Restaurant & cafe HVAC
Restaurant & cafe HVAC in Al Buddur
In Al Buddur, east Jeddah, restaurants and cafés are spread across commercial buildings of various sizes with reasonable floor space. We integrate AC and hood systems to deliver cool, clean air in the dining area away from kitchen odours.
- Pressure balance
- Make-up air
- Coil protection
Clients We're Proud to Serve
Organisations and companies that trusted Alrabih with their projects.
When your restaurant needs a specialist
- 1
Kitchen smells reaching diners
When the extract hood pulls out more air than is replaced, the kitchen goes negative and draws air from the dining room, bringing smells with it. The answer is calculating the volumes and delivering make-up air close to the hood.
- 2
Dining room stays warm despite the AC
A full dining room in Jeddah's humid summer raises heat and moisture load noticeably. Design must account for peak occupancy, and the right diffuser layout achieves even cooling across tables, not cold near the duct and warm in the corners.
- 3
Repeated breakdowns in kitchen AC units
Grease vapour from the burners settles on evaporator coils and blocks airflow, raising pressure and stressing the compressor. Placing the unit away from grease currents and scheduling coil cleaning reduces this damage significantly.
Who it's for
Opening a new restaurant that needs a full HVAC system
We design the cooling and make-up air system from scratch to match your kitchen and dining layout before you open.
Ask on WhatsAppYour restaurant is running but smells are reaching the tables
We survey the existing system, measure pressure between kitchen and dining, then correct the fault by adding make-up air or adjusting the air balance.
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What the work covers
- Kitchen and dining pressure survey
- Make-up air for hood
- Diffuser layout for dining
- Ductwork to SMACNA standards
- Air balance commissioning
How we work
How we work
- 1
Site and kitchen survey
We visit, measure the spaces, review the existing extract hood and burner positions, and find where negative pressure is occurring before any design work.
- 2
Design and equipment selection
We design the make-up air and cooling systems together, and select units from Carrier, YORK, General, Midea, Gree or Smart Gold to suit the space and the load.
- 3
Duct fabrication and installation
We fabricate ducts in our workshop from G90 galvanised sheet to precise sizes, install the units, and run Mueller copper in runs of up to 30 metres without welded joints, insulated with Armaflex.
- 4
Balancing and handover
We run the system and adjust dampers until the kitchen sits at slight negative and the dining room at slight positive, confirming that doors open easily and no kitchen smell crosses to the guests.
Integrated design or separate units with no balance?
| Alrabih | The usual way | |
|---|---|---|
| Make-up air | Calculated and delivered to the hood | Usually not addressed |
| Dining pressure | Slight positive, no smell transfer | Negative, pulls kitchen air in |
| Coil protection | Unit placed away from grease | Repeated breakdowns |
| Cooling spread | Diffusers sized for full occupancy | Uneven, warm corners |
| Kitchen ductwork | Fabricated in-house from G90 sheet | Off-the-shelf sizes, poor fit |
Everything your AC needs, from one team
From system design and duct fabrication to installation, commissioning and maintenance.
Split AC installation
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Some of our work
Ductwork, rooftop units and diffusers, from work we've completed in Jeddah.
Customer reviews
What our customers say
- Muhammadramzan 2641
“MashaaAllah. Services are so good. Behaviour and kindness 100/100. Prices are less then Market. Fully recommended”
- shahzeb armani
“Wow. Prices are so comfortable. Outstanding services. People are so talented and nice”
- Tawfik AlyawerLocal Guide
“U can find all u need for air conditioning”
Your satisfaction matters to us! If you had a great experience with us, we'd love a 5-star rating and a kind review.
Worked with us? Leave a reviewService areas
We come to you anywhere in Jeddah
From Al Shiraa and Al Yaqout in the north to Al Thaghr and Al Quraiyat in the south, with our base in Al Aziziyah.
What sets this district apart
Al Buddur's commercial buildings are fairly modern with sufficient floor space for restaurants and cafés, and wide streets make it easy for our installation and service teams to reach units. This gives us flexibility in siting outdoor equipment, but restaurants' heavy use means rapid grease buildup on filters and coils. The horizontal spread allows better drainage design, but we must ensure condensation does not pool in working areas or on roofs.
Al Buddur is in east Jeddah, a district of modern commercial buildings with plenty of horizontal space.
Most restaurants here use multiple split units paired with a powerful central hood to efficiently pull cooking fumes from the kitchen.
The AC setup in Al Buddur
- 1
Multiple split units
Medium and larger restaurants here need multiple split units spread across different sections, each with its own outdoor coil.
- 2
Central hood with high capacity
A central kitchen hood with high extraction capacity serves all cooking appliances, with ducts directed cleanly outside away from interior walls.
- 3
Fresh make-up air from outdoors
We supply filtered outside air through a dedicated duct to balance pressure, so dining air does not get pulled toward the kitchen.
Before the visit
Before our visit in Al Buddur
- 1
Provide a floor plan of the restaurant and kitchen
A simple sketch showing dining tables, kitchen and outdoor space helps us plan unit placement and drainage accurately.
- 2
Tell us about heavy kitchen equipment
Describe where the oven, grills and fryers are located, so we know where heat and smoke concentrate and can position the hood precisely.
- 3
Confirm space for outdoor units
Check that the roof or outdoor area has enough space for split units and hood, and that it can bear the weight and vibration.
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FAQ
Questions about Restaurant & cafe HVAC
What is the difference between make-up air and kitchen air conditioning?
Make-up air replaces the volume the hood extracts, its purpose is pressure balance not necessarily cooling. Kitchen air conditioning tackles burner heat and lowers temperature for the staff. Both may be needed, and the site survey determines which your kitchen requires.
Do outdoor seating areas need a different approach in Jeddah?
Yes. In Jeddah's heat and humidity, fans alone are not enough during peak months. The right option depends on whether the space has an open roof or a partial enclosure and how large the area is. We assess the spot and propose suitable units after the survey.
How are AC coils protected from kitchen grease?
The first step is design: we position kitchen units in airflow paths away from the grease rising off the burners. In preventive maintenance contracts we schedule pressure coil cleaning before build-up raises stress on the compressor, because early cleaning is simpler and less costly than a repair.
Can existing ductwork in an operating restaurant be repaired or does it need replacing?
The decision follows a duct inspection: we look for air leaks, grease build-up inside, and sheet corrosion from Jeddah's salty air. If the structure is sound we seal joints with Foster sealants and re-insulate with Kimmco. If not, we fabricate new sections in our workshop and replace the damaged runs.
Does a packed dining room during peak season affect how the AC performs?
Yes, every person in the room adds heat and moisture, and this is significant in Jeddah's summer. Design therefore accounts for full occupancy load, not average attendance, and diffusers are positioned to deliver even cooling across all tables. The exact layout is confirmed after the site survey.
How many split units does a medium-sized restaurant here need?
It depends on the exact size and kitchen heat load, but medium restaurants here typically need two or three splits positioned at corners for even cooling.
The central hood is very noisy in the morning, how do we reduce it?
We select hood motors with balanced fans and sound dampening, and we advise running the hood at medium speed during quieter periods.
Coils and filters get filthy very quickly from kitchen grease, how do we prevent this?
We recommend a cleaning schedule every two to three weeks, and we can arrange routine maintenance that reduces grease buildup and keeps cooling efficiency high.
Drainage from the units pools on the roof, what do we do?
We design drainage lines with proper slope toward roof drains, or we add a collection point with pipes directed away from work areas.
