Restaurant & cafe HVAC
Restaurant & cafe HVAC in Umm Sidrah
In Umm Sidrah, north-east Jeddah, restaurant and café HVAC must balance kitchen extraction with guest comfort in the dining room. Alrabih's team adjusts supply and exhaust to block cooking smells and heat from reaching the seating area.
- 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
Umm Sidrah is a growing residential and commercial district with mid-size cafés and hotels beside residential flats, so each venue sits close to neighbouring homes. Any odour or noise leakage from the kitchen exhaust affects nearby residents. We clean the AC coils of grease buildup and coordinate airflow so the hood does not push cooking fumes and smells toward guests or into adjacent flats.
Umm Sidrah is in north-east Jeddah, a mixed residential and commercial district with mid-size cafés and hotels.
Most cafés and restaurants here use split AC with a separate kitchen hood, and the outdoor unit typically sits on a balcony or roof.
The AC setup in Umm Sidrah
- 1
Split AC with separate kitchen hood
Cafés and restaurants in Umm Sidrah typically separate the AC system from the kitchen hood to avoid odour and grease transfer.
- 2
Outdoor air supply to the kitchen
Many restaurants here need direct cold air supply to the kitchen to balance pressure and stop odours entering the dining area.
- 3
Extra AC units in the kitchen
Large kitchens in hotels and mid-size restaurants may need a separate AC unit to handle the high heat from cooking equipment.
Before the visit
Before our visit in Umm Sidrah
- 1
Clarify the kitchen and dining layout
Before the visit, show us a simple sketch or photo of the hood position and indoor and outdoor unit locations to understand airflow distribution.
- 2
Ensure the team can access the roof or balcony
The outdoor unit and hood are usually on the roof or high balcony, check that the team can access them safely before the appointment.
- 3
Tell us about current odour or noise issues
If there is odour leakage to the dining area or neighbour complaints, tell us before the visit so we can plan the best solution.
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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 odours reach my dining area, how do you fix that?
We increase the cold air supply to the dining room and regulate the kitchen hood power to extract fumes in balance, so it does not create negative pressure that pulls odours toward guests.
My residential neighbour complains of high humidity and kitchen smells, what can I do?
We ensure the kitchen hood vents directly outside, balance air pressure so nothing leaks to neighbours, and clean the AC coils of grease regularly.
The kitchen gets too hot in summer, the hood and AC are not enough, is there a solution?
We can increase cold air supply directly to the kitchen or add a separate AC unit for the kitchen itself, depending on the space and heat load from appliances.
The kitchen hood is slamming doors shut, is that normal?
No, that means strong negative pressure. We add direct outdoor air supply to the kitchen to balance the pressure and stop the door slamming.
