the same visit |
| First clean / heavy buildup | One-time surcharge or hourly billing for an overdue system | 1.5×–2× the maintenance price, or hourly at $100–$180/hr (Bryan). One agreement marks this “PDC: price depending on condition” (Axis 1) | It was agreed before the visit, and the next invoice drops back to the maintenance rate |
| Access panels | Count, location on the duct, and whether opened or newly installed | $55–$75 per panel opened or installed (forum figures quoted by Bryan) | Panel locations are on the report. A new panel means the section behind it still needs cleaning and photos (KitchenGuard). |
| Fan hinge kit, belt, or repair | Part, labor, and which fan | One agreement bills belt changes as labor plus parts, with a $129.99/hr base (Axis 1). Hinge kit price: Unknown, no published figure found | The deficiency was on a prior report or you approved it on site. Ask for the part description. |
| Return trip | Reason: locked roof, cooking equipment left on, area blocked | $50 added when a system was inaccessible and the crew had to come back (Axis 1) | The blocking condition was yours, not theirs |
| Off-schedule or emergency visit | Date and reason | Emergency or same-day turnaround: 20–50% premium (Bryan). Visits outside the scheduled months: $129.99 base plus parts (Axis 1) | You requested it. Routine overnight work usually isn’t a premium. |
| Fire-department filing fee | Report filing pass-through, by jurisdiction | Seattle charges a $35 filing fee per report through its third-party portal, with hood systems billed per six-month service, and contractors collect it from clients (Seattle Fire) | Ask whether it covers the cleaning report or the suppression inspection, which is a separate trade. Rules vary by AHJ. |
| Payment and late fees | Card surcharge, late interest, cancellation fee | Card fee 3.5% (Axis 1). Interest 1.5% per month after 30 days, and 50% of the cleaning price for cancelling with less than 24 hours’ notice (Hood-Pro) | These were in the signed terms, not added afterward |
The figures are what individual vendors and suppliers publish, often for their own markets. We haven’t averaged them, and they aren’t local rates. Base price ranges are on the single-hood and multi-hood cost pages.
Match the invoice to the report
- Same date, same systems. The service date, hood IDs, and fan IDs on the invoice match the report.
- “Not cleaned” has a price consequence. If the report says a duct section or fan was inaccessible, the invoice shouldn’t charge full-system price without saying so.
- Panel locations are listed. Every billed panel shows up on the report with a location and inside-the-duct photos (KitchenGuard; report templates list the same).
- Deficiencies are written down. A hinge, panel, or containment problem should appear as a finding with a photo and a recommendation, not only as a repair charge (HoodCleaningReport; HoodOps sample).
- Next service date. It’s on the report and matches the frequency you agreed to.
- Label updated. The service label on the hood shows this visit. See service label.
Ask for these with every invoice
- The service report as a PDF, with before and after photos per system
- A list of areas not cleaned and the reason for each
- Itemized one-time charges, marked as one-time
- The maintenance price for your next scheduled visit
- Proof of filing, if your fire department requires the contractor to submit reports
Invoice you can file
- Lines per hood and fan with IDs
- One-time items labeled as one-time
- Matches the report line for line
- Terms and fees match what you signed
Invoice to question
- “Hood cleaning” with one lump price
- Panel or hinge charges with no location
- Full price billed but the report lists areas not cleaned
- Fees that weren’t in the agreement
Who it’s for / not for
- For: kitchen managers and facilities staff approving hood cleaning invoices, and bookkeepers who file them alongside reports
- Not for: billing disputes or collections (talk to your attorney), suppression-system invoices (a different trade; see suppression vs hood cleaning), or deciding what your local price should be
Sources
- Bryan Exhaust Service Tools: How to price kitchen exhaust cleaning jobs (per-component figures, trip minimum, hourly range, first-clean multiplier, panel and rush figures)
- Empire Hoods: Hood cleaning pricing NYC (filter exchange per-filter range)
- KitchenGuard: Access panels, proof the duct was cleaned (report items, “hood cleaned” invoice red flag, follow-up cleaning after panel install)
- HoodCleaningReport: Kitchen exhaust cleaning report examples (report sections, deficiency and access-limitation fields)
- HoodOps: Sample report of service (PDF) (work-performed and findings layout; sample, not a real job)
- Axis 1 Hood Cleaning Service: Proposal & service agreement (PDF) (condition-based pricing, return-trip, off-schedule, labor and card fees)
- Hood-Pro: Terms & conditions (filter exclusion, late interest, cancellation fee)
- Seattle Fire Department: Systems testing (report filing fee collected by contractors)
Next step
Put the invoice and the report side by side and tick each line. Anything billed that isn’t on the report, or anything on the report marked “not cleaned” but billed in full, gets one email to the vendor before you pay. File both documents together in the binder.