Is it worth getting air conditioning units for bedrooms?

[CoffeeLover87]

Hi all,
Is anyone else finding the summers just get hotter every year? I am not a big fan of heat anything above 28 degrees it’s become unbearable for me. We’re seriously thinking about installing air conditioning units in our bedrooms – the kind that do both hot and cold, so they’re useful year-round. Has anyone gone down this route? Are they worth the cost to install and run?

Thanks in Advance ! 😊

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MNHQ

I use blackout blinds, curtains,and keeping kitchen hygienic the window open a bit. Then sleep under a duvet cover only. Try that first. It works.

That really depends. It's 34C in my home office right now. Opening the window has no effect, not least because the temperature outside is the same. Blackout blinds only reduce the rate of heating very slightly.

I find it never stays hot enough to make the purchase worth it tbh, yes its going to be hot for another two days, but then it cools down again. We haven't had a proper heatwave since 2022.

We have one portable unit that was used in a garden room in our old house, its was about £200 a few years ago and worth ever penny - its saving my perimenopausal butt at the moment.

We are due to do some renovations are are seriously considering permanent units (DH works in an industry were we could get them supplied and fitted cheaper than the going rate) so I'll be following this with interest

I've heard that they are cheaper way to warm up spaces too, but would need to look into it a bit more.

@ChandrilanDiscoDroid Obviously, I don’t open the windows until after sunset, around 10pm. I kept them closed in the day too, and blinds drawn if necessary. I’m south west facing and on a hill, too, so it gets pretty hot. I find that works.

We had it installed in the bedrooms 3 years ago. Cost about £3k and it’s the best money I’ve ever spent. We use it more than we thought we would - it’s just so nice to sleep in a nice cool room so even when it’s not mega heatwave hot we often put it on for an hour or two before bed. In this weather, it’s a total game changer. Ours heat too but we don’t use that function very often - just occasionally on a very cold night to take the edge off.

We have one. Difference between sleeping or not.

Are the outdoor boxes that you need to have noisy? I was close to getting it installed then read about these being noisy and annoying neighbours and it put me off!

Also are they all still terrible for the environment or have things improved at all?

Are they easy to install? Would be good to know if you need to redecorate after and can you have them high up / loft conversions?

I was really conscious of this when installing the outside box but they're quieter than you'd think. Their max volume is about 60 decibels and tbh they barely go to that, they are a bit louder when you come home and first switch it on and they're working like mad to cool a boiling room. But once the temp has lowered they settle to a low whirr sound, probably in the 40 decibels.

You'll have to have any units at least 1 metre from your boundary, we also got a breathable wooden box thing to go over the unit, and this plus some bushy pot plants placed around it also help diminish any noise. Our neighbours have never commented.

Our oven extractor fan is way, way louder.

does it cause much mess to have a wall air con unit? we have an air con company coming out to us next week for advice and idea of costs.

We have it in the bedrooms. Best money we’ve spent. I’d definitely recommend- installing it took about a day, no mess, and it’s not noisy.

Do it!!!

If you hate the planet and want to increase global warming, then sure.

We have near silent Meaco fans. Excellent and they can oscillate too.

Yes, and it’s so much better if you actually want to get some sleep during hot spells, especially when the temperature doesn’t drop below 20 overnight. I can hear it more downstairs than in the bedroom or outside

Do it. Best money we ever spent. Did the lounge last year and bedrooms year before. I love it. We do use the heating function too, it's an immediate heat which is brilliant, you won't regret it.

What do you base that on? They can be incredibly energy efficient and in terms of heating far better than gas or oil. Even better when you pair them with solar panels. The worlds getting hotter, you won't stop it but you can prepare yourself and your homes.

Not in my experience. The contractors were exceptionally clean working and tidy. All the ducting and cabling is very neat.

It is absolutely worth it. It's sooo amazing to go upstairs to a cool room at the end of a hot sticky day and sleep comfortably. It's total bliss. We thought we'd use them maybe 2/3 weeks of the year but it's just getting hotter every year and we're using them more and more. It's a lot of money but you'll use them year after year and it will be some of the best money you've ever spent!

We also have Daikin ones in all the bedrooms 👌

Interesting. Our neighbours have put theirs literally on the boundary! (Not that it bothers us, but I bet they'd comment if we did the same!!)

Some people might hate me for saying this , but in the UK, we rarely use air conditioning units, only running them for a few days a year. In contrast, regions like Dubai, the Middle East, parts of the US, and Asian countries like China and India use these units almost year-round or for most of the year. Does their heavy use have a greater environmental impact than the minimal use in the UK? Anyway, This isn’t meant to be a political thread .

Yep. Had it installed into main bedroom 4 years ago by far the best thing ever. No more hot sleepless nights. Cost £1200 took a couple hours to install. Haven’t noticed a huge difference in bills but what price do you put on a good nights sleep. Neighbours have just had 3 units installed. The outside unit isn’t the prettiest thing to look though.

Best money I ever spent was having Air Con fitted, so would highly recommend! Thought originally it would be much more expensive than it was & very reasonable running costs, so all good, instillation was quick & no mess so was a win win for us.

I have a ceiling fan in my bedroom. Lovely jubbly. It has different speeds and a timer and everything. No holes needed in the wall and no redecoration either. Sparky friend fitted it for me.