Don't worry Steve, that picture was the "old school" way of cleaning ducts. We still like to crawl around and get dirty, I guess it's in our blood. Mikey was showing you the "new and improved" methods of exhaust cleaning.
I tell stories about the pictures I see on here when bidding long horizontals. "There's some guys out in LA that actually crawl around in the duct work." Then I try to sell them access panels.
Alright Steven, your next mission, should you chose to accept it: figure out how to get this duct clean. The access big enough to get one arm and your head in. The duct is too small to crawl. Begin.
Josh is right, Duct Smoker is an excellent product for burning hard to reach grease out of ducts. Gasoline used to be the preferred method but since it it considered a "flammable solvent" it is not allowed per NFPA 96. Duct Smoker however is not a solvent and is therefore allowed. You can pick some up at www.hoodcleaningsupplies.com . I have to warn you, it's not cheap
Also Steven, if you decide to use the Duct Smoker product, please be very careful, please understand that you can not hold me or this bulliten board liable for any damages that may occur while using this product. One guy was using it a while back and he burnt down an entire restaurant. He was one of those eager beaver newbies that got some training and thought he knew it all but got a rude awaking when he used the Duct Smoker improperly, please don't let this happen to you.
Another very important note is, if you ingest this product, drink plenty of water. You know some people will eat anything. For instance, maybe you like pepper on your sandwich and "oops, wrong shaker!!, ah, a little won't hurt", do not eat the sandwich. Please discard entire contaminated portion, scraping it off won't help. This guy learned the hard way.
The final image is the results you can expect if used properly.
Those guys are a couple of jokers Steven, in all seriousness, be very careful with the Duct Smoker. I think it is on sale right now so you might want to head over to www.hoodcleaningsupplies.com and get a couple of pounds to try out.
In case you don't already know, there is another product called Pipe Smoker that you should steer clear of. I know know that Josh Dodson has a lot of experience with pipe smoking, he should be able to give you a heads up on that. From what I understand he was one of the biggest pipe smokers in the midwest before he discovered the Duct Smoker.
Another thing, make sure you don't let it burn too long, the ducts can warp from the heat so have your pressure washer ready to put it out. If you follow the instructions, you shouldn't have a problem. Here is an example of what can happen to the duct if you let the grease burn too long.