Commercial air conditioning on the Costa Blanca

Commercial AC needs a different approach

Commercial air conditioning isn’t just a bigger residential AC. The difference is in factors the average client doesn’t see but that determine investment success or failure. Heat loads are completely different. A restaurant with open kitchen has additional loads from grills, ovens and frying steam that can double required cooling capacity. A shop with south-facing display window gets solar radiation way above a home and needs compensation. An office with computers and many people has internal sensible heat per hour much greater.

Professional sizing accounts for all these factors and dimensions the equipment correctly. Quote difference between properly and badly sized equipment may look significant up front, but real cost is paid by the customer coming to the shop or restaurant: a poorly cooled location loses clients in summer when heat becomes unbearable. For hospitality where customer comfort directly drives revenue, the right unit is investment, not expense.

Types of commercial equipment

Ducted units are the most common in medium and large locations. The indoor unit hides in suspended ceiling, and air distributes through ductwork to supply and return grilles strategically placed across the location. Aesthetic advantage (no visible units) and technical (more uniform distribution). Downside is requirement for suspended ceiling and civil work.

Cassettes are square or rectangular units flush-mounted in suspended ceiling. Four-way supply, one per side, distributing air in four directions from one point. Used in offices and locations with accessible ceilings where full ductwork isn’t worth it. Each cassette covers 30-50 m² depending on capacity.

Commercial multi-splits with several wall or floor-ceiling indoor units linked to one common outdoor are the cheapest install option. Work well where there are interior divisions and each zone needs its own temperature control.

Roof-tops, compact units mounted directly on the roof, are typical for warehouses and large supermarkets. All machinery in one outdoor unit, air ducted inside through large ducts.

Paperwork and rules

Commercial installations above a certain capacity (typically 70 kW thermal) need industrial registration and an engineer-signed project. Below that threshold, an installer-signed boletín is enough. Either way, equipment must have CE marking and meet European efficiency directive. F-Gas regulations apply equally and require gas-charge registration above certain kilograms.

For hospitality, opening an activity licence can require a climate-control certificate from the installer. When working a new venue in licence process, we coordinate directly with the municipal technician so the AC paperwork is ready before final inspection.

Commercial maintenance

Commercial units run in much harsher conditions than residential. 12-14 hours daily in season, variable thermal loads through the day, dirt build-up from greater airflow. Without proper maintenance, peak-season breakdown costs not only the repair but the lost revenue from hours or days without service.

We offer commercial maintenance contracts with quarterly or four-monthly visits, priority 24-hour emergency response in season, and technical reports each visit. The setup used by several restaurants and shops in coastal Torrevieja, Orihuela Costa and La Zenia that fully depend on AC to keep operating in summer.