Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I cant remember the exact cost but it was less than 10grand. I used to use a gas heater, in fact I still have the gas heater but I no longer use it. As it will only heat the one room at a time, I only have the three bed two bathroom home with a lounge and large family dining and kitchen area, open planning. The fact that I don’t have an external wall big enough to hold a split system made the choice for me,
Each to their own. But if your recommending something, I only say what I have used. Or what I am using, with the touch of one finger the whole house warms or cools at my will. Its thermostat controlled , so you get what you want every time. Cheep to run too!

Thanks everyone. Very helpful.

Yes Slowboat it has been scorching here the last couple of days, hence the AC thread as we currently have only a couple of pedestal fans.

Blizz, my brother had ducted in his house and it was fantastic I will agree. Because our house is quite small I think it may be overkill. But yes it would be nice to have.

Our 2 x lounge rooms, dining and kitchen are open plan so maybe one big system to cool that entire area might be an option then its just a short hall way to 3 x bedrooms.

Or, 1 smaller unit it one lounge and 1 also in the dining area. Hard to picture I suppose without floor plans.

Ill use all your info to shop today, thanks.

Are you going to install it yourself or hire someone or do you have a choice there? I know here in the States DIY installation voids the warranty on some units and also can affect the rebates.

Also this thread gave some additional information about ratings - http://hvac-talk.com/vbb/showthread.php?133046-SEER-vs-EER

Adding this in for anyone trying to do the same thing. It's a detailed explanation of COP, EER, SEER and HSPF. If I understand it right it breaks down like this

COP - Coefficient of Performance - Power Output/Power Input

EER - Measure of Cooling Efficiency

SEER - Measure of Cooling Efficiency over an entire season

HSPF - Measure of Heating Efficiency

The link explains how they relate.

http://www.powerknot.com/how-efficient-is-your-air-conditioning-system.html

Its illegal to install your own split system in au, due to the risk of venting ozone depleting refrigerants. I have a licence to install and maintain motor vehicle air-conditioning units but Im unsure if it covers units for the home. Vehicles use R34a, which replaced the now outlawed R12 CFC but I think home units use hydroflourocarbons which may not come under my licence, Im not sure.

Either way, it would probably be easier for insurance and warranty purposes to get a licences technician to fit.

Bring a copy of your floor plan if you can, even if it's a rough sketch, it can come in handy.

Depending on your layout two units may be better, or even a multi-head system.

The MHI systems have one of the longest throw ranges out of all of them (how far it can blow the air from the head unit). I think it's something like 15 metres, which I can vouch for being accurate; a friend has a MHI and has a breeze running from the rear to the front of his house even when it's not cranked up. However the layout of the house is important, if you can't get the flow through the rooms, then separate units are probably going to be more effective.

I have an LG 7Kw in the lounge area and it is so noisy (fan noise) even on low speed. Had Panasonic in the bedroom in Townsville but gecko fried the board. Had the board replaced (which cost a fortune) and the same happened again. So went for 2.5Kw Mitsu Elec and was so quiet when sleeping, very happy. Last January put the same unit in our bedroom here and was it welcome the last couple of nights. Has been over 40C Sat and Sun.

Actually noise is an important factor, my MHI is really quiet, you can't even tell it's on when it's on low. We tend to not need the fan higher than medium but it's still quiet. The external unit barely makes a sound too.

Another thing to consider is how the systems cope with humid weather. I can't remember how the others were made, but I know the external units on the MHI systems have silicon coated circuit boards to help resist moisture. Whichever brand you go for I'd ensure it can cope with the humidity. My unit also has a self-clean function that dries it out after it's been running to stop mould occurring, but I assume other brands wold have a similar function too.

Steve, the Admin man from this forum is a fridgy, has been for many years. His recommendation to me a few years back was Daiken so I went with Daiken splits at home and at work, all good, very quiet and never had any problems.

Didn't think about the noise factor. Good one.

Do you guys also have heat pump water heaters?

Seems like solar would be cheaper but even with the high initial cost these might be a viable option for those that only have electricity or an expensive fuel source. There's not much sun here in Winter so I'm trying one of these out. Haven't seen my first bill after the install so I don't know if it was worth it yet.

We sure do, the latest use CO2, and are very efficient, even in cold climates. You can get solar for zero up front these days, so it is no longer an expensive proposition.

Thanks Gordon

Pretty tough to beat solar if you have plenty of sunlight available.

This water heater is a hybrid unit that runs either as a heat pump or normal heat unit. It's set up in the garage where the washer, dryer and freezer are. For anyone who doesn't know the heat pump water heater really cranks the cool the air out in the process of heating the water. I installed a homemade solar air heater on the south side of the garage last year and that helps warm it up when there's sun (might help keep it in heat pump mode). This particular water heater unit goes into normal heating instead of heat pump at 45 degrees or below. Right at that temp now but it's been falling into the twenties outside at night and the garage is not insulated. It's occurred to me that since the heat pump dehumidifies the air, I might be able to utilize the electric dryer air that is currently vented outside. Still just a thought though

How's the search for a Mini split going Charlie?

How do these work? You answered "sure do" to the water source heat pumps but how does the CO2 work. Is it just a gas with a higher thermal mass?

Shopping got cut short today as my young bloke split his chin open at swimming lessons and had to go to hospital. Re-visit tomorrow.

Not water source heat pumps, hot water heat pumps. Same principle as an air conditioner, only the hot side heats water, and the gas that transfers the heat is CO2 instead of one of the usual refrigerants.