AEI Corporation

Architects working on a new apartment or condominium project have a lot to keep track of. There is the building itself, circulation, parking, utility planning, landscaping, common areas, code requirements, accessibility, and dozens of other details that all have to work together. Outdoor amenities are only one piece of that larger project, but they can become complicated quickly once the planning moves beyond an early rendering.

A patio may look fairly simple at first. Add some seating, a few tables, maybe an outdoor kitchen, several patio grills, and enough patio heaters to keep residents comfortable when temperatures drop. Then the questions start coming. How many grills should the property have? Should they run on natural gas or electricity? How much room needs to be left around each grill? Are the heaters going on walls, ceilings, beams, or freestanding mounts? How many heaters will actually be needed to cover the space, and where should the gas and electrical connections go?

Those details are much easier to work through while the project is still on paper. That is one reason architects and developers bring AEI into the planning process early. Our complimentary patio design service gives project teams access to people who work with commercial outdoor grills and heaters every day. Architects know the property and the overall design. AEI knows the equipment, installation requirements, and the way these products are used in shared outdoor spaces. Bringing those areas of experience together can make the patio easier to design, build, and maintain.

Patio Design Gets More Complicated Once the Details Start

Multifamily outdoor spaces have changed a lot over the years. Residents now expect more than a table and a couple of benches. New apartment and condominium communities may include outdoor kitchens, fire features, lounge seating, televisions, swimming pools, dining areas, shade structures, beverage stations, and spaces designed for small gatherings. The grills and heaters have to fit into that larger plan without getting in the way of everything else.

This is where something that looked easy at first can start affecting several other parts of the project. An architect may know exactly where an outdoor kitchen should go and how it should look, but if the actual grill model has not been selected yet, the countertop cutout dimensions may still be unknown. The gas connection could end up in the wrong place, or the original layout may not leave enough usable prep space around the grill.

None of these issues are especially dramatic on their own, but they are much easier to solve before cabinets are built, countertops are fabricated, or concrete is poured. The same is true for patio heating. A heater cannot simply be placed wherever it looks good on the reflected ceiling plan. Mounting height, spacing, available structure, clearances, controls, and the area that actually needs heat all come into play.

A beam may interfere with the most obvious heater location. A large seating area may need several units instead of one. Another patio might benefit from separate heating zones so property staff can warm only the section residents are using. These are the kinds of details that are easy to overlook when outdoor appliances are treated as finish items rather than part of the original design.

Start With How Residents Will Use the Space

Before talking about grill models or heater sizes, it helps to look at what the patio is actually supposed to do. A rooftop deck serving 40 apartments has very different needs than a large pool deck shared by several hundred units. A compact grill station may work perfectly for one property, while another may need multiple grilling areas spread across the site so residents are not all competing for the same appliances.

Heating works the same way. One patio may need warmth around a handful of dining tables, while another may have lounge seating, bar-height counters, and a covered outdoor room that all need different levels of coverage. That is usually where AEI's planning conversations begin.

Rather than starting with a product list, our design team looks at the property itself. We talk through the layout, number of units, expected use, available utilities, style of the outdoor space, and any limitations that are already known. Meetings can happen in person, by video, over the phone, or through a mix of all three. The format matters less than having the conversation early enough for the information to still influence the plans.

Once those basics are understood, the discussion becomes much more useful. The project team can start looking at grill quantities, fuel sources, heater placement, mounting options, controls, utility requirements, and the other details that turn a general outdoor amenity into a workable design.

Choosing Patio Grills That Fit the Project

There is no single grill layout that works for every multifamily development. Some properties need several smaller grills so more residents can cook at the same time. Others may be better served by one central outdoor kitchen with two larger stainless steel grills. Larger communities may even need more than one grill area so residents do not have to walk across the property every time they want to cook outside.

The right approach depends on the size of the property, the number of residents, available space, expected demand, budget, and utility setup. Material is part of the decision too. AEI offers both cast aluminum and stainless steel outdoor grills, and both can work well in shared outdoor environments because they are durable and resist corrosion.

Cast aluminum grills can be a practical fit when several grills are needed across a large property. Stainless steel grills often work well in more prominent outdoor kitchens where appearance, size, and a more finished look are priorities. Neither material is automatically right for every project, which is why it helps to look at the space and expected use first.

Fuel source is another decision that should be made early. Natural gas grills are a common choice when gas service is already available. There is no propane cylinder for staff to refill or replace, and the grill stays connected to the property's gas supply. Electric grills may make more sense on projects where natural gas is unavailable or where the building design makes electricity easier to support.

