Restaurant & cafe HVAC
Restaurant & cafe HVAC in Al Ta'awun
Restaurant and café HVAC in Al Ta'awun differs from other zones because the southern area combines crushing heat with more spread-out and varied building types. Alrabih designs powerful ventilation that maintains guest comfort and protects the kitchen from both heat and humidity.
- 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.
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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 Ta'awun in south Jeddah is a new growth area with restaurants and cafés in relatively modern separated buildings, but heat here can exceed 50 degrees Celsius in summer and humidity stays high year-round. This means the ventilation system needs exceptional power and tightly controlled coils and drainage. Kitchens generate extra heat and mould grows fast in the drain pan and coils if not cleaned weekly. Guests expect a cool, comfortable environment despite intense outdoor heat, putting major pressure on the pressure balance system.
Al Ta'awun lies in south Jeddah, a newly developing zone with restaurants and cafés in relatively modern separated buildings.
Most restaurants here have very high-capacity central units with additional dehumidification and double or triple coils to handle intense heat and humidity.
The AC setup in Al Ta'awun
- 1
Very high-capacity central system with triple coils
Restaurants in Al Ta'awun need exceptionally high-capacity units and triple or more coils to handle extreme heat and persistent humidity.
- 2
Independent dehumidification system
A separate dehumidification system running in parallel with the main AC to reduce indoor air humidity and limit mould growth.
- 3
Separate kitchen hood and cooler with protected coils
Powerful air extraction with a kitchen-specific cooling unit and insulated coils protecting against moisture, grease and extra heat.
Before the visit
Before our visit in Al Ta'awun
- 1
Measure ceiling and wall thermal insulation
Tell us the current insulation thickness or ask our opinion if it seems weak, we may need to add extra insulation to reduce heat load.
- 2
Identify all condensate and water drain points
Show us where all condensate pipes from internal and external coils drain, ensuring they outlet outside not onto floors.
- 3
Tell us the expected operating hours
Say if the restaurant is open mornings and evenings or all day, as this affects unit capacity and cleaning frequency.
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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 is extreme, the AC runs 24/7 and electricity bills are very high, is this normal?
In Al Ta'awun where temperatures can exceed 50 degrees, this is almost normal but we can improve it. We check coil and filter efficiency and add extra thermal insulation to ceilings and walls to reduce load.
Mould grows in AC cavities despite regular cleaning, why?
Very high humidity combined with heat speeds up mould growth. We install additional dehumidification and increase cleaning to twice weekly, cleaning the drain pan with disinfectant.
The hot make-up air entering the kitchen raises its temperature more, what is the fix?
We install a small cooler in the make-up air line and add a dehumidifying unit to lower temperature and humidity before the kitchen inlet.
The restaurant ceiling has poor thermal insulation, does it increase AC load?
Yes, significantly. We recommend adding extra thermal insulation above the ceiling or using a reflective heat-resistant coating on the exterior to reduce heat load.
