Tag: Kew

Conservatories at Kew

Posted on by Jonathan

Kew Gardens conservatory, LondonIn Southwest London situated between Richmond and Kew are the Royal Botanic Gardens. “Kew Gardens” as it is more commonly known is home to the world’s largest collection of living plants and is the leading centre for research and education. Open to the public, this world heritage site it is one of the most spectacular tourist attractions in the London area.

The Nash Conservatory is the oldest of the nineteenth century glasshouses at Kew designed by John Nash originally for the gardens at Buckingham Palace but it was moved to Kew in 1836 by King William IV It is a Greek temple design in classic stone with twelve Iconic columns on the east and west façade. The interior is formed of elegant cast ironwork and glazing. Very different from efficient energy heating systems, the conservatory was heated by an old patent system of steam circulating through small-bore pipes, which has since been replaced. This conservatory is available as a wedding venue and would be perfect.

The Palm House is the largest and most important existing Victorian conservatory and glasshouse. A frame of wrought iron arches supports glass panels, which at one time were tinted green with copper oxide to reduce the significant heating effect. Nineteen metres high, there is a walkway at nine metres high to allow visitors to look down on the treetops on the palm tress and exotics cultivated inside. For its tropical plants, the Palm House needed heat. Originally, the boilers were in the basement, heating water pipes under iron gratings on which the plants stood in great teak tubs, or in clay pots on benches. The smoke from the boilers was led away through pipes in a tunnel under the Palm House Pond to the elegant Italianate Campanile smoke stack 150 m (490 ft) away. The tunnel also housed a small railway which, transported coal to the Palm House boilers. This magnificent building is also a sought after wedding venue.

The Princess of Wales Conservatory opened by Diana, Princess of Wales on 28 July 1987, is the most complex of Kew’s public glasshouses. It commemorates Princess Augusta who married Frederick, Prince of Wales, in 1736 and who founded the Gardens. Ten different environments cover the whole range of conditions in the tropics, ranging from scorching arid desert to moist tropical rainforest, computer-controlled under one roof. The technology involved is highly advanced. Sensors on walls and in beds report exact environmental conditions to the computer, which commands heat to flow, ventilation to open, or mists to spray to increase humidity.

Kew is home to many conservatories and for inspiration; there would be no better place to visit. The legacy from the conservatories at Kew may be seen on many urban and suburban houses in miniature form!

Why this piece on Kew’s conservatories? Well, at Simply Air Conditioning we love fitting conservatory heating and air conditioning units, so why not write about some of the most famous conservatories in our area!

Quote from one of our happy air deflector free trial recipients:

“Our open plan office houses around 100 people. Air distribution and draft was an issue for some of them prior to fitting air deflectors. Since the fitting we’ve not had a single complaint!”

How we got here

Air conditioning is known to have been applied in Ancient Rome: aqueduct water was passed through walls of houses to cool them. In medieval Persia similar techniques involving the use of cisterns and wind towers were used in the hot season to cool buildings.

Modern air conditioning emerged after advances in 19th Century chemistry, and it was Willis Haviland Carrier who invented and first used a large-scale electrical air conditioning system in 1902.

Air Conditioner Definition

An appliance, unit, system, or machine designed to stabilise the temperature and humidity of air within an area (used for both heating as well as cooling). A refrigeration cycle is the most common method of achieving this although sometimes evaporative coolers are used for comfort cooling inside buildings and vehicles.

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A History of the Thames

Posted on by Jonathan

The River Thames is only about two hundred and fifteen miles (346km) long. It happens to be the longest river in England and of course, the second longest river in the whole of the United Kingdom. The River Thames was initially an offshoot of the Rhine long before Great Britain was separated from the Continental Europe. The Channel was formed around seven thousands years ago towards the end of the last Ice Age. And when talking about the route of the River Thames, the river rises in the hills of the Cotswold in Gloucestershire and flows roughly eastward through Oxford, where the river is popularly known as the River Isis. It flows through the Chilterns and goes on through London and then to the North Sea. The River Thames has been an integral part of trade and transport of the area throughout historic times and up until today. As a matter of fact, the fortune and fame of London is as a result of the river.

Throughout the Middle Ages, the River Thames was one of the major highways of London and also the route by which most commodities were brought into the country. For instance, river boats and barges brought fish through this avenue, whilst wool and wood were also shipped into the city through this passage. And in addition to this, hundreds of watermen could be seen in small rowing boats transporting people from one end of the river to the other. By the middle of the 1700s, trading ships started arriving in the city with different kinds of goods for sale in the city. Such goods included silk, tea, spices and so on. Spices were being brought from the East and sugar was shipped in from the Caribbean. Iron ore was brought in from Sweden and timber was shipped in from Norway.

A lot of activities were going on through the river during this period of time. At times the River Thames was so busy that traffic could hardly move. In fact, sometimes, a good number of ships queued for several days along the bank, waiting for their time so as to get to a dock and unload their goods. Apart from the trade aspect of the River Thames, there are also some royal palaces along the river. It was discovered that about seven palaces, past and present, have lined the banks of the River Thames at Richmond, Westminster, Hampton Court, Greenwich, Kew, and the Tower of London. Another aspect of the river is that it is prone to tidal surges. Whenever there is a high tide blowing up, the water level rises swiftly and can spill out over the banks.

Quote from one of our happy air deflector free trial recipients:

“Our open plan office houses around 100 people. Air distribution and draft was an issue for some of them prior to fitting air deflectors. Since the fitting we’ve not had a single complaint!”

How we got here

Air conditioning is known to have been applied in Ancient Rome: aqueduct water was passed through walls of houses to cool them. In medieval Persia similar techniques involving the use of cisterns and wind towers were used in the hot season to cool buildings.

Modern air conditioning emerged after advances in 19th Century chemistry, and it was Willis Haviland Carrier who invented and first used a large-scale electrical air conditioning system in 1902.

Air Conditioner Definition

An appliance, unit, system, or machine designed to stabilise the temperature and humidity of air within an area (used for both heating as well as cooling). A refrigeration cycle is the most common method of achieving this although sometimes evaporative coolers are used for comfort cooling inside buildings and vehicles.

Recent Posts

Main Pages

Home
Maintenance
Contact
Testimonials
Latest News
Legislation and Regulation
Simply AC Reviews
Sitemap
Feed