Free guide for facilities teams
Ventilation Hygiene: Your Duties Explained
No single law says 'clean your ductwork every year'. But several duties together mean building operators need to show that ventilation systems are safe, effective and properly maintained. This guide explains how they fit together.
1. The duties behind ventilation hygiene
| Duty | What it requires | How ventilation hygiene helps |
|---|---|---|
| Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 | Effective and suitable ventilation in enclosed workplaces, and maintenance of the equipment that provides it | Evidence that systems are clean and maintained |
| Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 | The responsible person must assess and manage fire risks | Ductwork and kitchen extract deposits can be part of the fire risk |
| Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 | Employers must protect the health and safety of employees and others | A documented, risk-based maintenance regime |
| Contracts, leases and insurance | Specific inspection or cleaning requirements set by the agreement or policy | TR19 evidence is the usual way to show compliance |
2. Where TR19 fits
TR19® Air and TR19® Grease are BESA industry guidance, not legislation. They are the recognised way of showing that ventilation systems are safe, effective and properly maintained, which is why insurers, landlords, FM contracts and fire risk assessments ask for them. The current edition of TR19 Air is Version 2 (March 2026).
3. Who is responsible?
- Employers — for the workplace they control
- The responsible person under the Fire Safety Order — for fire risk in the premises
- Landlords and managing agents — for systems they control under the lease
- FM contractors — for the tasks they are contracted to deliver
Check leases and FM contracts: responsibility for a particular system is often split.
4. Evidence to keep
- A register of ventilation systems
- Inspection and test reports with results and photographs
- Cleaning scopes and post-clean verification
- Records of inaccessible areas and actions to improve access
- Kitchen extract records matched to hours of use
- A planned inspection schedule
5. A simple approach for FM teams
- List your systems and who is responsible for each
- Set risk-based inspection intervals
- Inspect and test, with results by system
- Clean only where results justify it
- Verify cleaning independently
- Review annually
Ventilation hygiene evidence
Green Air Monitoring provides independent ventilation hygiene assessments for commercial buildings. We assess, specify and verify — we never clean.
This guide is general information and does not replace BESA TR19® or professional advice for your building. TR19® is a registered trademark of the Building Engineering Services Association.