Ventilation in Commercial Kitchen Design: Avoiding Costly Knock-On Effects

Ventilation is a critical (and most commonly misunderstood) aspect of commercial kitchen design. It impacts everything from staff comfort and safety to energy efficiency and compliance.

Yet, all too often, it’s treated as an afterthought.

At Cooper8, we’ve seen first-hand how costly that mistake can be. So we’ve pulled together the most common ventilation issues we encounter and the knock-on effects they create.

1. Undersized Ventilation System

One of the biggest mistakes has to be underestimating how much air needs to be moved through the system. An undersized system can’t cope with the cooking load.

Knock-on effects:

• Kitchens overheat quickly, making it uncomfortable for staff and causing fatigue
• Smoke and grease-laden air isn’t properly removed, leaving lingering odours
• Fire risk increases due to grease build-up in ductwork

2. Canopy Overhang

The size and overhang of a canopy must match the equipment beneath it. This ensures it can effectively capture the thermal updraft (or ‘plume’) of hot, greasy air rising from the cooking line. If the canopy is undersized or poorly positioned, it won’t do its job properly.

Knock-on effects:

• Warm, greasy air spills back into the kitchen
• Floors become slippery and hazardous
• Staff work in hot, uncomfortable conditions, leading to fatigue

3. Wrong Filter Type

We still occasionally see mesh filters, even though baffle filters have been the industry standard for some time. Mesh filters do catch grease and offer less resistance to airflow, but they fall short in critical ways.

Knock-on effects:

• They allow more grease to pass through into the ductwork
• They don’t provide a flame barrier, which increases fire risk
• More frequent maintenance and cleaning required.
• Potential compliance issues with insurers and safety inspectors.

4. Poor Odour Control and Noise Abatement Setup

Odour mitigation is often recommended, even if not strictly required, especially to avoid statutory nuisance and planning objections, and once the menu, type of cooking, and the equipment proposed is assessed then it needs to be selected and sized appropriately .

Likewise consideration needs to be given to noise mitigation taking into consideration hours of use, sound power levels, sound pressure levels and selecting appropriate equipment and materials.

Knock-on effects:

• Complaints from neighbours, especially in built-up or sensitive areas.
• Risk of environmental health officers stepping in.
• Increased difficulty in gaining or keeping planning approval.
• Retro fitting solutions that would be more cost effective to address at initial installation.

5. Undersized Fresh Air Supply

Extract is only half the picture. A system that doesn’t bring in enough fresh air will never balance properly.

Knock-on effects:

• Kitchens feel stuffy and staff struggle in uncomfortable conditions.
• Smoke and smells leak into customer areas.
• Increased energy bills as the system works harder than it should.
• The extract system with undersized make up air facility will be searching for make-up air and potentially be pulling this across servery hatches and under doors

6. Overlooking Integration with Safety Systems

Ventilation systems must be integrated with fire safety and environment monitoring systems — especially in kitchens using gas or solid fuel equipment. Having a gas interlock system that cuts of the gas if the ventilation fans are not working is a given, other design aspects are sometimes overlooked.

Knock-on Effects of Poor Integration:

• Increased risk to staff health and safety
• Breach of fire and environmental regulations
• Potential liability and insurance issues
• Costly retrofitting and operational disruption

How to Get It Right

Avoiding these mistakes is absolutely possible, but it requires a proactive approach:

 

Early design planning: ventilation should be part of the very first conversations, and any planning requirements checked prior to design of the system

Thermal convection extract volumes calculated: to provide a sound basis for sizing the system correctly

Canopy design: canopy dimensions and overhangs must suit the equipment and cooking style to ensure effective capture of convected air and grease-laden plumes.

Equipment selection and design of overall ventilation system: Fans, filters, ductwork runs and odour control units must be specified for the kitchen environment — not just for airflow, but for durability, ease of cleaning, safety, and compliance.

Supplier consolidation: keeping odour control and air cleaning under one provider ensures performance and accountability.

Following UK regulations: from DW172 Edition 2 to EMAQ+ guidance and fire safety standards, compliance protects operators, staff, and customers and helps avoid planning issues.

Gas interlocking and CO and CO₂ monitors: where we have gas or solid fuel cooking making sure systems communicate keeps staff safe and kitchens legally compliant.

 

When these measures are built in from the start, the result is a system that not only works effectively and safely, but minimises maintenance and provides longevity.

Case Study: Rievaulx Abbey

Ventilation design becomes even more challenging when projects are in heritage or sensitive environments.

At Rievaulx Abbey, one of the key challenges was the close proximity of holiday cottages to the visitor centre. Planning restrictions and concerns raised in the environmental noise impact assessment required thoughtful solutions.

To resolve this, we integrated noise attenuation into the ventilation system, ensuring it operated efficiently while minimising noise disturbances. We also enclosed the cold room’s remote condensing units in acoustic housings to further reduce any noise impact.

This attention to detail allowed us to meet environmental requirements while delivering a kitchen and café space that works for operators and respects its historic surroundings.

Final Thoughts

Ventilation might not be the most glamorous part of kitchen design, but it is a cornerstone of good kitchen design. Get it wrong, and you’re looking at safety risks, unhappy staff, compliance headaches, with costly fixes. Get it right, you are on your way to having a commercial kitchen that is safe, efficient, and good for the staff.

At Cooper8, we make sure ventilation systems don’t just tick the compliance boxes, but actively support smoother operations and better working environments.

If you’re planning a new catering space, don’t leave ventilation as an afterthought.