Demand for air conditioners is soaring after the Met Office said that weather that was once considered extreme is becoming the “new normal”.
Chinese manufacturer Gree, one of the world’s biggest air-conditioner makers, told the BBC that it had seen “noticeably stronger demand this summer”.
“Many of our customers are first-time buyers,” Gree said in a statement. “The increasingly frequent and prolonged summer heatwaves have clearly changed consumer attitudes.”
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Latest Videos From
What are the main types?
Air conditioners don’t actually make cold air. They move heat from inside a room to outside.
Portable air conditioners are convenient because you can move them from room to room. You can also take them with you when you move house.
Wall-mounted split systems can be used in one room or in an open-plan area. An indoor unit is connected by refrigerant pipes to an outdoor condenser.
A multi-split system can work in several rooms without ductwork because one outdoor unit serves several indoor units. Ducted central air conditioning units cool the whole home. They are rare in the UK but more common in countries such as the US.
Which are suitable for different homes?
Portables are good for renters and homes where permanent installation isn’t allowed. If you’re planning to use it in a bedroom on a sweaty night, noise levels are important because some portable air conditioners can be loud enough to make it difficult to sleep. But some have dedicated sleep modes that reduce fan speed and operating noise.
If you regularly struggle with hot bedrooms or work from home in summer, a split system is quieter, cheaper to run and much more effective. Many split systems are also air-source heat pumps, meaning they can provide highly efficient heating in winter as well as cooling in summer, which can improve their overall value.
Air conditioners with higher British Thermal Unit ratings are better suited to larger spaces, while lower rated models are best for smaller rooms.
How much do they cost to install and run?
The costs depend on the type of air conditioner, the size of your home and how often you use it.
Portable air conditioners come with no installation fee but buying one will still set you back between £250 and £700. They typically cost 20–50p per hour to run.
A single-split wall-mounted system in one room will cost between £1,500 and £3,000 to be installed and can cost up to 40p per hour to run. A multi-split system set up in as many as five rooms will cost £3,000–£7,000 for installation and cost between 20p and 80p per hour to use.
A ducted system over your whole home is a rare approach in the UK. It would cost between £8,000 and £20,000 to have set up. The running costs vary widely.
