Rooftop Exhaust Fan Repair and Hinge Kit Installation in Sudbury
Exhaust Fan Repair in Greater Sudbury is the rooftop half of a commercial kitchen exhaust system: keeping the upblast fan that pulls smoke and grease vapour off the cook line turning, balanced and open for cleaning. Sudbury Commercial Hood Cleaning inspects the fan on its curb, replaces belts, bearings and motors, swaps a failed fan for a correctly sized one, installs hinge kits so the housing tips back at every visit, and fits rooftop grease containment to protect the membrane. Each job is quoted after inspection, with a written quote back within 24 hours of the walk-through.
Kitchen exhaust fan anatomy: the four parts that fail on a Sudbury roof
Drive belt. Most kitchen upblast fans run on a belt between the motor pulley and the wheel shaft. The belt is a wear item. A ring of black rubber dust on the curb cap means it is slipping, and the hood downstairs is already losing draw.
Shaft bearings. A pair of bearings carries the wheel. When their lubricant cooks off, you hear a squeal on start-up, then a steady growl, then nothing. A seized bearing often burns out the motor on its way.
Motor and wheel. The motor sits out of the air stream, but the wheel sits right in it. Grease that gets past the filters and the duct lands on the wheel blades, builds up unevenly and throws the wheel out of balance.
Curb. The curb is the box that raises the fan above the roof deck and seals the opening. Vibration and freeze-thaw cycles work its fasteners loose over the years.
Exhaust fan repair vs replacement in Sudbury: reading the symptom
The inspection decides one thing first: whether the housing, the shaft and the curb are still sound. Sound parts get repaired. Failed structure gets replaced.
| What you notice | Repair vs replace | Typical scope |
|---|---|---|
| Smoke rolling out of the canopy, rubber dust on the roof | Repair | New belt, pulleys checked for wear and alignment, tension reset. |
| Screech on a cold morning start, hot bearing caps | Repair | Bearings replaced on the existing shaft, wheel degreased and balanced. |
| Fan hums but will not turn, breaker trips | Repair or replace | Motor replaced if the housing and wheel are sound, whole fan if they are not. |
| Housing rusted through, wheel cracked | Replace | New fan matched to the hood airflow, set on the existing curb. |
| Curb rotted or lifting off the deck | Replace fan and curb | Curb and fan replaced together, with a roofer for the membrane tie-in. |
Where to find exhaust fan hinge kit installation near me in Sudbury
Sudbury Commercial Hood Cleaning installs exhaust fan hinge kits across Greater Sudbury and on the route-day towns, usually during a scheduled cleaning visit.
A fan bolted flat to its curb gets skipped. To reach the wheel, someone has to cut the power, disconnect the wiring, unbolt the base and lift a heavy, greasy housing off the roof. On a dark roof after close, that step is the one most likely to be left out. The inside keeps loading until the fan is the dirtiest point on the exhaust path.
A hinge kit fixes that. The fan pivots back on one edge of the curb, a restraint cable holds it open, and the wheel and housing are in plain view. The inspection records the curb size and which side the fan has room to swing, because an older roof in the downtown core or Chelmsford does not always leave clearance on every side. The hood and duct side of the visit is on the commercial hood cleaning page and the kitchen exhaust cleaning page.
Rooftop grease containment and the roof membrane
Rooftop grease containment is a tray at the fan drain, lined with absorbent media, that catches grease before it reaches the roof.
Every kitchen fan has a drain spout at the base of the housing. Without containment, what drips out pools around the curb. Grease softens and breaks down many flat-roof membranes, and a soft spot beside the curb is a common source of a leak right over the cook line.
If you lease, the roof is usually the landlord concern and the fan is yours. A roofer who photographs grease damage around your curb gives the landlord a reason to bill you for it. Containment with the media changed and photographed at each visit is a record that you took reasonable care of the roof.
Winter roof access for exhaust fan service in Greater Sudbury
Winter roof access is the part of fan work that changes most between October and April in Northern Ontario.
Snow drifts against the curb and hides the drain, the containment tray and the edge of the roof. Meltwater from a warm exhaust stream refreezes as ice around the base of the fan, which makes the curb the most slippery spot on the roof. A frozen drain backs grease up into the housing. Before a winter visit, know who clears the roof and where the hatch or ladder is. On a mine site or remote camp, add the site contact and any gate or orientation steps, covered for that segment on the camp kitchens section.
Best exhaust fan installation in Sudbury for a new cooking line
Exhaust fan installation for a new line starts from the hood the fan has to serve, not from the fan that was on the roof before.
A new canopy is designed for a set airflow. A fan that is too small leaves smoke hanging over the line. A fan that is too large pulls heated air out of the dining room, which you pay for every heating season. The fan goes onto a new or existing curb, with the hinge kit and containment fitted during the same installation. Adding a charbroiler, a wok station or a wood-fired oven can also move the kitchen to a shorter inspection interval under NFPA 96, so the fan gets opened more often. The intervals are on the NFPA 96 guide.
How much does exhaust fan repair cost in Sudbury in 2026?
Exhaust fan repair, replacement, hinge kits and rooftop grease containment in Greater Sudbury are quoted per job after inspection or walk-through, with the written quote back within 24 hours. For context, a scheduled hood cleaning visit runs from $585 per visit for a single-hood kitchen up to ten feet and from $995 per visit for a multi-hood kitchen of two to four canopies.
The fan quote moves with fan size, drive type, the condition of the curb and how hard the roof is to reach. Every service is listed on the hood cleaning services page.
Next step: call 705-302-1378 for the next route day, or request a written quote. A photo of the fan on its curb is often enough to identify the drive and the hinge kit that fits.
Exhaust fan repair and hinge kits in Sudbury: frequently asked questions
Can the kitchen keep cooking with the exhaust fan down?
A cook line without a working exhaust fan has no draw at the hood, so smoke and grease vapour spread into the kitchen. Call 705-302-1378 as soon as the fan stops and describe what you hear and see.
What does a hinge kit do that a bolted fan cannot?
A hinge kit lets the fan tip back on its curb with the wiring still connected, so the wheel and housing are reachable at every cleaning. A bolted fan has to be unwired and lifted off, which is the step that gets skipped.
Is a hinge kit installed on a separate visit?
Hinge kits and rooftop grease containment are normally installed during a scheduled cleaning visit, because the crew is already on the roof. If you lease, get the landlord approval for curb work in writing first.
Does a replacement fan have to be the same model?
A replacement exhaust fan has to match the airflow the hood needs and the curb it sits on, not the brand of the old unit. An undersized original is replaced with a correctly sized fan.
Can fan work be done in winter?
Rooftop fan work goes ahead through the winter once the roof around the curb is clear of snow and ice and safe to stand on. Tell the office who clears the roof and where the access is when you book.