Hawaii Hospitality - January/February 2013 - (Page 6)

Great Gobs of Grime! Dirty ducts, chutes and grease traps stand no chance against the pros who toil behind the scenes at Hawaii’s hubs of hospitality. By David Putnam Ever walked into a nice restaurant or plush hotel—and immediately got an itchy nose? Like tiny monsters in the air fouling up your sense of smell, and probably your sinuses. Known as grease and grime, they attack kitchen drains, air ventilation systems, and trash and laundry chutes. And if traps, chutes and ducts are not cleaned and maintained regularly, the microbial creatures residing there can lead to serious health inﬁrmities. Fortunately, Hawaii’s best eateries do service their grease traps on a regular basis. More and more restaurants are recycling the oily waste, too. And the top inns have their air-conditioning ducts (along with bathroom exhaust vents and clothes dryer vents) cleaned out thoroughly—a great relief to guests with allergies. Hotels also make certain that laundry chutes are kept clear of particles like lint, which also is highly ﬂammable, and those with garbage chutes treat them regularly to kill bacteria (and odor) and to keep them rodent-free. “Left unattended, these areas can cause all kinds of problems like stopped up drains, or a major ﬁre in your kitchen or employees getting sick, not to mention the odor associated with these areas when they are not maintained,” says Curtis Heath, director of engineering for Starwood Hotels & Resorts. A lot of toiling goes on behind the scenes at hotels and restaurants to turn sludge-and-grimy into nice-and-shiny, and Hawaii’s lodging and food sectors rely on cleaning professionals to help maintain the Islands’ high standards for hospitality. Let’s take a peek behind the curtain ... 6 Hawaii Hospitality ■ January/February 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Hawaii Hospitality - January/February 2013

Contents - Checking INN
Making of a Host
Chutes, Ducts and Traps
Outstanding Security Professional
Clean Talk with Rose
Talk Story with George Szigeti
News Briefs
Associations
New Restaurants

Hawaii Hospitality - January/February 2013