DUCTED AIR CONDITIONING VS SPLIT : COMPARISON

4 SPLIT SYSTEMS   3 X BEDROOMS  + 7KW MAIN AREA

COOLING DIAGRAM + COSTS FOR SPLIT SYSTEMS

SPLIT SYSTEM INSTALLATION COSTS AND COOLING

SPLIT SYSTEM RUNNING COSTS = FRACTION OF DUCTED

DUCTED AIR CONDITIONING REPAIRS COST YOU MONEY

SPLIT SYSTEMS – THE MOST EFFICIENT APPLIANCES

A typical Australian home on a hot summer night – only the master and one other bedroom are occupied. It’s January in Queensland so the air con must be on to get any sleep. If you had two splits installed you’re only running 2.5kw each as opposed to the14kw ducted all night, every night. Then during the day, the bedroom splits go off and the living room ones go on. You’re still in front.

EFFICIENCY

CONTACT

DUCTED AIR CON
VS
SPLIT SYSTEMS

Ducted air conditioning has been the first choice for whole house air conditioning solutions for decades. It can reach into even the furthest rooms and keep them at a constant temperature in line with the living areas. Up until recently, this was something the split system could not compete against. However, due to recent advances in split system power and efficiency, you can now cool your whole home using splits for around half the price of a ducted system.

Once they’re installed, the running costs are still less than half that of  a ducted system. Air Conditioning Expert conducted a series of tests in a controlled house. The results of our tests may surprise some people, but to us it was always a given.

Ducted air conditioning has been and gone.

As of 2020 : It cannot compete with split system power, efficiency and flexibility.

SPLIT SYSTEM COMES ALONG

DUCTED AIR CON
4 BEDROOM HOUSE
TEN OUTLETS

We can see from the diagram that the ducted air conditioning system cools the house evenly. There are ten outlets in the ceiling and this equates to14kw of cooling capacity. The installation would take 3 men a full day to complete, though this would usually be done at frame stage during construction. The whole thing costs about $12,500 installed complete. Now please take a look at the same house with split systems installed.

SPLIT SYSTEMS

SAME HOUSE

What do we notice about the diagram when we compare it to the ducted air conditioning one above? Overall, the house is cooled to the same level. The split systems don’t cool the home as evenly as the ducted, but all the main areas are at the same temperature. There are 4 head units on various walls around the home. The differences aren’t noticeable until it comes to price.

You can see the same identical house above, cooled to the same temperature, on the same hot day of summer has cost you $5000 less than a ducted air conditioning system.

THE TOUGHEST QUESTIONS

Is it worth an extra $5000 to have those hallways and peripheral areas cooled to the exact temperature of the lounge? Are you running a hospital or infirmary where the temperature needs to be so tightly controlled? Are you aware that the running costs for the ducted are around double that of the splits on the opposite side? These are questions that need to be addressed before you outlay $12,500.

But wait till you see the running cost comparison. It gets even better.

DUCTED AIR CON

RUNNING COSTS

Ducted systems cost a lot more to run than split systems. How much more? According to other industry professionals 3 – 4 x as much to run. That’s a per square metre comparison! According to Ergon energy, running your ducted just 4 hours per day will add $1662 to your annual power bill. In a Queensland summer, the air con must run all night just so you can sleep. When you add even part of the day, those costs are astronomical.

One customer reported his power bill going from11kw/h per day to 44kw/h per day after the install of his ducted air conditioner. These are no isolated incidents. According to an energy watch website, the main cause of abnormally high power bills is ducted air conditioning. Once that bill comes in there’s no disputing it. There’s no refunding your outlay, you’re stuck with that ducted air conditioning system –  and its associated costs – for the life of that unit.

ZONING OFF THE DUCTED AIR CON TO SAVE MONEY

Some ducted air conditioning salesman will tell you that you can cut those costs by zoning your system to cool only certain areas. That’s true, but to cool two rooms you are still running your 14kw condenser. When you move into a new home do you even know how to zone the air con? Most people turn it on or off – that’s all we know how to do.

SPLIT SYSTEM RUNNING COSTS = FRACTION OF DUCTED

The reason AC Expert knows how much more efficient splits are than ducted air conditioning is because I moved into a home in Stretton in 2017 which had a ducted installed. I ran it sparingly from September through to December and got my first $1000+ power bill. I was shocked. Air Conditioning Installation was my line of work so I put in 3 splits straight away, and ran them all through the summer.

The house was just as cool, if not cooler. I ran the 7kw and 5kw Mitsubishi all day every day – and kept the bedroom one off until night time. I ran the bedroom one 7 nights a week from 9pm to 5am and when the next bill came in March – it was down to just over $400. I run a home office from there, and all the usual appliances. The bill hasn’t climbed past $450 for a quarter since then.

DUCTED AIR CON REPAIRS

As if the case for split systems wasn’t already strong enough, the final thought must go to the maintenance and upkeep on the ducted. What if something goes wrong with your condenser? Maybe the evaporator? Anything at all. You lose all your air conditioning.

Now imagine something going wrong with one of your split systems. You still have three more. Your house will be mostly cool, you can live in the parts that are if you have to. You won’t lose all your air conditioning because your splits are sharing the load.

SPLIT SYSTEMS – THE MOST EFFICIENT APPLIANCES

A typical Australian home on a hot summer night – only the master and one other bedroom are occupied. It’s January in Queensland so the air con must be on to get any sleep. If you had two splits installed you’re only running 2.5kw each as opposed to the14kw ducted all night, every night. Then during the day, the bedroom splits go off and the living room ones go on. You’re still in front.

DUCTED AIR CON vs SPLITS?

There is no comparison. Split Systems win every category.

Every time.