The problem
British homes were built to hold heat in
Solid brick, small windows, dark roofs, loft conversions, and a decade of insulation retrofits optimised entirely for winter. Building Regulations Part O sets an overheating standard for new builds. It says nothing about the twenty eight million homes that already exist.
This site is about those homes: what actually reduces the temperature in a British bedroom, what it costs to run, and when the honest answer is that no machine will fix it.
The record
Sections
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Your Home
Fabric, glazing, shading and ventilation. Why British houses trap heat and what changes it.
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Your Body
Sleep, heat illness, medication, older readers, children and pets in hot weather.
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Outdoors
Gardens, planting, water, paving and shade in a drying, warming climate.
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Choosing and fitting
Which unit, what it costs to run, whether you are allowed, who may fit it and what keeping it going involves.
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Servicing
What maintenance a machine actually needs, who is allowed to do it, and what it costs to keep running.