These choices affect infrastructure, so they should not be pushed to the end of the project. If the grill type is known early, the utility plan can reflect that decision from the start instead of forcing the construction team to work around it later.

Small Grill Details Matter in Multifamily Settings

A grill installed at a single-family home is usually used by the same few people. That is very different from a grill at an apartment or condominium community, where one appliance may be used by dozens of residents and several different families in the same day.

People may not know the equipment well, and they may not always treat it as carefully as they would their own grill at home. Someone can forget to shut it off. A control knob may get damaged or disappear. Operating instructions need to be easy to find and understand. All of that changes what architects and owners should look for when selecting equipment.

AEI's T-Series grills include features designed around shared use, including automatic shutoff timers built into the control panel, laser-etched operating instructions, anti-theft control knobs, and side-mounted temperature indicators. The shutoff timer is especially useful on a multifamily property because staff members cannot stand next to the grill all day making sure every resident turns it off when they finish cooking.

Accessories are worth thinking about at this stage too. Depending on the property, the outdoor kitchen might include stainless steel side shelves, side burners, sinks, trash receptacles, storage drawers, cupboards, or beverage centers. Lift-assist grill handles can make a grill easier to use and may fit into the project's broader accessibility goals, while emergency gas shutoff buttons can be planned into the area where appropriate.

It is much cleaner to make these decisions while the outdoor kitchen is still being designed. Trying to add a sink, storage component, side shelf, or other accessory after cabinets, countertops, and utilities are already installed can create unnecessary problems.

Patio Heaters Need More Than a Good Spot on the Plan

Heating a patio is not just a matter of finding an open section of wall or ceiling and mounting a heater there. Coverage matters, and the way the space is used matters just as much.

Infrared heaters warm people and nearby surfaces through radiant heat, so the direction of the heater and the area in front of it are especially important. A heater can have enough output for the patio and still perform poorly if it is installed in the wrong location.

That is why AEI creates heatmaps for projects that use infrared patio heating. A heatmap shows the expected heating pattern over the actual patio layout and can be viewed from above or from an eye-level perspective, depending on what the project team needs to evaluate.

Seeing the coverage makes it easier to answer practical design questions before equipment is installed. Would two heaters provide better coverage than one larger unit? Does a seating group need its own heater? Should several units be moved closer together? Would changing the mounting location improve the way the heat reaches residents?

A heatmap can also help prevent the opposite problem, which is adding more heaters than the space really needs. More equipment means more cost, more controls, and greater utility demand. The goal is not to fill the patio with heaters. It is to use the right number of units and place them where they can do the most good.

Heater Controls Should Be Part of the Design

The heating equipment is only one part of the system. Someone also has to control it, and that should be considered before walls are finished and the electrical work is complete.

For a small patio, the solution might be as simple as a wall switch. Larger properties may need several heating zones so staff can turn on one part of the patio without heating every seating area at once. Other projects may use remote controls, scheduling, custom control panels, or third-party control systems.

Questions about heater controls are fairly basic, but they have a big effect on how easy the system is to use. Where should the controls go? Who will have access to them? Should separate seating areas operate independently? Does the property team want the ability to schedule heating during certain times of day?

There is no need to make the control system more complicated than the property requires. It simply needs to match the way the patio will operate once residents move in. Planning that early makes the final setup easier for property staff and helps avoid awkward control locations later.

CAD Files Make Planning Easier

Architects need accurate dimensions, but outdoor appliances sometimes get treated as placeholders during the early stages of design. A generic grill symbol may sit on a plan for months before the actual model is selected, and that can create problems once the outdoor kitchen starts moving toward fabrication.

A built-in grill needs a specific opening. Accessories need their own space. Mounting hardware takes up room, and clearances can affect where equipment can be installed. AEI can provide CAD files and product documents with the dimensions needed to plan around actual equipment rather than estimated sizes.

For built-in grills, this includes cutout information that can be used when designing custom outdoor kitchen counters. That becomes especially important when the project includes fabricated stone, concrete, or stainless steel countertops. An opening that is an inch or two off may not sound like much during design, but it can become an expensive problem once fabrication is complete.

Product brochures and other PDF documents are also available to help project teams compare models, understand configurations, and see examples of how the equipment has been used in other multifamily settings. The idea is not to add more paperwork to an already busy project. It is to give architects the right dimensions and product information before assumptions turn into construction issues.

Another Set of Experienced Eyes Can Catch Things Early

Sometimes the biggest value in a design review is not a product recommendation. It is simply noticing something that would otherwise be easy to miss.

