Why Ealing homes get so hot
Solid brick walls, south-facing bays and converted lofts all do the same thing in July: they soak up heat through the day and let it go slowly overnight, just as the rest of London is doing the same around you. If you sleep in a loft room off the Uxbridge Road, or a top-floor flat in a converted Acton terrace, you will know the feeling of a bedroom that simply will not cool down.
The good news is that Ealing's housing suits air conditioning better than much of inner London. The gardens and side returns that came with the garden-suburb layout give you somewhere sensible to put an outdoor unit, and the room layouts of Edwardian and interwar houses usually keep pipe runs short and tidy. A modern split system is also a reversible air-to-air heat pump, so the same unit heats in winter as well as cooling in summer. One thing to know: air-to-air systems are not covered by the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which applies to air-to-water heat pumps. For what installation actually costs and what drives the price up or down, see our guide to air conditioning costs in the UK.
Planning, electrics and flats: what to check first
Before you get quotes, three things are worth checking:
- Is your street in a conservation area? Ealing has them around several of its older centres, so ask the council rather than guessing either way.
- Flat rather than house? Many of the borough's larger Edwardian houses have been split into flats, and leaseholders almost always need the freeholder's consent before anything is fixed to the building.
- Where would the outdoor unit actually go — garden, side return, flat roof over a rear addition?
Wiring matters too. Homes of this age often need an electrical inspection, and sometimes a consumer unit upgrade, before an installer will connect a system. Our guide on whether your home's electrics can handle air conditioning explains what an installer will look for and why.
Where Coolhouse is up to in Ealing
Straight answer: our vetted installers are currently in Hertfordshire, not west London, and we are building the network out from there. We will not pretend otherwise, and we will not promise a visit we cannot deliver. If you are in Ealing, Acton, Hanwell or Southall, get an estimate and leave your details. We will tell you honestly where we are up to, and get in touch the moment vetted installers cover the borough.