Frequently asked questions

Both versions are the same build: an aluminium frame of T-SLOT system profiles bolted at the corners, filled with slats or patterned sheet. Light uses a 20×20 mm profile and suits typical air conditioners up to roughly 140 × 100 cm — it is the lightest and the least expensive. Hard uses a 30×30 mm profile, more than twice as stiff, and we recommend it for large units, heat pumps and free-standing covers that have to work against the wind. The configurator will suggest Hard by itself once the dimensions go beyond what Light is meant for.

Yes — that is the whole point of the T-slot. Add a side, swap the slats for a denser or a wider set, bolt on feet instead of wall brackets: the same accessories fit the same frame. The cover comes apart as easily as it goes together, so moving house or repainting does not mean a new structure.

A Lamelvio cover is an architectural, decorative item: its job is to stop the outdoor unit spoiling the look of your house. We design it to stay out of the air's way — the back is always left open, and you choose the gap between the slats and the degree of enclosure yourself, with the configurator showing as you go what share of the surface stays open. That rating, though, is worked out from the geometry of the cover alone and is meant as a design aid. Every air conditioner and every heat pump comes with its manufacturer's own requirements for clearances and airflow, and those are the ones that bind — including for the warranty on the unit. So check the manual or ask your installer before ordering; choosing and fitting the cover is your own responsibility. Section 4 of our terms of use sets this out in full.

The back of the cover is always open, and with a slatted infill you set the gap between the slats yourself. That way the unit is hidden from view while the air still has a way through. To match the cover to a particular model, it helps to give us the make and type of the unit with your enquiry.

As standard we offer RAL 7016 anthracite, RAL 9005 black and RAL 9003 white. On request we will powder coat the cover in any other RAL colour, so it matches your render, your joinery or your fencing.

You can have the front with both sides and the top, the front with both sides and no top, the front with one side and the top (left or right), or the front on its own. The back stays open in every case. Choose the degree of enclosure to suit the sides from which the unit is actually visible on your property.

The build is the same, with an open back and room for the air to move. The difference comes from the units themselves: heat pumps tend to be larger and run all year round, so we design the cover around the specific model and where it stands. The way the dimensions and the degree of enclosure are chosen stays exactly the same.

You do not have to, but you can. The T-SLOT frame bolts together at the corners through the T-slot, so the cover arrives in parts with a full set of fixings and instructions. An Allen key and a quarter of an hour is all it takes. There is no welding and no drilling into the profiles — the only holes you make are in the wall for the brackets, and only if you go for wall mounting.

You fix the cover to the wall if the unit hangs on the elevation, or set it up free-standing if the unit sits on the ground or on a flat roof. We settle the mounting method at the design stage, because the base and the fixings depend on it. There is more on our “Installation” page.

The cover is designed so that you can fit it yourself or have an air conditioning engineer do it. The structure and the fixings are chosen for your particular situation, so it is worth describing how and where the unit is mounted when you send your enquiry.

A welded box measuring 100 × 75 × 55 cm travels on a pallet on a dedicated delivery. Our cover travels in parts: the frame profiles, the slats and a bag of fixings all fit into a standard courier parcel. The longest item is the longest side of the cover.

We need three dimensions of the unit itself: width, height and depth, ideally taken with a tape at the widest points and including anything that sticks out. It also helps to know which side the pipes and cables come out of, and how the unit is fixed. There is a detailed guide on our “How to measure” page.

Yes. The cover must not sit flush against the unit, because the equipment needs room to draw air in and blow it out. The recommended clearances depend on the model and its manual, which is why we allow for them at the design stage.

Yes — every cover is designed around specific dimensions, so an unusual width, height or depth is not a problem. Describe the situation with your enquiry and include the dimensions and a photograph of where it will go, and we will quote for that particular case.

You configure the cover on the website, enter the dimensions and your contact details, and send us an enquiry. We reply with a quote and the details, and production starts once you confirm the order. At this stage the website has no basket and no online payment.

The lead time depends on the material, the degree of enclosure and how busy production is at the time. We give an exact date in our reply, together with the quote.