31/10/2025 • by Megan Downing
Running a busy restaurant means working in a high-pressure environment where potential fire hazards are part of the daily routine. In the middle of a rush, or even accidentally leaving an appliance on after closing, things could quickly turn serious.
A well-designed kitchen fire suppression system offers automatic detection, 24/7 protection and instant suppression to help minimise costly damage and keep your business, your people and your reputation safe.
In this guide, we’ll break down:
- What is a restaurant fire suppression system
- Why you should consider one for your restaurant
- Legal requirements you need to know
- The options available
- How to keep your system maintained
- Where to find the best restaurant suppression systems in the UK
A restaurant fire suppression system is a specialised system designed to automatically detect and extinguish kitchen fires in restaurants. In contrast to handheld extinguishers, these systems don’t rely on human intervention, react immediately upon fire detection, and instantly release an agent to suppress the flames and stop reignition, providing 24-hour complete protection.
These systems can be bespoke to your restaurant’s kitchen and integrated where there are the biggest fire risks, such as kitchen hoods, ducts and cooking stations. The system works via a heat-sensing tube that runs along the top of the plenum and is designed to detect fire at a predetermined temperature (approximately 150 – 180 °C). When this temperature is reached, the tube bursts, releasing stored pressure and triggering the indirect low-pressure valves to open.
This rapid automatic response can stop a small fire from becoming full-scale. Protecting your kitchen, team and business before disaster has a chance to ignite.
While there is no direct legal requirement requiring UK restaurants to have a suppression system in place, owners are legally required to provide ‘appropriate fire safety measures’, and many insurance companies require suppression systems. These systems can also help reduce insurance costs.
Getting a bespoke fire suppression system designed and installed by certified experts ensures your kitchen meets all current fire safety requirements and industry standards. Providing full compliance.
A restaurant kitchen fire suppression system is tailored to the unique risks of a commercial kitchen fire, such as grease, oil and electrical fires. They contain specialised extinguishing agents designed to combat these fire types. Their fast, efficient response saves lives and equipment, and limits costly downtime.
The restaurant hood fire suppression system is one of the most popular and essential setups in restaurant kitchens. Cooking hoods and ductworks are a centre for collecting grease and vapours, causing them to be one of the most dangerous and common places for ignition points in restaurants.
A hood suppression system protects these high-risk zones directly, extinguishing fires and preventing flames from travelling through ducting.
Ceasefire proudly offers some of the best kitchen fire suppression systems, trusted by restaurants across the UK. Designed specifically for the demanding environments of commercial kitchens, ceasefire systems are engineered to meet strict UK fire safety standards with UL, Green Seal and LPCB certifications available. In addition, their reliable and durable design means they only require servicing every year as opposed to every 6 months like other kitchen fire suppression systems.
Find out more here: Ceasefire Kitchen Suppression Systems.
Running a small kitchen doesn’t mean you should have to compromise on safety. Bespoke kitchen fire suppression systems enable you to have a system specific to your kitchen size. Small restaurant fire suppression systems are compact, allow for easy installation and help ensure compliance and that your restaurant is fully protected.
For larger commercial kitchens, big restaurant fire suppression systems offer full-scale protection. These systems are designed to be integrated into complex extraction systems, multiple cooking lines and high-output kitchens.
The cost of a restaurant fire suppression system varies by several factors, including:
- Kitchen size and layout
- Type of cooking equipment
- Extinguishing agent required
- Installation and servicing requirements
Regular restaurant fire suppression system servicing keeps your system fully compliant, prevents failures, and ensures it is effective in an emergency. Most kitchen fire suppression systems are required to be serviced every 6 months, whereas Ceasefire systems are required every 12 months.
Looking for restaurant fire suppression system service near me? Fire Protection Shop works with certified UK engineers who can service, install and maintain your systems across the UK.
With expert support and responsive callouts, we help restaurant owners stay compliant, minimise downtime and keep kitchens protected around the clock.
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