A lot of people don't realise that modern air conditioning heats as well as cools. The units we fit work as heat pumps, so one wall-mounted unit keeps a room comfortable all year round. Here's how it works.
How a heat pump works
In cooling mode, the unit draws heat from the air inside your room and pumps it outside. In heating mode, it reverses — it draws warmth from the outside air and pumps it inside. Even on a cold day, there's warmth in the outside air that the unit can capture and bring inside.
Because it moves heat rather than generates it, a heat pump can warm a room efficiently. The same unit, two directions, one system on your wall.
The four modes
The units we fit have four modes. Cool lowers the room temperature. Heat raises it. Auto mode switches between heating and cooling to hold the temperature you set, and Dry mode takes excess moisture out of the air. Fan circulates the air without running the outdoor unit — useful for moving air on a mild day.
Auto mode is handy in spring and autumn when the weather can't make up its mind. It keeps the room comfortable without you having to switch modes yourself.
Where heating and cooling suits
Heating and cooling from one unit is ideal for rooms that are hard to keep comfortable — a conservatory that's a greenhouse in summer and an icebox in winter, a garden room or cabin you want to use all year, or a bedroom that's too hot to sleep in summer and chilly in winter.
It's also a quick way to warm a single room without firing up the whole central heating system — useful for a home office during the day, or a living room in the evening.
Does it replace central heating?
It can heat a room on its own, but most people use it alongside their central heating. It's brilliant for a single room you want to warm quickly, or a space your radiators don't cover well — like a conservatory or a garden room.
We won't tell you to rip out your boiler. We'll tell you honestly what a heating and cooling unit can do for the room you have in mind.
Auto and Dry modes
Auto mode switches between heating and cooling to hold the temperature you set, and Dry mode takes excess moisture out of the air — useful in rooms that suffer from condensation, like conservatories or rooms with single glazing.
It's not a dehumidifier, but for a room that gets stuffy or condensation-prone, it helps keep the air comfortable.
Common questions
Can it really heat a room in winter?
Yes. The units work as heat pumps, drawing warmth from the outside air and pumping it inside. They cool in summer and heat in winter from one unit.
Is it efficient to heat with air conditioning?
Air-to-air heat pumps move heat rather than generate it, so they can be an efficient way to heat a room.
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