Maybe the grill doors open into a busy traffic path. Perhaps residents do not have enough prep space beside the cooking surface. A heater might line up poorly with a ceiling beam, or a control switch could end up somewhere that is difficult for property staff to reach. In other cases, the patio may simply be trying to fit too many features into too little space.

These situations are where experience becomes useful. AEI's patio design team has worked with multifamily owners, architects, developers, contractors, and hospitality properties for decades. They have seen the details that tend to work well and the ones that can create problems once a property is occupied.

That does not mean taking over the architect's design. The architect still controls the space and the larger project. AEI's role is to bring product and application knowledge into the discussion so the grill and heating portions of the design fit the overall plan.

Sometimes that means confirming that the original idea is solid. Other times it may mean offering a few alternatives that accomplish the same goal with a cleaner layout, better heat coverage, or easier access to utilities. Having those conversations early gives the project team more options.

Think Past Opening Day

Eventually, the patio will move from the construction team to the property management team. At that point, durability and maintenance become much more important.

Even AEI’s well-built commercial grills and heaters need service over time. Burners can wear out, ignition components may eventually need attention, and knobs, controls, heating elements, valves, or other parts may need to be replaced after years of regular use.

That is why replacement part availability matters. AEI carries OEM replacement parts for its grills and heaters, including equipment that has been in service for many years. We still hear from customers looking for replacement parts for grills purchased decades ago.

For a property owner, that can make a real difference. Replacing a worn component is easier and less expensive than replacing an entire grill or heater because one part is no longer available. It can also help the property keep a consistent look instead of mixing several generations of equipment in the same outdoor area.

This may not be the first thing an architect thinks about when selecting patio appliances, but it matters to the owner who will still be maintaining the property years after construction is complete.

Multiple Heater Styles Give Architects More Flexibility

Not every patio needs the same type of heater, and the architecture itself often helps determine which style makes the most sense. Some spaces work well with mushroom heaters, while others are better suited for horizontal heaters mounted above seating or dining areas.

AEI works with several established heater brands so architects have different options to consider. Sunglo offers mushroom-style patio heaters, while Infratech, Sunpak, and SunStar provide horizontal infrared heating options.

Within those product lines are different sizes, finishes, outputs, mounting options, and control configurations. Single-stage and dual-stage models are available, along with black and stainless steel finishes that can either blend into the surrounding structure or become part of the patio's visual design.

A heater mounted beneath a dark steel pergola may look better in black, while another project may use stainless steel throughout the outdoor kitchen and want the heating equipment to follow that same look. These may seem like small decisions, but architecture is full of small decisions, and the finished space usually benefits when the appliances feel like they belong there rather than looking like they were added at the end.

Good Patio Design Is About How Everything Works Together

The grill, heater, utility plan, countertop, controls, seating layout, and mounting details are all connected. Planning each one separately can create problems that only become obvious once construction is underway.

A successful multifamily patio usually comes from looking at the full picture early. The grills should make sense for the number of residents. The heating should cover the areas where people will actually sit. Utility connections should be where the equipment needs them, and controls should be easy for property staff to use. Accessories should fit the way the outdoor kitchen is meant to function, while replacement parts and serviceability should still be considered for the years after the property opens.

AEI's complimentary patio design service gives architects a way to work through those questions with people who specialize in outdoor grills and heating systems. Our team can review layouts, discuss natural gas grills and electric heaters, help estimate equipment quantities, create heatmaps for infrared heaters, provide CAD files, talk through mounting and control choices, and answer questions as the project moves from design into construction.

For architects, that means fewer unknowns around a part of the project that can otherwise become surprisingly technical. For developers and owners, it means a better chance of ending up with an outdoor amenity that works well from opening day and continues to make sense years later.

Bring AEI Into the Project Before the Patio Is Finalized

If you are designing a new apartment or condominium community, the best time to think about patio heaters and patio grills is before those decisions become difficult or expensive to change. A conversation early in the project can help answer questions about fuel sources, grill quantities, heater placement, controls, mounting, dimensions, and accessories while there is still plenty of room to adjust the plans.

AEI's patio design specialists work directly with architects, developers, and owners to help bring those details together. Whether the project calls for natural gas grills, electric grills, mushroom heaters, horizontal infrared heaters, or a combination of several products, our team can help make sure the equipment fits the patio, the available infrastructure, and the way residents are expected to use the space.

Contact AEI to discuss your next multifamily project and learn more about our complimentary patio design services.

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