Installation
Carried out at the unit by our engineers, coordinated with plant shutdown windows and site access requirements.
AHU scenting solutions
AHU scenting solutions designed around your building's air-handling system.
Scenteq specifies scenting at the Air Handling Unit (AHU) — the central plant that conditions and supplies air to your building — so fragrance reaches every space that unit serves, at an intensity matched to its air volume.
What is AHU scenting?
AHU scenting places the diffusion unit at the air handling unit itself, upstream of the duct network, so every zone fed by that plant receives the same fragrance from a single injection point. It suits buildings served by central plant where one consistent character is wanted throughout, and keeps all equipment inside the plant room. Coverage is up to 1,000m² at £799 ex VAT outright or £99 per month all-inclusive.
- One injection point, whole-plant coverage, simplest service schedule
- Best where a single AHU serves the areas you want scented
- Where zones need different scents, duct-level or standalone units are specified instead
Overview
What AHU scenting is
An Air Handling Unit (AHU) is the plant item that filters, conditions and pushes air into a building. AHU scenting introduces fragrance into that supply air at the unit, so everything downstream — a lobby, a floor, a wing — receives a consistent character from a single, serviceable point.
The distinguishing feature of this approach is that the unit sets the parameters. Its supply volume determines dosing, its coverage determines which spaces can be treated, and its access arrangements determine where equipment can be installed and how it is serviced. The specification is written around the plant, not the floor plan.
That makes AHU scenting a natural fit for buildings with organised central plant, and a straightforward one to coordinate with facilities and M&E teams who already maintain the units on a planned schedule.
Applications
Typical applications
- Hotel lobbies and arrival halls
- Office reception areas and landlord common parts
- Commercial buildings with central plant
- Retail destinations and shopping centres
- Large public spaces and transport-adjacent lobbies
- Amenity floors in residential and mixed-use developments
Process
Assessment and specification
- 01
AHU assessment
We inspect the unit itself: supply volume, fan configuration, filtration stages, access panels, condition and the areas each unit actually serves.
- 02
Coverage mapping
We map which spaces sit downstream of the unit, because that — not the floor plan — determines what a single AHU installation can scent.
- 03
Specification
Equipment is sized to the unit's air volume and the treated area, with the injection point selected to suit the unit's build and service access.
- 04
Approval and coordination
The specification is issued for sign-off with the facilities or M&E team, including any works needed at the unit.
Free Quote
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Specification detail
Airflow, delivery and programme
Every detail below forms part of an AHU specification. Open the sections that matter to you, or show all details for the full picture.
Because output is tied to the unit's supply air, intensity in an AHU scheme is a function of air volume as much as room size. Where several units serve a building, each one becomes its own controllable zone.
- Output matched to the unit's supply air volume rather than room size alone
- Independent settings for each AHU serving a distinct zone
- Time scheduling aligned to building operating hours
- Ramped intensity for arrival peaks and quieter periods
- Fail-safe behaviour when the unit is off or in setback
- Adjustment ranges agreed with the facilities team
Commissioning
Output is set against measured supply air, then verified in the occupied spaces downstream and adjusted where needed.
Maintenance
Planned servicing and fragrance replenishment, aligned where possible with existing AHU maintenance visits.
New developments
Specifying at design stage is the cleanest route. Scenting is coordinated with the M&E package, injection points and access are designed in, and commissioning can run alongside the wider building services handover. Documentation passes to the building manager with the rest of the O&M information.
Existing buildings
Retrofit is routine, but it is assessment-led. We assess unit condition, available access panels, service windows and whether the unit's coverage matches the areas you want scented. Where it doesn't, we may recommend a mixed scheme with standalone units in the areas the AHU can't reach.
Comparing approaches? See HVAC scenting systems → or read HVAC vs AHU scenting: what's the difference →
AHU scenting
Want your AHU assessed before you commit?
Send us the basics and an engineer will confirm what your plant can cover, with a written price.
Trust
What you can hold us to.
We would rather under-promise. These are commitments we can evidence — not claims about how much you will sell.
IFRA-certified fragrance
Oils are supplied to IFRA standards with safety data sheets available before you order.
Written price before install
System, scent, install date and monthly cost confirmed in writing. No survey fee, no obligation.
Installed and serviced by us
UK engineers, insured and DBS-checked, fitted around your opening hours — not a drop-shipped box.
Dry vapour, no residue
Cold-air diffusion leaves no oily film on surfaces, glass or soft furnishings.
Try it in your space first
We tune intensity on site after go-live. If the scent is not right, we change it.
UK GDPR compliant
Your enquiry is used to quote and nothing else. No data sold, unsubscribe any time.
Scenteq is a UK-registered company. Insurance certificates, safety data sheets and reference sites are available on request. Prices shown exclude VAT.
FAQs
AHU scenting FAQs
- What is an AHU?
- An Air Handling Unit is the central plant item that filters, conditions and supplies air to part or all of a building. AHU scenting introduces fragrance into that supply air so it reaches everything the unit serves.
- How is AHU scenting different from HVAC scenting?
- They overlap, but AHU scenting is specified at the unit — output is matched to that unit's supply air and the areas downstream of it. Broader HVAC schemes may involve diffusion at multiple points across duct runs and zones.
- Do you need to modify the air handling unit?
- Usually only a small, reversible intervention at a suitable injection point. Any work at the unit is set out in the specification and agreed before installation.
- Will scenting affect filtration or unit performance?
- It shouldn't. Equipment is selected and positioned so it does not interfere with filtration stages or airflow, and this is checked as part of the assessment.
- Can this be specified for a building still in design?
- Yes, and it is the easier route. Specifying alongside the AHU at design stage avoids retrofit access issues and lets scenting be coordinated with the wider M&E package.
- What happens if the AHU is switched off overnight?
- Scenting is scheduled to follow the unit. When the AHU is off or in setback there is no supply air to carry fragrance, so the system idles rather than dosing into a static duct.
- Who maintains the system?
- Scenteq provides scheduled servicing and fragrance replenishment, coordinated with your existing plant maintenance visits where possible.
In their words
What clients tell us afterwards.
Feedback from live UK installations, published with client sign-off. Most sites ask to stay unnamed, so we publish the role, sector and city instead.
“The lobby reads as finished now. Guests do not comment on the fragrance — they comment on the hotel feeling more expensive.”
“Installed between shifts, no mess, and the reception team stopped noticing it within a fortnight. That was the goal.”
“Every store smells the same now, which is what we could never get from plug-ins. One contract, one invoice.”
“Changing rooms were our worst feedback line. Six weeks in, they are not mentioned at all.”
Photography shows comparable sector settings, not the client sites themselves. Quotes are reproduced as given and held on file. Experiences differ by building, airflow and occupancy.
Project enquiry
Discuss an AHU Scenting Project
Tell us about your building and its air handling arrangements, and we'll arrange a free consultation with a Scenteq specialist.
- Free consultation, no survey fee
- Written price within one working day
- No long tie-in contracts
- Your details are never sold or shared
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