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Extraction cleaning - quoting and surveys
A price for extraction cleaning given without seeing the system is a guess - because the things that decide the job are things only a look reveals: how the ductwork is laid out, how well it can be reached, and how heavily it is loaded with grease. A cleaner who quotes properly wants to see the duct first. Here is why that matters, and why a quote based on a site view is one you can rely on.
The short answer
Cleaners need to see your duct before quoting because the things that determine the size and difficulty of the job cannot be known without looking. The layout of the ductwork - how long the runs are, how many bends, where it goes - decides how much there is to clean and how hard it is to reach. The access - where the panels are, whether there are enough, whether sections are hard or impossible to reach - decides how much of the work is straightforward and how much is difficult, and whether extra access needs fitting. And the grease load - how heavily the system has built up - decides how much cleaning is actually needed. None of these can be judged from a phone call or a floor area; they need a look at the actual system. So a quote given without seeing the duct is a guess that can be badly wrong, while a quote based on a site view reflects the real job - which is why a proper cleaner wants to see the system first.
The layout decides the job
The first reason a cleaner needs to see the duct is that the layout of the ductwork - which varies enormously from kitchen to kitchen - largely decides the size of the job, and cannot be known without looking. One kitchen might have a short, simple duct run straight up and out; another might have a long, winding run with many bends, travelling across the building through voids before it discharges. These are completely different jobs in terms of how much ductwork there is to clean and how long it takes, yet from the outside - a kitchen of a given size - they might seem similar. Only seeing the actual ductwork reveals its true extent and complexity.
This is why floor area or the number of appliances is a poor basis for a quote: two kitchens of the same size can have very different extraction systems, and it is the extraction system that is being cleaned, not the kitchen. A cleaner who sees the duct can trace its run, see how long it is and how many bends it has, and judge how much there is to clean - giving a quote that reflects the actual system. A cleaner quoting blind can only guess at a typical system, which might be far from what you have. So seeing the layout is the first thing that makes a quote accurate: it establishes the real extent of the ductwork, which is the main thing the job depends on. Without it, the quote is based on an assumed system that may not match yours.
The access decides the difficulty
The second reason is access - how well the system can be reached to clean it - which decides how difficult and time-consuming the work is, and which again can only be judged on site. A system with good access panels, well placed, is far quicker and easier to clean than one where the ducts are hard to reach, run through awkward spaces, or lack adequate access panels so that additional access must be fitted before the cleaning can even be done properly. Two systems with the same amount of ductwork can be very different jobs depending on how reachable they are - and reachability is exactly the kind of thing only a look reveals.
Seeing the system lets the cleaner assess the access: where the panels are, whether there are enough, whether the ducts run somewhere awkward, and whether any extra access needs fitting - all of which affect the work and the price. It also lets them spot access problems that would otherwise be discovered mid-job, when it is too late to have quoted for them - an unreachable section, a run needing new panels. So the access assessment is a crucial part of a proper quote: it establishes not just how much ductwork there is but how hard it is to get at, which can make a large difference to the job. A quote given without seeing the access cannot account for these things, and can be badly out if the system turns out to be more awkward than assumed. Seeing it first means the quote reflects the real difficulty.
The grease load sets the scope
The third reason is the grease load - how heavily the system has actually built up with grease - which decides how much cleaning is genuinely needed, and which a look, ideally with measurement, reveals. A lightly loaded system needs less work than one that has built up heavily over years without proper cleaning; the amount of grease to be removed affects the effort and time the job takes. Seeing the system - checking the filters, canopy and, through the access panels, the state inside the ducts, and where possible measuring the grease depth - lets the cleaner judge how loaded it is and scope the cleaning accordingly.
This matters particularly for systems that have not been cleaned in a long time, or ever, which can be far more heavily loaded than a regularly maintained system - a much bigger job than a routine clean. Only seeing the actual state reveals this; a blind quote would assume a typical load and could be well short if the system turns out to be heavily loaded. So the grease-load assessment completes the picture a proper quote needs: the layout for the extent, the access for the difficulty, and the grease load for how much cleaning is actually required. All three come from seeing the system, and all three affect the job and the price - which is why a quote worth relying on is one based on a look at the duct, not a guess from a distance.
