Loft conversions are an excellent way to add extra space to your home. Converting your loft is an innovative and stylish way to extend your home and make the most of unused space. The average attic takes up the most square footage in your home and, compared to basement conversions, is easier to transform into a functional space. What about air conditioning solutions for loft conversions? You must consider air conditioning and ventilation solutions for your new loft conversion.
Air Conditioning for Loft Conversions: What is a Loft Conversion?
A loft conversion, also known as an attic modification, refers to transforming an empty space into a usable room, typically used as a bedroom, home office, gym, or storage space. Your preference will determine the design and layout of the loft conversion and the ventilation and air conditioning required to keep the room cool during the summer months. Loft conversions are permitted home improvements that do not require full planning permission. However, before you go ahead with the proposed loft conversion, it’s best advised to get in touch with a professional AC company such as Split Level Air Conditioning, which provides residential air conditioning in Surrey. You can talk to our team of experts to find out valuable information about air conditioning for loft conversions.
What is the Significance of Ventilation in Loft Conversions?
When it comes to loft conversions, there is much more to consider than just interior design. Like any other room in your house, your new loft space will require proper ventilation. This ensures the new area meets building codes and is safe to use. It is also important to note that by converting your loft into a habitable room, you are altering the environment of the space. As its purpose has changed since you converted the attic, you’ll need to add ventilation paths to comply with the new requirements.
Why Should You Have Air Conditioning Installed in Your Loft?
If you are thinking about doing a loft conversion, you should also think about installing an air conditioning unit. This is done to ensure that you can create a cool and comfortable living space that you can use all year. Lofts are well-known for being among the warmest rooms in any home due to heat rising from other rooms. With this in mind, loft spaces can become extremely hot during the summer. The good news is that installing air conditioning in your loft space is simpler than you might think.
Benefits of Installing Air Conditioning in Your Loft Conversion
Lofts and attics can get extremely hot and humid. An AC system will not only help regulate the temperature in your loft but also provide a host of other advantages.
Including an air conditioning system in your loft conversion will help to reduce moisture build-up, lower heating bills, and maintain air quality and humidity levels. As we spend most of our time indoors, indoor air quality directly impacts our health. Without adequate ventilation, the air in our homes can become hazardous to our health. Air conditioners have the added benefit of removing airborne pollutants. They prevent dust, allergens, bacteria, and hair particles from circulating in your home’s air, making them especially useful for allergy sufferers during summer.
Controlling Humidity in the Loft
AC systems can not only remove heat from a room but also regulate humidity levels. The ideal humidity level for a typical home is between 30% and 70%. Excessive dampness and mould are more likely if the humidity levels in your home are too high. If not controlled, both of these can lead to serious health problems. AC units control humidity by removing hot, humid air and replacing it with dry, cool air.
Best Air Conditioning Unit for Loft Conversions
There are different AC units to heat and cool your loft area. The design and specifications of each loft vary, as does the purpose of the attic. Depending on the usage, you can design an AC system. At Split Level Air Conditioning, we’ll visit your house, and our AC surveyors will consider the room’s layout when choosing the best type of AC system for your loft.
Apart from air conditioning system repairs in lofts, we offer a full stack planning, design and air conditioning installation service in Surrey, and surrounding areas. Our local, friendly AC Engineers will be happy to inspect your home or workplace and give you a free quote!
Wall-mounted AC Units
These systems are ideal for small spaces and are, therefore, a popular choice for loft conversions. They are also the most cost-effective and versatile option. Wall-mounted AC systems are available in different colours, shapes, and sizes, making them easy to tailor to your style and requirements. In addition, you can install them low or high on the wall, meaning they can accommodate the shape and layout of the room.
Internal Water-cooled Units
If you are not allowed to install a traditional air conditioner with an external unit or are tight on space, you can install an internal water-cooled air conditioning system. Unlike a conventional air conditioner, water-cooled systems do not require an external condenser unit. The internal condenser is installed and hidden in an enclosed space, such as a cupboard. This means that you can install an AC unit that doesn’t impose on the visual aesthetics of your home. These units do not require planning permission, making them suitable for any property.
Low Wall-mounted Air Conditioners
Most lofts have pitched roofs and do not have many full-sized walls; in these instances, you’ll need to install specialist AC units. Low wall-mounted air conditioners are ideal for loft conversions as they’re placed below the average level on the wall, which usually solves the sloping or short ceiling problem. They are more expensive than traditional high-wall units, but customers often choose them because, like radiators, they are placed out of their line of sight. One unit is usually sufficient to provide cooling and heating to a loft, but extensive loft areas might require two units (e.g., when the attic of a five-bedroom house has been converted).
Ducted Air Conditioning
A ducted air conditioning system can be an ideal way to heat and cool your loft conversion. They are challenging to retrofit, and these units can be fitted when converting or refurbishing your loft. Most homeowners box their units in or lower the ceiling to accommodate them. Ducted air conditioning is one of the most subtle types of air conditioners available as they are quiet and use hidden vents and pipes to blow air around your business premises or home. Ducted air conditioning is suitable for retrospective installation in some buildings and is fantastic for warming and cooling large rooms. Many people also choose to get ducted air conditioning because of its flexibility.
How to Keep Your Loft Conversion Cool
Much is said about keeping your house warm and insulated during the winter. Have you considered how to keep your loft conversion cool in the summer? During the hot summer months, you may believe that your attic conversion will have all the freshness of a greenhouse, but this is not strictly true. Here’s how to keep your loft conversion cool.
Ventilate
It’s obvious, but the more windows you have, the cooler you can make your loft space. In particular, installing a skylight roof window on one sloping ceiling and a vent towards the bottom of the facing wall will pull cooler air up from below. It will let the air escape from the higher window on the opposite wall.
Insulation
Properly insulating your loft conversion will help to deflect heat away in the summer, mainly if radiant barriers are used. This will also help you save money if you run an air conditioning system in your recently converted loft.
Planning, Designing, and Installing Air Conditioning Systems in Lofts
Lofts are usually the warmest rooms in the house as hot air tends to stay in the loft space, keeping it extremely warm—even in winter. London and surrounding areas are experiencing increasingly hotter summers, so lofts can become uncomfortable when temperatures rise. Suppose you are planning to spend a lot of time in the loft, especially if you turn it into a home office or a permanent bedroom. In that case, a good air conditioning unit can be a worthwhile investment to make it easier to sleep, concentrate, and enjoy the space without overheating.
Looking for the best air conditioning experts to cool your loft? We’re at your service! If you’re looking for air conditioning and ventilation for your loft conversion, get in touch with us today to get your free quote! Our team of experts at Split Level is only a call away. Give us a call at 01372277248 or drop us an email: [email protected]
We provide a free site survey no matter how big or small the installation. Our experienced air conditioning professionals carry out all surveys and can quickly advise on the ideal AC unit for your loft.
Split Level Air Conditioning specialises in emergency repair and general repair for most air conditioning units and HVAC systems in London and surrounding areas.