Restaurant & cafe HVAC
Restaurant & cafe HVAC in Al Hijrah
Al Hijrah in north-east Jeddah hosts coffeehouses and restaurants that need precise air balance between kitchen and dining room. We balance pressure between zones and supply make-up air to the hood to trap cooking smells and grease away from guests.
- 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.
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
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.
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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 Hijrah is a relatively modern district with multi-storey buildings hosting restaurants and lounges on ground and upper floors, with narrow service passages for kitchens behind main facades. Kitchens here are enclosed and generate heavy vapour and grease loads, so if the hood is not managed properly, insufficient make-up air reaches the kitchen, pressure drops and smoke and odour spill into the dining room. Balancing pressure between kitchen and dining keeps guests comfortable and extends coil life by slowing grease buildup.
Al Hijrah in north-east Jeddah is a modern district of mixed commercial and residential buildings with a high concentration of restaurants and cafés.
Most restaurants and cafés here use ceiling hoods connected to ducting to exhaust vapours directly out of the kitchen.
The AC setup in Al Hijrah
- 1
Ceiling hood with exhaust ducting
Most restaurants in Al Hijrah mount the hood in the ceiling above the kitchen and exhaust through insulated ducts to the roof.
- 2
Centralised make-up air system
To balance pressure, we deliver conditioned make-up air from a central or split unit to the kitchen in calibrated amounts.
- 3
Grease filters ahead of coils
We install grease filters in the hood path to protect the coils from cooking oils and spatter.
Before the visit
Before our visit in Al Hijrah
- 1
Locate roof access and outdoor ducts
Check roof or balcony access where exhaust ducts exit, and ensure outdoor vents are clear of blockages.
- 2
Coordinate with restaurant management on visit timing
Choose a time between closing hours or before peak service to avoid disrupting kitchen operations during the visit.
- 3
Confirm electrical supply capacity
Check that existing electrical connections can support adding a make-up air unit or upgrading the current hood before installation.
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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.
Kitchen smells reach the dining tables, what is the solution?
Low kitchen pressure pulls air from the dining room instead of the hood. We fix this by raising the make-up air supply to the kitchen, so odours stay within the hood's reach.
The hood creates problems with door closing, why?
When the hood runs at high speed, it removes more air from the kitchen than enters, causing pressure drop and door resistance. Balancing the air solves this.
Kitchen temperature is very high in summer, does air balancing affect cooling?
The hood carries away much of the cooling, but balancing pressure brings conditioned make-up air directly to the kitchen to maintain comfort.
Hood coils fail quickly from grease, how do you reduce this?
We install grease filters ahead of the coils, and recommend cleaning the hood and ducts roughly monthly to extend coil life.