A blind quote versus a real one
Putting it together shows why a quote given without seeing the system is a guess, and why one based on a site view is what you can rely on. A blind quote has to assume a typical layout, typical access and typical load - and if your system differs, as systems do, the quote can be badly wrong. That can cut both ways, but the common outcome is a low quote that rises once the cleaner sees the real job, or a job that gets done inadequately because it was priced for less than it needed. Either way, a blind quote does not protect you: it is a number pulled from assumptions, not from your system.
A quote based on seeing the duct, by contrast, reflects the actual system - its real layout, access and grease load - so it is an accurate price for the real job, with the difficult bits and the heavy loading accounted for rather than discovered later. That protects you: you get a price you can rely on, and a cleaner who has actually assessed what needs doing rather than guessed. It is also a sign of a cleaner who takes the job seriously - one who wants to see the system before quoting is one who intends to do it properly, scoped to what the system actually needs. So a cleaner needing to see your duct before quoting is not being awkward; it is what a proper, reliable quote requires. Welcome it as the sign of a quote and a cleaner you can trust.
The takeaway
An accurate quote for extraction cleaning depends on things only a look at the system reveals: the layout of the ductwork, which decides how much there is to clean and how complex it is; the access, which decides how difficult and time-consuming the work is and whether extra panels are needed; and the grease load, which decides how much cleaning is genuinely required. None of these can be judged from a phone call or a floor area - every system is different, and it is the system being cleaned, not the kitchen. So a quote given without seeing the duct is a guess that can be badly wrong.
A quote based on seeing the system, by contrast, reflects the real job - the actual layout, access and load - with the difficult and heavy parts accounted for rather than discovered mid-job. That protects you: an accurate price you can rely on, from a cleaner who has assessed what needs doing rather than guessed. And a cleaner who wants to see the system first is showing they intend to do the job properly, scoped to what it actually needs. So when a cleaner needs to see your duct before quoting, it is not awkwardness - it is what a reliable quote requires. A quote worth trusting is one based on a look at the duct, not a number from a distance.
Questions
Because the things that decide the job - the ductwork layout, the access, and the grease load - can only be judged by looking. They cannot be known from a phone call or a floor area, and every system is different. A quote given without seeing the duct is a guess that can be badly wrong; one based on a site view reflects the real job.
Because it is the extraction system being cleaned, not the kitchen, and two kitchens of the same size can have completely different systems - one a short simple run, another a long winding one with many bends. Floor area or appliance count is a poor basis for a quote, because it says nothing about the actual ductwork that has to be cleaned.
A lot. A system with good, well-placed access panels is far quicker to clean than one where the ducts are awkward to reach or lack adequate access, so extra panels must be fitted before cleaning. Two systems with the same amount of ductwork can be very different jobs depending on reachability - which only a look reveals, so it can be accounted for rather than discovered mid-job.
Because it decides how much cleaning is genuinely needed. A system that has built up heavily over years without proper cleaning is a much bigger job than a regularly maintained one. Seeing the system - and where possible measuring the grease depth - lets the cleaner judge how loaded it is and scope the work accordingly, rather than assuming a typical load that could be well short.
Not really - it is a guess based on assuming a typical layout, access and load, and if your system differs, as systems do, it can be badly wrong. The common outcome is a low quote that rises once the real job is seen, or a job done inadequately because it was priced for less than it needed. A blind quote does not protect you.
The opposite - it is a good sign. A cleaner who wants to see the duct before quoting is one who intends to do the job properly, scoped to what the system actually needs, and who will give you an accurate price rather than a guess. Needing to see the system first is what a proper, reliable quote requires, so welcome it.
We look at your system before we quote - its layout, access and grease load - so the price reflects the real job, with the difficult and heavy parts accounted for, not discovered mid-clean.
