I am looking at options to move away from gas to electricity to heat and cool the house.
I have an existing ducted heating on gas with no zoning. It is a basic piping under the house.
Anyone has any experience and cost in replacing the heater unit, if possible? Can i use the existing piping to run both heating and cooling?
Thank you!
Best bet is multiple split systems throughout the house. Forget the ducted altogether.
Came to say this! Ducted is obsolete. Inefficient, complicated, troublesome.
If you really want ceiling vents instead of an inside wall unit, you can have that with splits too.
Does ducted gas still exist outside Victoria? That cheap gas ain't coming back.
+1
Installed a ducted RC in our house a few years ago. Started regretting it a few weeks after that. Go with a few split systems.
I don't get the objections to ducted systems. I have the entire house on ducted and it has been working fine for almost 20 years. I have a system with an individual control in each room so it maintains the correct temperature in each room and I can turn the room on or off from within the room. The only thing I'd consider doing differently if I was replacing the system is put to splits on the bedrooms so they can be run with the door closed. But I would still use ducted for the living areas.
Our ducted is super simple and super reliable. Modern ducted is much more efficient than it used to be also.
Obviously there is also advantages of ducted, but Ozbargain will go for bang for buck.
they can be run with the door closed
That is exactly my objection. For ducted to work well, it should be one big open area. Great for office, but not where you need to keep the doors closed.
Our ducted also works great for living/dining. But in kids' bedroom it's either burning hot in the morning in winter or freezing cold in summer as the hot/cold air can't escape.
RC air con won’t work with that ducting, you’ll get the right size ducting in the ceiling if you go that way.
Best to talk to an Air con specialist for the best option for your home and lifestyle.
One thing though, do your demand management first. Get rid of draughts, control aspect factors, insulate. That way a smaller unit, or even one or 2 split systems and fans may be OK.
We have a big old Actron 18kW unit from before we sorted our place out. When it dies I’m pretty sure we can drop to a 12 kW or even less.
We had a split in the family rm and b1. When the ducted broke down a few months ago we decided to do the transition and replaced the ducted with 4 additional splits. Cost a little over 9k including removal of the gas unit. Only thing we miss in the centralised control of the system
So did it end up cheaper than running on gas? Was your gas running under the house so did you have to seal up the hole after removing the gas unit? Thanks!
If they have smart controls couldn't you control them all with an app anyway?
They don't currently. Was quoted $200 per unit. Will consider.
So you have 6 split systems in your house altogether?
Yes. B1, 2&3. Family, lounge and study. (study and b3 share a compressor)
We had it replaced last September so I can’t comment. I would put money on it that it will be cheaper. It’s a two storey with a concrete slab and a flat roof. The ductwork runs between the floors (and we have had issues with the ductwork, which wasn’t getting any younger). The installer removed the 27yo gas unit, tied off the two large ducts coming to/from the unit and put a plate/sheet covering the 30cm x 90cm hole in the brickwork.
For the past few years, we’ve had the ducted turn off at 7pm and ran the (high ceiling) family room split until bedtime as 1. It did a better job and 2. We didn’t need the whole house heated as we’d be camped in front of the tv.
Ps we also had all our timber windows replaced the year before with double glazed uPVC.
Like a few others have said, some of the other of the biggest improvements you can make (if you haven't already) is to ensure that passive cooling/heating is optimal for your entire house. Try to do this before engaging with an air-con/heating specialist so that they don't have to worry about it, and can instead focus on your electric system. As to more specific advice, this website has some good information that can help point you in the right direction (it's not state specific): Cooling and Heating
No, it'll be likely to be ducted reverse cycle with operating temperatures for heating will be much lower than gas, therefore duct size will have to be larger to allow more airflow.