Air conditioning servicing is the least exciting money you will spend on a system and comfortably the best value. A service costs around a hundred pounds. A compressor failure caused by a slow refrigerant leak that nobody caught costs closer to the price of a new system — and in most cases the warranty that would have covered it was voided the year maintenance stopped.
Kelvara carries out annual air conditioning servicing across London and Surrey on systems of every make, whether we installed them or not. Here is exactly what a service covers, what it costs, and why the timing matters more than people expect.
Due a service, or can't remember the last one? Tell us the make and we'll price it.
Book a serviceWhat a full service includes
Every maintenance visit follows the same checklist, and you get the readings afterwards rather than a tick in a box.
- 01
Filters and indoor unit
Filters cleaned or replaced, the barrel fan and heat exchanger cleaned, and the casing checked for cracks and rattles.
- 02
Drainage
Condensate tray and drain line flushed. Blocked drains are the single most common cause of water dripping down an interior wall.
- 03
Refrigerant check
Operating pressures and temperatures measured against manufacturer figures to confirm the charge is correct and there's no leak developing.
- 04
Electrical checks
Terminals, contactors and isolators inspected, and current draw compared against the unit's rated figures.
- 05
Outdoor condenser
Coil cleaned of leaf litter, dust and London traffic film, fan and mountings checked, and airflow clearance confirmed.
- 06
Report and paperwork
Readings recorded, anything approaching end of life flagged, and F-Gas records updated so your warranty stays valid.
Why annual maintenance actually matters
Your warranty depends on it
Practically every manufacturer — Daikin, Mitsubishi Electric, Panasonic, LG, Samsung — makes annual servicing a condition of the five to seven year warranty. When a claim is made, the first thing asked for is the service history. No history, no cover. It is the most common reason a perfectly valid claim gets refused, and it is entirely avoidable.
Running costs climb quietly
A clogged filter and a dirty condenser coil force the system to work harder for the same result. The change is gradual enough that you rarely notice it as a fault — you just notice the room takes longer to cool and the electricity bill has crept up. A clean system can use meaningfully less energy than a neglected one doing identical work.
Refrigerant leaks are a legal matter, not just a technical one
Air conditioning runs on fluorinated gases, and how those gases are handled, logged and repaired is regulated. The government's F-Gas guidance for users, producers and traders sets out the obligations that fall on the system's owner — including, for larger commercial systems, mandatory leak checking at set intervals. A regular service is how those records get kept, and keeping them is your responsibility rather than your engineer's.
Small faults stay small
A worn contactor, a fan bearing starting to whine, a condensate drain half-blocked with algae — all trivial to fix during a booked maintenance visit, all capable of ruining a hot Friday afternoon if left. Servicing does not eliminate breakdowns, but it moves most of them from July to a planned appointment in spring.
Servicing several units, or looking after a block? Ask about a maintenance contract.
Get a maintenance quoteWhen to book, and what it costs
Book in spring. The trade calendar in London is brutally seasonal: everyone rings in the last week of June, and availability disappears overnight. March to May is quieter, cheaper to get a slot in, and means any fault the service uncovers gets fixed before you actually need the cooling.
Typical London pricing. A single split system is usually £90 to £140 including VAT. Additional indoor units on the same visit are charged at a reduced rate, because the travel and set up are already covered. Multi-split and commercial sites are quoted per site after a quick conversation about how many units there are and where they sit.
Maintenance contracts. For offices, rental portfolios and anyone with more than a couple of systems, a contract covering scheduled visits, F-Gas record keeping and priority callout response usually works out cheaper than booking ad hoc — and it takes the remembering off your desk.
Why Kelvara
We are REFCOM registered, which means our refrigerant handling and record keeping is independently audited rather than self-declared. Our engineers hold current F-Gas qualifications, and every service leaves you with the readings — not just an invoice.
We also do not sell refrigerant top-ups as a routine service item. A correctly installed system does not lose gas. If yours is low, we find out why, tell you what it will cost to put right, and let you decide — including telling you honestly when a fifteen-year-old system is better replaced than repaired.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
How often should air conditioning be serviced?
Once a year for a domestic system, and twice a year for anything working hard — a server room, a busy office, a restaurant, or a system that runs for heating in winter as well as cooling in summer. Annual servicing is also a condition of virtually every manufacturer warranty, so skipping it can quietly cost you a five-year guarantee.
What happens if I never service my air conditioning?
Three things, in order. Efficiency drops as filters and coils clog, so it costs more to run for less cooling. Then the condensate drain blocks and water finds its way down the wall. Finally, a small refrigerant leak that a service would have caught runs the compressor low on charge until it fails — and a compressor is usually the point where replacing the system costs less than repairing it.
How much does an air conditioning service cost in London?
A single split system is typically £90–£140 including VAT, with additional units on the same visit charged at a reduced rate because the engineer is already on site. Multi-unit and commercial systems are quoted per site. We give you the figure before we book, not after the work.
How long does a service take?
Around 45 minutes to an hour for a single split system, including the outdoor condenser. A multi-split with four indoor units usually takes two to three hours. We work around you — most domestic services are done well inside a morning.
Do you service systems you didn't install?
Yes, and a large share of our maintenance work is exactly that. We service all the major brands including Daikin, Mitsubishi Electric, Panasonic, LG and Samsung. If the original installer has gone quiet or the paperwork has gone missing, we can pick the system up and start a proper service record for it.
Does servicing include a refrigerant top-up?
No, and be cautious of anyone who offers routine top-ups as a selling point. A sealed system does not consume refrigerant — if it is low, there is a leak, and the correct response is to find and fix it. Under F-Gas rules we're required to trace and repair leaks rather than simply refill. We'll always quote the repair separately once we know what caused it.