Restaurant & cafe HVAC

Restaurant & cafe HVAC in Al Harazat

Al Harazat in east Jeddah hosts growing numbers of restaurants and cafes in a modern developing district with diverse building sizes and uses. HVAC here needs careful balancing between kitchen hood and general ventilation while managing both desert dust and coastal humidity.

  • Pressure balance
  • Make-up air
  • Coil protection

Clients We're Proud to Serve

Organisations and companies that trusted Alrabih with their projects.

  • Saudi Aramco
  • Ministry of Energy
  • Royal Saudi Land Forces
  • Royal Saudi Naval Forces
  • Al Baik
  • Centro Hotels by Rotana
  • King Abdullah Economic City
  • First Mills
  • Juffali
  • eXtra
  • Dr. Soliman Fakeeh Medical Center
  • Alesayi Motors
  • Abu Zaid
  • Water Desalination
  • Attieh Steel
  • SSCO
  • Creet
  • Emad Rizq
  • Alfaneyah
  • Rawat Alam Al Tasmeem
  • IBI Magix Arabia — Construction Services
  • Midtown for Construction
  • Petra Engineering Industries Co.
  • Hyrmas
  • Batterjee Medical College
  • Advanced Horizons Contracting Company
  • D.Metals
  • Benchbox — Masters of Space
  • Sadafco
  • Umm Al-Qura University
  • Saudi Arabian Drug Store (SADS)
  • Foamco
  • Ahmad A. R. Bin Afif Industries Co. (Sandwich Panel Factory)
  • Namariq
  • ALS

When your restaurant needs a specialist

  1. 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. 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. 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 WhatsApp
  • Your 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.

    Ask on WhatsApp

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
Request a quote

How we work

How we work

  1. 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. 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. 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. 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?

AlrabihThe usual way
Make-up airCalculated and delivered to the hoodUsually not addressed
Dining pressureSlight positive, no smell transferNegative, pulls kitchen air in
Coil protectionUnit placed away from greaseRepeated breakdowns
Cooling spreadDiffusers sized for full occupancyUneven, warm corners
Kitchen ductworkFabricated in-house from G90 sheetOff-the-shelf sizes, poor fit

Some of our work

Ductwork, rooftop units and diffusers, from work we've completed in Jeddah.

  • Galvanized rectangular duct trunk with branch takeoffs and round diffusers, hung from a black ceiling, a Carrier unit visible behind — interior finishing stage.
  • Round diffusers and a spiral duct trunk in a tiled stairwell service shaft.
  • Rooftop ductwork and an exhaust fan, with Jeddah buildings in the background.
  • Rooftop packaged AC units with rectangular duct transitions, city buildings behind.
  • Insulated rooftop duct run beside a packaged unit, a warehouse roof in the background.
  • A grid of round diffusers in an open-plan office ceiling, mid-construction.
  • An insulated rooftop duct elbow, against a mountainous backdrop.
  • Large insulated ductwork running along a factory ceiling, with workers visible below.
  • A yellow round diffuser mid-installation, with spiral duct and a suspended ceiling grid.
  • Duct insulation wrap in progress on a construction site, bare duct still exposed.
  • A black-painted duct trunk with round diffusers and track lighting, in a finished retail interior.
  • An indoor AHU unit connected to round ductwork in a mechanical plant room, exposed concrete ceiling.
Similar project? Send us the details

Customer reviews

What our customers say

4.8

From 10 Google reviews

  • 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”

Read every review on Google

Your satisfaction matters to us! If you had a great experience with us, we'd love a 5-star rating and a kind review.

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Service 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.

Map of Jeddah by sector, with Alrabih's base in Al Aziziyah
Don't see your district?Message us. We most likely cover it.

What sets this district apart

Al Harazat is a developing modern district with a mix of residential and commercial buildings of varying sizes and designs, so restaurants and cafes here range from tight shops to larger commercial spaces. Being east of Jeddah, it faces both fine desert dust and sea moisture, doubling the challenge of protecting coils and filters. The design here must balance adequate hood power with dual protection from dust and humidity.

Al Harazat is in east Jeddah, a growing mixed residential and commercial district with diverse buildings hosting a growing number of restaurants and cafes.

Restaurants and cafes here need medium to high-capacity hoods and strong air filters because desert dust mixes with coastal moisture.

The AC setup in Al Harazat

  1. 1

    Central AC with medium-capacity hood

    Most units here have medium spaces, so medium-capacity hoods suffice with central AC distributed to dining and corridors.

  2. 2

    Dual high-capacity filters for dust

    We fit primary and secondary filters to catch fine desert dust and moisture-mixed particles.

  3. 3

    Drainage with dual protection

    We use rust-resistant pipes with strong moisture traps to prevent odour and moisture back-flow in this mixed climate.

Before the visit

Before our visit in Al Harazat

  1. 1

    Tell us where the supply and drain openings are

    We need to know where air supply and drain openings will be so we can design the system to balance hood power with dust protection.

  2. 2

    Measure the kitchen and dining dimensions precisely

    Precise kitchen and dining dimensions help us calculate hood power and air supply accurately to achieve the right balance.

  3. 3

    Check the condition of exterior openings and ceilings

    Dust enters through small gaps, so ensure openings seal properly and the roof and exterior surfaces are sound to prevent dust or moisture infiltration.

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.

Dust levels here are high; will the filters clog quickly?

Yes, desert dust requires thick, high-capacity filters; we recommend cleaning them monthly or every two months instead of quarterly, and fit a filter-pressure gauge.

We get humidity from the sea and dust from the desert; how do you protect the coils?

We use coils and filters treated to handle dust and humidity, and fit a pre-filter to trap large particles before they reach the coils.

The kitchen is open and space is somewhat tight; how do you balance the pressure?

We design a separate supply that pushes parallel air toward the dining area with a precisely sized kitchen hood, so air does not get pulled from dining toward the kitchen.

Our building's wiring is relatively new; will installation be quick and safe?

Yes, modern wiring provides adequate capacity and better safety, but we still inspect the panel and confirm there are separate circuits available for the hood and AC.

The Jeddah corniche in cool weather

Keep your dining room away from the kitchen

WhatsApp a floor plan or photos of your kitchen and dining room and we will arrange a survey in your district, Saturday to Thursday, eight in the morning to eight at night.

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