Area guide · Somerset West

Aircon Installation in Somerset West

We install split aircons in Somerset West homes, for summer cooling and for heating on winter evenings. Some older houses here need a heritage check before anything is fixed to the outside wall, and we tell you when yours might.

Call 060 016 7019

Aircon outdoor unit under a patio roof beside sliding doors, rocky mountains glowing at sunset — Illustration, not a photograph of a job.

Older houses and heritage rules

The City of Cape Town says a permit from Heritage Western Cape is required for any alteration to a building older than 60 years. It does not say whether an aircon counts as an alteration, so on a house that old, ask the City's heritage office before the unit goes up, particularly if it will be visible from the street.

Somerset West also has a proposed heritage area. The City's heritage map layer lists the Somerset West Methodist Mission and its surroundings as a proposed heritage protection area, describing it as "the oldest and best preserved historical Methodist Missions in the Western Cape", with its 1861 church, school buildings and historic cottages.

That status is still "proposed". Where an area is formally designated as a Heritage Protection Overlay zone, alterations must follow Chapter 20 of the City's Municipal Planning By-law. If you live in or near the mission area, it is worth asking the City where things stand before you book.

Cooling in summer, heat in winter

A reverse-cycle split unit runs both ways, so one unit on the lounge wall can take the edge off a hot afternoon and warm the room on a cold night. LG South Africa's sizing chart, for one, gives a single cooling and heating capacity per room size.

Our aircon heating page goes into running a split unit as your winter heater, and the home installation service covers sizing room by room.

Who sends the electricity bill

On the City's load-shedding map, Somerset West sits in Area 3, and the key says Areas 1 to 16 are supplied by the City. The same map shows a few small unshaded pockets in and beside it, which the key marks as supplied directly by Eskom.

If the City supplies you, the 2026/27 Home User rate since 1 July 2026 is 309.52c per kWh before VAT (355.95c with VAT) for the first 600 kWh a month. If Eskom bills you directly, its own tariff applies instead.

Paperwork, neighbours and where we go

Under the Pressure Equipment Regulations, the Department of Employment and Labour's guidance says the certificate of conformity for installing or servicing a refrigeration system must come from an SAQCC Gas registered practitioner, and the standard it names, SANS 10147, covers refrigerating systems including plants associated with air-conditioning systems. Ask the installer for the SAQCC Gas card, and check it on SAQCC Gas's public search. A new circuit needs an electrical certificate of compliance, and on wiring from before 23 October 1992 in a house not sold since 1 March 1994, that certificate must cover the whole installation.

The Western Cape noise rules apply here too: in a residential area, an aircon may not make more than 50 dBA at the boundary, or more than 5 dBA over the background noise. In a complex, the trustees' written consent is likely needed for anything that changes the outside look of your unit, so check your scheme's rules.

The City's 2011 Census put Heldervue, Bridgewater, Helderberg Estate, Parel Vallei, Spanish Farm, Westridge and dozens of other places under Somerset West, and we cover them all. Closer to town, read about aircon repairs and installs in Bellville or aircon installation in Brackenfell. Our price guide for aircon installation lists what published sources charge, each with its own date.

Somerset West questions

Possibly, but check first. The City of Cape Town says a permit from Heritage Western Cape is required for any alteration to a building older than 60 years. It does not say whether mounting an aircon counts, so ask the City's heritage office before the install, especially if the outdoor unit will be seen from the street.

Going by the City's load-shedding map, Somerset West sits in Area 3, which the key says is City-supplied. The same map shows a few small unshaded pockets in and around it, which are supplied directly by Eskom. Your electricity account tells you which applies to your home.

Yes, if it is a reverse-cycle unit, which heats as well as cools. LG South Africa's sizing chart gives a single cooling and heating capacity for each room size, so the same sizing applies. Ask for the heating figure on your quote.

Get a quote in Somerset West

Tell us which rooms you want to cool or heat and roughly how old the house is. We will get back to you, visit and send a written quote. It costs nothing to ask.

Request your quote