How Much Does Ducted Air Con Cost to Run?

Ducted reverse cycle air conditioners are the pinnacle of Australian heating and cooling. Have you considered the cost of your heating and cooling, though?

Using a whole house ducted air conditioner in summer could be costing you nearly $150 a week according to Canstar Blue. Per month that’s more than $500, or more than $1700 over summer. And most of us are still using our AC in autumn! How much, exactly, does ducted air conditioning cost to run?

As experts in the air conditioning industry, we’re breaking down the cost of running ducted air conditioners and how you can cut down the cost of cooling your home this summer.

How Much Does Ducted Air Conditioning Cost to Run Per Hour?

You might be wondering how much does it cost to run ducted air conditioners per hour? And answering that question isn’t as simple as just giving an answer, unfortunately.

There are a range of factors that come into play when considering the running cost of your air conditioner:

• Energy prices
• Size of the area it is cooling
• How well insulated your home is
• Climate
• Zoning
• Thermostat temperature
• And much more!

Assuming you’re paying on average 35c/kWh for your electricity, your reverse cycle ducted air con could be setting you back a whopping $3.5 per hour! Using it for six hours a day over the summer months could be costing you $1700.

Reverse cycle ducted ACs reign supreme in Australian homes for a number of reasons that increase their energy efficiency, however. We’ve also got a few tips that will help you to make the most of your cooling without driving the energy bill up.

How to Save Electricity with your Air Conditioner

While ducted air conditioning can be costly to run, few things beat the simplicity of having only one system to heat and cool your whole home.

That’s why we’ve got five ways to help you save on your next electricity bill, so you can still enjoy the comfort of its heating and cooling, without breaking a sweat over the cost.

1. Block Out the Sun

If you’ve got the sun coming through the windows and heating your room like an oven, you’re making your air conditioner’s job harder! This means you’ll be using more electricity, hence more money.

Make sure to close your curtains and blinds when the sun is most intense in the afternoon at a minimum. This will mean your home stays cooler, and you won’t be needing to turn your ducted AC on as early.

2. Use Your Fans

Fans can be one of the most cost-effective climate control appliances in your home. Depending on the speed, you’ll only be spending $0.02-$0.05 per hour. Your reverse cycle air conditioner when cooling is 70-170 times more costly! While not known for their cooling effects, fans can maximise the effect of other air conditioners.

Using your fans on the summer, anti-clockwise, setting will push the cold air down, creating a more effective cooling effect. This means you can set the thermostat to a higher temperature in summer, and save electricity by doing so.

Changing your fans to the winter (clockwise) setting will push the warm air down. Doing this will allow you to set the thermostat to a lower temperature in winter, while still warming your home effectively.

According to Canstar Blue, for every degree Celsius you raise the thermostat in summer or lower in winter, you can save up to 10% on your air conditioning bill.

3. Use Your Power

If you think you’re paying too much, don’t hesitate to call rival power suppliers and see if they can offer you a better deal. You might be surprised – you can lower your running costs considerably, not only for summer but all year round.

You might also consider taking advantage of the electricity tariff during off-peak hours, but you’ll need to check your local times.

4. Use Zoning

A ducted air conditioner without zoning capabilities will heat/cool every room to the same temperature. Zoning gives you complete temperature control, allowing you to control the volume of air flow to different rooms, and even allows you to shut off heating and cooling to particular rooms.

This means you don’t need to be spending the full $3.5 per hour to cool your whole home in summer. Instead, you can select the rooms you want to cool and only pay for the electricity to cool these rooms.

Ducted systems can heat or cool multiple rooms but you don’t want to be wasting power on space that isn’t being used.

5. Keep It Serviced

Your air conditioner will show signs of wear and tear, as well as become more inefficient as time goes on. As dust and dirt accumulates in the filters, this too will make your ducted air con inefficient. Regular servicing will help to prevent these inefficiencies in the first place and keep your filters clean – improving your air quality too!

Servicing your ducted air conditioner will also be able to identify faults before they become very costly repairs in the future. It’s just another way to save on your ducted air conditioning. A licensed professional will check everything from your indoor unit to your condenser (usually in your roof space) and ducts.

For more information about ducted air conditioner installations, services and repairs, contact Metropolitan Air Conditioning today.

We can install, service or repair all the major brands, including ActronAir, Braemar, Coolair, Mitsubishi Electric, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Kaden, Rinnai and others.

Please note: This information is provided for advice purposes only. Regulations differ from state to state, so please consult your local authorities or an industry professional before proceeding with any work. See our Terms & Conditions here.