Hotel air conditioning

Guests notice two things: heat and noise

A hot room at night is one of the quickest ways to an unhappy guest. A noisy air conditioning unit is the other. Hotel air conditioning has to do both jobs: cool or heat the room properly, and do it quietly enough that a light sleeper does not notice it running. That shapes every choice, from the indoor unit to where the outdoor plant goes.

We look at noise from three angles. The indoor unit at its lowest fan speed, from the manufacturer’s published sound data. Noise travelling along pipework or through walls from neighbouring rooms. And outdoor units, which must not keep guests or neighbours awake. Our article on air conditioning noise levels explains how to read the figures.

Guest room systems

• Wall-mounted splits or multi-splits: common in smaller and boutique hotels. Simple, quiet models are widely available, and each room has its own control.
• Ducted units: hidden in a bulkhead over the entrance lobby of the room, with only grilles on show. A clean look that suits refurbishments where a ceiling can be dropped.
• VRF: for larger hotels. Many rooms on shared outdoor plant, central control, and systems that can heat some rooms while cooling others, which suits a building where one side gets the sun.

Controls that suit guests and staff

Guests want a simple control that does what it says. Staff want to stop rooms being cooled with the window open or left running when they are empty. Most systems can do both: a straightforward wall controller in the room, setpoint limits so the room cannot be pushed to extremes, and a central controller or app so housekeeping and maintenance can see each room. Many systems can be linked to a key card switch or window contact, where the equipment supports it, so the unit sets back when the room is empty. We set this up and train your team at handover.

Heating as well as cooling

Most air conditioning is a heat pump, so guest rooms can be heated as well as cooled. In some hotels that means the air conditioning takes on much of the heating in spring and autumn, with the existing system covering the coldest days. VRF systems with heat recovery can move heat from rooms that need cooling to rooms that need heating. Hot water is a separate system and not something we change.

Serviced apartments and guest houses

Smaller properties such as guest houses, B&Bs and serviced apartments usually suit wall-mounted splits or multi-splits, fitted in the quiet season. The same rules apply: quiet units, simple controls and outdoor units placed with neighbours in mind.

Bars, restaurants and function rooms

Public areas have very different loads to bedrooms. A function room can go from empty to full in an hour, a restaurant warms up through service, and a bar gets busy late. We size these spaces for a full room on a warm evening and usually give each its own zone, using cassettes or ducted units. See our page on restaurant air conditioning for more on dining rooms.

Outdoor plant and neighbours

Hotels often have bedrooms on every side, which makes outdoor units harder to place. We look for roofs, plant decks, yards and screened areas, check how sound will travel to the nearest windows, guest or neighbour, and allow for access for servicing. Where planning permission or listed building consent is needed for plant, we provide product data and drawings to support the application.

Installing without losing bookings

We plan hotel work with your operations team. In a refurbishment we can work on a block of rooms at a time, taken out of sale for an agreed period, then cleaned, tested and handed back before moving on. Noisy work happens in agreed hours, corridors are kept clear and protected, and we work around events in public areas. Outdoor units, risers and roof work are planned to keep disruption low.

Many hotels are in listed or historic buildings. Our page on listed buildings explains listed building consent and how we approach sensitive interiors.

VAT, F-Gas and TM44

HMRC’s Notice 708/6 says the zero rate for energy-saving materials does not apply to hotels, so hotel installs carry standard-rate VAT. A hotel’s air conditioning will often total more than 12 kW, which means a TM44 inspection by an accredited energy assessor at least every five years, and larger systems will need regular F-Gas leak checks.

Maintenance contracts

A hotel maintenance contract keeps rooms sellable. It covers filter cleaning, servicing, leak checks and records, usually scheduled before the summer peak and during quieter periods. If a unit fails, our 24/7 line takes the call, and we can work room by room to keep disruption low. Hotel systems and contracts are priced after survey.

We work with independent and group hotels across London and the South East. Clients we have worked with include Hilton Hotels, Holiday Inn, Rolls-Royce, McDonald’s and the BBC.