Evaporater cooler vs Air Con

I paid $5k three years back for a Brivis L65 Contour (16.7kW) to 7 outlets. Four of the outlets were extra larger for better flow in the living / family areas.

I also splurged and got that fancy controller to integrate to the ducted heating so 2in1 controller. Looks nice and clean

 

Got my new quote :
Evap Brivis F56D Advance cooler (colour – charcoal) to 7 outlets, with R1.0 fire rated duct and insulated fittings.
The following register sizes are to be used:
• 350 x 350 x 400mm 4-way register - 3 - Family, Meals, Living
• 350 x 350 x 350mm 4-way register - 1 - Master Bedroom
• 300 x 300 x 300mm 4-way register - 3 - Bedrooms 2, 3 and 4
= $ 4100

Supply and installation of a Rinnai HSNRA70 7.0kW inverter split system to
Family/Meals area as a back-to-back installation. Condenser on ground on concrete slab.=$2580 (whuch is approx $1200 cheaper than the quote my PM organised but different brand split unit)

If safety switch is required on power circuit board, the additional cost is as follows:
- Porcelain power board - $300 (inc. GST)
- Standard power board - $200 (inc. GST)

 

@Newfast - Do you have a pic of your circuit board?

Having just gone through the process there is a little bit more to it than adding a safety switch.

You need to check the following
1. That the board has provision for another circuit to be added
2. How many RCD's you currently have
3. What type of isolator you have

There will be new electrical rules being release shortly, they are often referred to as AS3000. Some sparkies will state that there can be no more than 3 circuits protected per RCD (Safety switch), and then some will not just add a circuit to the board without bringing it up to current standard.

I was lucky enough that I know a sparky who was able to hook me up with a RCBO (Safety switch/circuit breaker all in one), otherwise it would have added another $700 to the install cost for a new switchboard

And one final thing, given it will be a 7 kw unit, it needs to be on it's own circuit - Usually 20A circuit. If it isn't, it will likely void the installer's instructions and ruin your warranty.

 

Unfortunarely, i do not have the pic but I can request my PM at the next inspection. Thanks for highlighting the other info.

 

Hi newfast,
After one of those Melbourne heat waves a few years back - several days in a row of high 30s - we wouldn't put up with another summer without aircon.
We rang a few aircon dealers and gave info over the phone and were told that due to home's layout, we'd need 4 split systems (!) - very expensive purchase and running costs so we should consider evaporative so a consultant came out and recommended a Breezair system.
It's ducted to all bedrooms and living areas so 6 units cool whole house and no significant increase in electricity bills. This cost factor would be a plus for your tenants now that electricity costs are exorbitant.
We've never had to run it on highest setting - usually start it on level 2 or 3 then turn it down to fan 1 and leave it there. We don't need to keep all doors and windows open - when unit is running we always keep a couple of windows or sliding doors open about 6 inches - usually kitchen/family and living room. At night we leave kitchen window and perhaps the bedroom or ensuite window ajar and have aircon set to lowest setting. It works a treat.
It's whisper quiet - not audible either inside or outside (unlike our next door neighbours whose roof-top units can be heard as soon as I venture outside)
We couldn't be happier with our decision (esp. "Mr Fantail" as I don't deal well with heat and tend to get really cranky )

We dealt with Coldflow in Springvale (think they work most Melbourne suburbs) and they have done the regular servicing as per warranty conditions. We recommend them for price and customer service.
As a guide, our system supply and install cost $3800 on pre-season promo in 2013 but no doubt dearer now.
Coldflow 03 9549 6100 www.coldflow.net.au
Hope this helps.

 

What about the effect on your water bill? As I posted earlier, water can be the largest running cost of evaporative cooling. Since we started using our split systems more instead of evaporative cooling, our quarterly summer water bill has dropped by at least $100.

 

I must say I was interested to read your comments - especially the $100 variation you've experienced so I've just checked all our water bills and checked usage charges for the past 5 yr period (before and after aircon installation in Dec. 2013)
The difference between our highest and lowest quarterly usage charge during that whole time is $40, but that these highest usage charges were for winter quarters ! (think I need to speak severely to Mr Fantail about all those long showers )
The pattern seems to show usage is sometimes the same for the January and April quarters, but where it varies, the April charge incorporating the hottest summer months has been only about $13 more than the January one. I'm confused as to why this is so, but maybe our aircon system really is as efficient as the salesman and the installer said it would be. No other reason that I can think of.

 

Maybe so. Our system is about 10 years old and it purges its water tank every 3 or so hours during high use, to reduce sediment buildup, so maybe that's what is causing mine to use so much. I have measured water use directly and, excluding the purging activity, on a 35C day it uses 40-50 litres of water an hour. At over $4 per kilolitre where I live, that's roughly 20 cents an hour just in water, which is not insignificant.

 

Thanks @HomePage and @fantail , will check with coldflow and water usage bill increase reasoning.

 

Hi @fantail , I got a verbal quite and had discussions with coldflow.

Majority of my questions reply was "I am not 100% sure" and their split and evap both came expensive than than others.

But thanks for your input though.