i just need to replace the machines. do the ducts need replacing with a new model?
Replacing Duct Air Con, Do I Need to Replace Ducts?
Gerry H on 29/01/2019 - 22:03
Comments
think this house was built 2002-2004, previous installed duct air con, but the unit is broken now.
So the answer would be yes, get new ducts unless the old owner went all out and installed R1.5+ ducts.
Not necessarily, depends on the state of the existing ducts and how much you want to spend. Also will depends how hard it is to get to the ducts.
Single or double story??
If it's double storey, replacing the ground floor ducting will be super expensive (generally only possible by either pulling down the ceilings, or pulling up sections of the upstairs floor)
yes its double storey and there's ground floor ducts, i was wondering how on earth that can be replaced without tearing the floor to pieces. i think its far too expensive to replace ducts, i saw it was $14k+!!! its my parents house and we barely use air con, 3 weeks max per year during the hottest day, average only 2 weeks per year (we never use heating during winter because we are cold resistant). is there a general ball park cost if i dont replace ducts? i only saw full installation+air con prices. im in sydney.
I have two friends who are air conditioning installers (very handy!) and we were discussing this on Monday. Their opinion was if the ducting is 10 years old or more, then replace it.
For me, I would say that if it is approaching 10 years old, I wouldn't risk not replacing it because, hopefully, the next unit is going to last longer than a few years. Before that time, the existing ducting will be very old and not working at all efficiently
How old are the ducts? New ducts are min R1.5, but lots are R2, old ducts are R1 if you're lucky or even less.
The R value counts as less cooling lost to the hot temps in the roof space = cheaper power bills for you