Restaurant & cafe HVAC
Restaurant & cafe HVAC in Al Khumrah
Restaurant and cafe HVAC in Al Khumrah, south Jeddah, faces harsh desert heat and coastal humidity. Alrabih balances kitchen extraction with cool-air supply, protecting coils from grease, mould and rust, keeping guests in temperate, clean air away from cooking 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 Khumrah is a relatively modern residential and commercial district with medium-density buildings spread on regular streets, and restaurants and cafes here are typically mid-sized with separate kitchens and reasonable space. Al Khumrah's environment is unique in combining harsh desert heat with nearby coastal humidity, raising cooling demand and accelerating mould and rust growth in cooling coils and metal ducts rapidly. We select high-capacity cooling units and mould and rust-resistant coils and ducts to withstand these extreme conditions.
Al Khumrah sits in south Jeddah between the desert and the coast, a modern residential and commercial district with medium-density buildings.
Most restaurants and cafes here use multiple split units per dining area with a kitchen extraction fan, balancing reasonable space with severe cooling demand.
The AC setup in Al Khumrah
- 1
Multiple split units with extraction fan
Severe cooling demand requires multiple split units in the dining area, with a powerful extraction fan from the kitchen running alongside the cooling.
- 2
Mould and rust-resistant coils and ducts
Coastal humidity and heat together accelerate mould and rust, so we select mould-treated coils and galvanised or coated ducts.
- 3
Strong thermal insulation for long runs
Long distances between indoor and outdoor units lose cooling, so we wrap pipes with thick thermal insulation to preserve performance.
Before the visit
Before our visit in Al Khumrah
- 1
Photograph the kitchen and dining area from all angles
Photos from different angles help us understand heat and humidity distribution and position units and filters optimally.
- 2
Measure distance from kitchen to external outlet
Long distances need larger-diameter pipes and stronger insulation, so tell us the approximate distance before the visit.
- 3
Confirm roof or exterior wall access
Verify that the team can safely reach the roof or exterior wall for outdoor unit and filter installation before the visit day.
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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.
Heat and humidity combined weaken the restaurant cooling, do I need more units?
Yes, Al Khumrah combines high desert heat with coastal humidity, raising the cooling load significantly. We calculate your exact requirement during the visit and recommend the necessary units for effective cooling.
Mould grows in the coils and ducts because of humidity, how do you stop it?
We select mould-resistant cooling coils and galvanised or coated metal ducts, and recommend monthly maintenance to clean the coils and ducts of moisture and mould.
Rust eats away at pipes and the outdoor unit, is there protection?
We use copper pipes coated with coastal corrosion protection, rust-resistant cooling coils, and cover the outdoor unit with periodic protective covers if exposed to sea air.
The copper run to the outdoor unit is long, does it affect performance?
Length of the run affects pressure and efficiency, but we select the correct pipe diameters and wrap them in strong thermal insulation to reduce cooling loss over the long run.
