Guide
Moderate-volume restaurant semi-annual checklist
Most standard sit-down restaurants land on the moderate-volume row: gas ranges, griddles, some fryers, a normal lunch-and-dinner day. Operators who treat “every six months” as a canopy wipe — or who stay on that cadence after adding a charbroiler or late-night cook — are either under-servicing or overpaying for the wrong row.
Short answer
Secondary sources citing NFPA 96 Table 12.4 (2024 ed.) put moderate-volume cooking on a semiannual inspection floor (every six months). Cleaning is separate: it triggers when grease depth crosses the limits your AHJ applies (commonly cited ~0.002 in on hoods, filters, fans, ducts). Budget the inspection every six months; treat the clean as report-driven — and upgrade the row if you run charbroil, wok, 24-hour, or solid-fuel. Your AHJ’s adopted edition wins.
Are you actually moderate-volume?
| Situation | Planning row | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Standard sit-down: ranges, griddle, light-to-moderate fry, ~6–12 service hours | Moderate → semiannual inspection | Secondary Table 12.4 examples: most standard sit-down restaurants |
| Same kitchen adds heavy charbroil, wok, or overnight cook | Plan as high-volume → quarterly | Table examples name those operations; the whole system follows the tightest type it serves |
| Any solid-fuel appliance on the exhaust | Solid-fuel → monthly | Overrides a restaurant-wide semi plan |
| Church hall / seasonal / true low use | Likely low-volume → annual | Don’t force a restaurant cadence onto a low-use kitchen — and don’t claim “church” if you cook like a restaurant |
Six-month planner (one half-year)
| When | Owner / staff | Vendor / inspector |
|---|---|---|
| Daily / nightly | Wash or swap grease filters; empty drip cups; note fan vibration or roof grease smell | — |
| Weekly | Check grease drip containers / cups (secondary sources cite weekly under NFPA 96) | — |
| Month 1 & Month 4 | Confirm visit date; send written scope (hood, filters, plenum, ducts, fan, containment) | Schedule inspection; bring depth gauge / comb if they measure on site |
| Visit day | Keys, roof hatch, after-hours if the line never goes dark | Inspect full path; clean when thresholds crossed; service label; path photos |
| Within ~2 weeks | File report + photos; set next-due on wall calendar | Written inspection (and cleaning, if done) report to owner |
| Mid-cycle (Month 3) | Spot-check filters and rooftop containment; call early if grease is bypassing filters | Call-back only if you escalate |
What good semi-annual looks like
- Two locked inspection dates per year, tied to cooking type — not “whenever the truck is free”
- Staff filter discipline so ducts don’t take the whole load between visits
- Clean only when the report shows threshold grease — or sooner if you see bypass
- Full path when cleaned: canopy alone is not the visit
- Suppression ITM stays on its own ~6-month cycle (usually a different vendor)
What breaks the plan
- “We clean every six months” with no inspection report and no cooking-type logic
- Staying on semi after adding charbroil / wok / overnight cook
- Filters left saturated for weeks — grease into ducts mid-cycle
- Quote that omits ducts and rooftop fan
- Assuming used-oil pickup or grease-trap pumping = hood cleaning
Checklist before you book (or renew)
- Cooking type on paper — list appliances and hours; flag any charbroil, wok, 24-hour, or solid fuel
- Cadence ask — semiannual inspection with clean-when-due (not a fixed “wipe twice a year”)
- Scope yes/no — hood, filters, plenum, horizontal/vertical duct, fan, grease cup
- Proof — service label + written report + before/after path photos when cleaned
- Access — roof hatch, panel count; after-hours premium if needed
- Mid-cycle plan — who checks filters and drip cups weekly so you don’t surprise the next visit
Who it’s for / not for
- For: sit-down and hotel kitchens without solid fuel or high-volume examples, GM / facilities leads building a wall calendar, multi-unit ops normalizing “moderate” sites
- Not for: forcing a semi plan onto charbroil/wok/24-hour lines, or treating the calendar as a substitute for the grease-depth trigger
Sources
- Facilitec Southwest — NFPA 96 frequency guide (secondary; Table 12.4 moderate semiannual; inspect vs clean; drip-container weekly)
- Facilitec Southwest — NFPA 96 codes notes (secondary; Table 12.4 examples)
- Total Fire Protection — frequency summary (secondary; moderate / hotel kitchens ~6–12 hours)
- Qwick Solutions — hood cleaning frequency (secondary; semi-annual sit-down / café framing)
Next step
Write your appliance list and hours on one page. If nothing matches high-volume or solid-fuel examples, lock two inspection dates this year and send the scope checklist above with the bid — require duct/fan photos on any cleaning visit.