Air conditioning in Belgravia
Air conditioning for Belgravia houses, mews and flats
We design and fit air conditioning in Belgravia homes so nothing shows from the street: outdoor units on rear walls, lightwells or flat roofs, with the pipework hidden inside. Olly surveys every house or flat himself and gives you a fixed written quote, plus the details your freeholder or the council will ask for.
Where the outdoor unit goes on a stucco terrace
The stucco front of a Belgravia terrace is off limits for plant, so the real question is what the back of the building offers.
Most of these houses rise four or five storeys over a basement, which gives us several choices: a rear wall at basement level, a lightwell, a flat roof over a back extension, or the mews side if your house backs onto one.
The rooms you want cooled are often several floors away from that outdoor position. We plan the route through cupboards, voids and service risers so the refrigerant and condensate pipes stay out of sight, and we size the system for the length of the run.
A multi-split can serve a principal bedroom, a drawing room and a study from one outdoor unit, which keeps the rear elevation tidy. Here is how an air conditioning installation runs from survey to handover.
Listed building consent in the Belgravia Conservation Area
Most of Belgravia sits inside one conservation area, and hundreds of its houses are listed. If yours is listed, an outdoor unit needs listed building consent from Westminster City Council, whatever the planning position.
That is separate from the national rules for houses, where a heat-and-cool system is often permitted development if it passes the MCS 020(a) noise check of 37 dB(A) at a neighbour's nearest window.
We check your address before quoting and tell you which consents apply. Our guide to planning permission for air con sets out the rules in full.
Not sure which unit suits your Belgravia home? A couple of photos usually settles it.
Near Belgravia
Our London work
- Panasonic Etherea systems with built-in Wi-Fi for homes in Camden and Ealing
- Ducted heating and cooling on a commercial floor in the City of London
- Daikin VRV and mini VRV systems for London commercial clients
Mews houses and converted flats
The mews houses behind the main terraces are smaller and often have no back garden at all. The usual answer there is a flat roof or a small roof terrace, with the outdoor unit kept low behind the parapet.
For a flat in one of the converted stucco houses, the lease normally decides what is possible, and you will need the freeholder's or managing agent's go-ahead. Our page on air conditioning in a flat explains that consent process.
Servicing existing air con in Belgravia
Plenty of Belgravia homes already have air conditioning, sometimes fitted for a previous owner. We service Daikin, Mitsubishi Electric and Panasonic systems and most other makes: filters and coils cleaned, drains cleared, pressures and temperatures checked.
Older R410A multi-splits in large houses can hold enough refrigerant to need a legal leak check every 12 months, and we keep the written record for you.
If a unit has started dripping water, smells musty or no longer cools the top floor on a hot afternoon, mention it when you book and we will look at it on the same visit. Our page on fixing air conditioning faults covers the usual causes.
No obligation: a survey in Belgravia, then a written price.
Air conditioning services in Belgravia
Reviews
What our customers say
Word for word from Checkatrade and Google.
Wonderful Service, Our Air Conditioner was leaking in winter and since then left in very bad condition. Then, Olly did magic and it's now up and running like a new. He did cleaned it thoroughly through low pressure jet and liquid detergent. Tested whole system to identify other faults. He was reasonable in price compared to other service provider. Highly Recommend him for right service and right guidance.
The installation of 2 air-conditioning units (1 in the lounge and 1 in the bedroom) was seamless from olly coming to my flat to the compleatd installation. Olly was very professional in listening to my requirements and giving advice. On the day of installation Olly and Andy carried out the work in a professional, timely and clean manner. I would 100% recommend them to friends and family.
From initial contact to completion of install and subsequent aftercare, my experience with Apex was top class. The install itself was done in half a day and the room was left clean and tidy - you’d not know engineers had worked there! Not often I recommend someone, but I’ve passed their details on to friends who have used them and all had the same personal and great experience.
Questions
Air conditioning in Belgravia: questions
Can I have air conditioning in a listed house in Belgravia?
Usually yes, but you will need listed building consent from Westminster City Council for the outdoor unit and any work that affects the fabric of the house. Consent tends to turn on where the unit sits and how the pipework is hidden. We survey first, propose a rear or roof position out of public view, and give you the details your application needs.
Will the outdoor unit be visible from the street in Belgravia?
We plan for it not to be. In Belgravia we look at basement lightwells, rear walls, flat roofs over back extensions and the mews side. Road-facing walls in a conservation area are outside permitted development anyway. If no hidden position works for your house, we tell you at the survey rather than fit something you would regret.
Can a Belgravia mews house have air conditioning?
Yes, in most cases. Mews houses rarely have a garden, so the outdoor unit usually goes on a flat roof or roof terrace, set low so it cannot be seen from the cobbles. The pipes then drop inside to the bedrooms and living space. We check the noise level at your neighbours' windows, which are often close in a mews.
Do you fit air conditioning for businesses in Belgravia?
Yes. We fit and service commercial systems across central London, including ducted heating and cooling on a commercial floor in the City and Daikin VRV systems. Commercial premises are not covered by the householder permitted development rules, so a business system normally needs planning permission and the landlord's agreement. We advise on both at the survey.
Still got a question?
Ask Olly directly about your Belgravia home or business.
Free survey and a fixed written quote for new systems. No obligation.