Code primer
A short, practical summary of the codes that govern your hood, your duct, your makeup-air unit, and your grease trap in Houston. Written in plain English, with the citation behind every claim.
The four documents you need to know
Commercial kitchen ventilation in Houston is governed by four overlapping regulatory documents. Three are national standards adopted by reference into local code; one is a Houston-specific ordinance. Below is what each one is for, what it actually says, and where you can find the text.
1. NFPA 96 (2025)
NFPA 96, Standard for Ventilation Control and Fire Protection of Commercial Cooking Operations is the primary national standard. It covers hood design, duct routing, fan installation, fire suppression, cleaning frequency, and inspection. The 2025 revision was adopted by the City of Houston as of 2026-01-01. The full text is freely viewable at the NFPA website (free registration required to read; paid for download).
Sections you should know: §8 (Air movement and fan installation), §10 (Fire-extinguishing equipment), §11.4 (Cleaning acceptance criteria), §11.6 (Cleaning frequency).
2. ASHRAE 154-2024
ASHRAE Standard 154-2024, Ventilation for Commercial Cooking Operations is the engineering-side companion to NFPA 96. Where NFPA 96 sets safety minimums, ASHRAE 154 sets engineering targets — sizing, makeup-air requirements, capture-and-containment metrics, energy efficiency. ASHRAE 154's Annex B contains the capture-and-containment test procedure that almost every certifying shop in the country uses.
3. UL 300
UL 300, Fire-Testing of Fire-Extinguishing Systems for Restaurant Cooking Areas is the UL listing for your suppression system. Every wet-chemical fire-suppression system in a Houston commercial kitchen has to be UL 300–listed. The 2025 NFPA-96 revision tightened the language requiring all new suppression installations to be UL-300 listed; existing pre-2002 systems on a non-UL-300 listing are required to be upgraded at the next major kitchen renovation.
4. Houston Code §47-512(b)
City of Houston Code of Ordinances §47-512(b) is the local fats-oils-and-grease ordinance. It governs grease-trap pumping frequency (90 days standard, 180 days with a Notice of Waiver), manifest retention (3 years), and discharge limits to the public sewer system. Penalties for violation range from $250 to $2,000 per occurrence, plus the cost of any emergency cleanup.
The cleaning-frequency table
| Cooking type | Cleaning frequency (NFPA 96 §11.6) | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Solid fuel (wood, charcoal, pellet) | Monthly | §11.6.1.1 |
| 24-hour operations / heavy volume | Monthly | §11.6.1.2 |
| Moderate volume (default) | Quarterly | §11.6.1.3 |
| Low-volume (defined) | Semiannual | §11.6.1.4 |
| Cooking that produces no grease-laden vapor | Annual | §11.6.1.5 |
The other regulators
Three additional bodies have relevant jurisdiction over a Houston commercial kitchen.
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation licenses Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors. Updraft's mechanical work is performed under TDLR M-39184. Any contractor working on the makeup-air unit's compressor, refrigerant lines, or condensate routing must be TDLR-licensed.
The Texas Department of Insurance, Fire Marshal's Office licenses fire-extinguisher and suppression-system contractors. Anyone working on your suppression nozzles, fire-system piping, or extinguisher service must be TDI-licensed. Updraft is not a TDI-licensed contractor; we coordinate with whoever you use.
The Houston Permitting Center issues your food-establishment permit, your grease-trap permit, and (for new builds) your ME-3 mechanical inspection. The Permitting Center is the AHJ in most operator-facing interactions.
What a real Houston inspection looks like
An ME-3 mechanical inspection at a new build typically covers, in this order: hood listing and OEM documentation, duct construction and access-panel placement, fan listing and roof installation, makeup-air unit sizing and installation, electrical disconnect interlock, and fire-suppression system listing and nozzle layout. The inspector will visually verify each item, ask for documentation on the hood and fan listings, and may ask for a smoke-pencil capture-and-containment demonstration depending on the building.
An annual food-establishment inspection at an operating kitchen is much less mechanical; it's primarily about food handling, but inspectors will note any visible ventilation problems and refer them to the mechanical-side enforcement track.
One paragraph on enforcement reality
Houston's enforcement is, in our experience, fair, technically informed, and unsentimental. Inspectors do not write tickets to make a quota. They write tickets when they find conditions that pose a real risk — uncleaned plenums, unbalanced systems, untestable suppression. Operators we work with who keep clean records and respond to flags promptly almost never see a citation. Operators who let things drift do.