Why homes here run hot
Most of the borough's housing is Victorian and Edwardian terrace — the tight streets of Fulham, the Brackenbury grid behind King Street, the larger bay-fronted houses out towards Shepherd's Bush. Solid brick walls take all day to warm through and then release that heat all evening. Loft conversions sit directly under the roof, and rear extensions with big glazed doors trap the afternoon sun. Bedrooms at the top of a terrace can still feel stuffy long after the street outside has cooled down.
A modern split-system air conditioner deals with this directly, and it is worth knowing what it actually is: a reversible air-to-air heat pump. It cools in summer and, run in reverse, is one of the cheapest ways to heat a single room in winter, giving back several units of heat for each unit of electricity it uses. One thing to be clear on: it is not covered by the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which applies to air-to-water heat pumps, not air-to-air. We are not going to quote installed prices on this page, because the honest answer is that they depend on your walls, your electrics and where the outdoor unit can go. Our cost guide explains what drives the number and gives realistic ranges.
The real constraint: where the condenser goes
In this borough the sticking point is rarely the indoor units. It is the outdoor condenser. The rear gardens behind these terraces are often small and overlooked, so siting takes thought: side returns, flat roofs on rear extensions and wall brackets all get used, but noise and neighbour sightlines matter when houses share party walls. Parts of the borough are conservation areas, so check with the council before fixing anything to an external wall rather than assuming it is fine. And if you are in one of the many converted flats around Hammersmith or Shepherd's Bush, you will almost certainly need the freeholder's consent before anything else happens.
Electrics are the other check. These houses were never wired with air conditioning in mind, and some need work at the consumer unit before an installer will connect a system — a straightforward electrical inspection tells you where you stand. Our guide to air conditioning in Victorian homes covers both of these problems in detail.
Where Coolhouse is up to here
Honestly: we are not live in Hammersmith and Fulham yet. Our vetted installers currently cover Hertfordshire, and we are building our London network now rather than pretending otherwise. If you register your interest, we will tell you plainly where things stand, give you a realistic steer on your home in the meantime, and get in touch the moment a vetted installer covering your postcode joins. We will not spam you or pass your details around.