A travel agency on a parade is a small glazed shop: desks near the window, a door to the pavement, and sun on the glass for the whole booking. Cool that box with one wall unit or one cassette. Do not import an open-plan office scheme with several indoors and a boardroom. Pavement glare is the load. Staff sit still in it. HSE temperature guidance is about reasonable comfort, and there is no legal maximum. Brochures and a screen are not a server room.
Desks in the pavement glare
The window is the heater. West-facing glass in a south-coast parade can need more kilowatts than the floor area suggests. East-facing glass peaks early and is a different curve. Photograph the front at the hot time of day, and say whether you can use blinds without hiding the offers. People sit close to that glass to talk to customers. Aim the unit along the shop so it tempers the room without blowing on the chair by the window. A cassette in a small ceiling, or a wall unit on the side, is enough hardware for most branches. HSE temperature guidance is about reasonable comfort, and there is no legal maximum.
One unit on a tight rear yard
Occupancy is a few staff and a few customers, not a trading floor. Computers add a little heat. They do not justify a comms-room cooler. If a back office has a door that stays shut, it is a second small zone or it is left off the quote. Say which. Set a normal setpoint. Dropping to 16C against the glare does not add capacity. It adds a cold draught and a bill. Fan speed and a blind will do more for the person at the window. There is no extra duty because the product is holidays. Brochures and a screen are not a server room.
Rear yards on parades are tight, shared, and full of other condensers. Leave airflow, and do not block a fire exit or a neighbour's intake. Noise into the flat above is the planning and landlord issue. A householder heat-pump page does not settle a shop lease. F-gas certification applies. One shop unit is unlikely to trigger air conditioning inspections, but check GOV.UK if you are fitting out several branches on one system. Condensate should leave at the rear, not down the shopfront glass. A floor plan the size of a postcard is enough. State whether the door stays shut and whether blinds can be used.
Frequently asked questions
Do we need the same system as a large office?
No. A single shop unit sized for the glass is the usual job. Several indoors belong only if you have shut rooms you also need cooled.
The window seat is always hot. Should the setpoint go down?
First aim the air and use the blind. The glass is the cause. 16C does not remove pavement glare, and it overcools everyone else.
Can the condensate discharge down the front window?
No. Route it to a proper drain at the rear or to a gully. A wet shopfront is a slip and a stain.
Is the back office part of the same zone?
Only if you say so. A back office with a door that stays shut is a second small zone, or it is left off the quote. Computers there are not a server room.
Does selling holidays change the cooling duty?
No. There is no extra duty because the product is holidays. Pavement glare, the door habit and a few people at desks are the load.
Will several branches on one system change the paperwork?
One shop unit is unlikely to trigger air conditioning inspections. Check GOV.UK if you are fitting out several branches on one system. F-gas certification still applies to each install.
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How this guide was prepared
This guide was written by the Local AC Installers Editorial Team. We compare official guidance, legislation and established consumer information, separate general information from project-specific advice, and show publication dates and sources. We do not accept installer accreditation claims at face value.