What to expect
| Typical duration | Single split 1 day · whole house 3–8 days · hotel system 2–8 weeks |
|---|---|
| Cost band | Figures live in the cost index |
| Permit required | External unit visibility controlled in designated settlements |
| Seasonal constraint | Install off-season · demand and failure rates peak in August |
Where the outdoor unit goes
This is the question that determines whether an installation is straightforward or a redesign. In a designated traditional settlement, external plant on a visible elevation is a compliance problem, and on a caldera-facing property almost every elevation is visible — frequently from the sea, from the path, and from a neighbouring hotel.
- Concealed positions: within a roof parapet, in a service void, behind a screen that matches the wall, or on a non-visible inland elevation.
- Grouped plant on one screened platform rather than a unit per room scattered across the building. This is nearly always the better answer on a multi-room property and it needs deciding early.
- Longer refrigerant runs from a concealed position, which affects the system design and the units you can use.
- Ducted or concealed indoor units where a wall-mounted head would be visually unacceptable in a vaulted or traditional room.
Salt, and why units die young here
Condenser coils are aluminium fins on copper tube sitting in moving air. On this island that air carries salt, and the coil is the first thing to go — efficiency drops as the fin corrodes, the unit works harder, and it fails in the middle of August when it is least replaceable.
- Coated coils where the unit is anywhere near spray. The premium is small relative to a replacement in season.
- Siting out of direct salt spray and out of the prevailing wind where the layout allows.
- Stainless fixings and brackets. A galvanised bracket streaking rust down a whitewashed wall is a very common and entirely avoidable sight here.
- Regular coil cleaning as part of a maintenance schedule, which for a rental property should be before the season, not during it.
Sizing for the buildings we actually have
Standard sizing rules assume a modern lightweight building. Much of the island's stock is neither.
- Thick stone walls and vaults
- High thermal mass. The building responds slowly, which means it takes longer to pull down but holds the temperature far better. Systems sized on volume alone tend to be oversized, then short-cycle, then dehumidify poorly.
- Cave houses
- Already thermally stable and cool. The genuine need is usually dehumidification and air movement rather than cooling capacity, and an oversized cooling unit in a cave makes the humidity worse rather than better.
- Modern lightweight additions
- Respond fast, gain heat fast, and frequently sit next to a heavy original in the same house — which means one system trying to serve two completely different thermal behaviours.
- Rental properties
- Occupancy patterns are extreme: everything on, all day, doors open. Design for that, because that is the actual duty.
What this trade covers
- Split, multi-split and ducted systems for houses and apartments.
- Hotel and multi-room systems, installed within a closed-season programme.
- Concealed and ducted installations for traditional and vaulted interiors.
- Condenser screening and platforms that satisfy settlement rules.
- Ventilation and dehumidification, particularly in cave properties and bathrooms.
- Servicing, coil cleaning and pre-season checks.
- Coordination with electrical work so the board and circuits actually support the load. See electrician.
Questions people actually ask
Can I put an air conditioning unit on my caldera-facing wall?
In a designated settlement, very likely not in a visible position. The solution is concealment, screening or an alternative elevation, and it needs solving at design stage rather than on the day of installation.
How long do units last here?
Less than inland, and the difference is salt on the condenser. Coated coils, sensible siting and regular cleaning make a substantial difference — enough that the specification decision is worth making deliberately.
My cave house is humid. Will air conditioning fix it?
Cooling alone often makes it worse. What a cave needs is ventilation and dehumidification, plus vapour-open finishes so moisture can leave. See cave house damp proofing.
Can you service units you did not install?
Yes. Pre-season servicing for rentals and hotels is a significant part of this work, and it is much cheaper than an August failure.
Do I need heating as well?
Most systems here are reversible and provide adequate winter heating for the mild season. For year-round occupancy in an exposed property it is worth a proper conversation rather than assuming the summer specification covers it.