Your Local School Air Conditioning Installers & Servicing
For Berkshire – Buckinghamshire – Hertfordshire – Hampshire – Oxfordshire – Middlesex – Surrey
Air conditioning within school and educational buildings is no longer a luxury, but is increasingly seen as essential to the learning environment.
Now that many schools are no longer tied to local authority approved contractors, schools are increasingly finding much more competitive and responsive companies to service and install their air conditioning. Parent Teacher Associations are increasingly active in fund raising for air conditioning projects to help budget constrained schools.
This is helped by reductions in the cost of air conditioning equipment in recent years. In fact, the cost to install heating and cooling air conditioning to a classroom is now around £2800 (2020) and schools don’t have to do it all at once. We are finding many schools complete the work over a number of years by installing air conditioning in 2-3 classrooms at a time. What schools also find is that they often recover the investment cost within 5 years by savings in energy bills. Air conditioning units are much more energy efficient than the gas boilers that are often found in schools.
Its also worth mentioning at this stage that using ‘split’ type air conditioning means each classroom has its own independent heating and cooling system. Never again will you be dependent on a fragile ‘whole school’ gas boiler hold the school to ransum.
The World Health Organisation states that the optimum comfort zone is between 18 – 24 ºC. Above or below this temperature will start to have a negative effect on almost all learning establishments.
For schools, the desired temperature from air conditioning varies depending on the activity taking place in the classroom. Lessons requiring standing or physical activity would warrant a lower temperature (perhaps 18-20oC) . Whereas desk based lessons, a temperature of 22oC would be more comfortable. This means it is important that teachers have some local control over the air conditioning temperature in their classrooms.
There is a generally held view that the ability of children and young adults to learn is much more likely to be inhibited by being to hot, rather than to cold. In our experience, temperatures over 24oC start to be uncomfortable within schools. Pupils become lethargic, tired, behaviour problems increase and learning productivity decreases. Even with the outdoor temperature below 24oC, the body heat from the number of people in a classroom can easily result the temperature exceeding 24oC. So there is a very strong case for air conditioning to be used to keep schools cool in the summer.
With our design experience and latest school air conditioning units, you can maintain a steady and comfortable temperature to keep your pupils and staff more focused on the task at hand….. and less prone to illness. We can include advanced multi-stage filters within our air conditioning units that remove particles such as dust, pollen, pollution and bacteria from the air and provide a clean fresh atmosphere that helps relieve the symptoms of hay fever, asthma, and reduce the spread of air-borne viruses.
New technology from Panasonic call NanoE has a claimed ability to remove 99% allergens, pollen, bacteria and odours. It uses water molecules to attract these unwanted particles, which are then drained off through the air conditioning systems drain. This has to be good news for schools, particularly since absenteeism is much more closely monitored and known as a significant inhibitor to learning.
Most school air conditioning systems consist of outdoor ‘condenser’ units and indoor ‘air handling’ units. The indoor unit distributes cold, warm or humidified air to the designated area. These are connected to the outdoor condensing units with pipes through which coolant circulates.
- Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) or Variable Refrigerant Velocity (VRV): These school air conditioning systems are typically more suitable for larger school or college complexes. They have one or more condensing units which supply a multiple of indoor units.
- Multi split: Air conditioning for smaller classrooms or school offices, this comprises a single outdoor unit supplying up to four indoor systems
- Wall mounted: Air conditioning systems are ideal for most one-off or single classroom requirements. This is what we find the popular solution for school air conditioning. They are mass produced and cheaper to buy. They are quick and easy to install and can be installed piecemeal as funds become available.
- Ceiling cassette: These units are suspended from the ceiling and give a 4-way blow. They are very good at distributing air across large classrooms within schools
- Under ceiling: These air conditioning units are also suspended from the ceiling and give a powerful 1-way blow.
- Ducted units: These units are fitted in ceiling voids above school classrooms, leaving just the opening grill visible – an elegant solution where suspended ceilings are in place, for example.
- Floor standing: These air conditioning units are much like large radiators and located on school classroom floors.
- Integral units: Designed for schools where there is planning permission or conservation areas. Such systems require no outdoor unit.