“How long does HVAC installation take?”
It’s one of the most common questions that gets brought up when it comes to the topic of heating and cooling installation in Melbourne.
Installing an air conditioning system, be it ducted or ductless, is quite an involved process with dozens of moving parts. As such, there are a lot of different factors that can influence how long said installation takes.
That being said, while we may not be able to provide you with an exact estimate without seeing your house and performing an on-site inspection, we can give you a ballpark.
Just like how there are a number of recurring factors that can influence which system is best for your needs, there are also some things that can determine how long we’ll be at work.
What are the factors affecting air conditioning?
How long it will take to install a heating and cooling system depends on…
Structural challenges
Each home is different. The materials, insulation, building frames… all of these differ from house to house.
For example, some older homes have solid brick internal walls. They’re a lot tougher and better at insulating rooms – however, they also pose a bigger challenge when it comes to installation.
And we haven’t even gotten started on any modifications or renovations you might have made since moving in.
All of this means that each one poses unique installation challenges – what worked for one house isn’t going to work for others!
The size of your system
A larger system is going to take longer to install, simple as that!
Bigger, more extensive systems over more rooms and uses more ducts to do so – that means more work will be required to install it.
Just compare a ducted cooling installation for your home to an entire office building. The second will (naturally) take a lot longer to complete than the first owing to the much greater extent of the system.
While most domestic systems rarely get that big, the extent of your planned air conditioning system still comes into play.
Existing systems
Installing an entire ducted HVAC system takes time. Extending an existing one, however? Now that’s a different story!
While a lot of our clients are getting new systems installed wholesale, not all of them are.
Some might have existing ducted reverse cycle heating and cooling in place.
Assuming that your current system has room to grow, our team of technicians is able to simply extend your current system to an additional room by adding new ductwork.
Needless to say, this speeds things up considerably!
How complex your existing system is
If you’re replacing an existing system, this will add time to your air conditioning installation.
Depending on how your current system is installed, this can take a considerable amount of time. For example, if the ducting for your ducted cooling system is worn-out or simply inadequate, we might have to replace it altogether.
This naturally increases the amount of time required.
The good news is that this doesn’t happen very often. When it does however, it can drag things out longer.
What is important when designing a heating and cooling system?
The system design process is crucial in ensuring that you get the perfect heating and cooling system for your needs – one that isn’t too powerful, or too weak, but just perfect.
Of course, the system itself isn’t the only thing you should be looking at.
It’s crucial that the system design process also takes into consideration all of the different factors that can influence installation time and accounts for them accordingly.
For example, if your home comes with structural challenges like solid brick internal walls or homes with limited ceiling space. It’s important that your system design accounts for these, and plans around them.
Be sure to ask your installer if there are any issues that might cause issues with your VRF air conditioning system installation, as well as what they’re doing to overcome these problems.
How long does it take to install a split AC?
At Alpha Air, our focus is on ducted heating and cooling systems in Melbourne – naturally, we’ve been talking mostly about these types of systems.
But what if you’ve decided on split system air conditioning? How long does it take to install these types of systems?
While split AC is typically faster than ducted installation, it’s also subject to many of the same factors that impact how long it takes to install a ducted split system in Melbourne, as well as a number of unique ones.
For example, most of the time, our team prefers to install wall-mounted indoor units on exterior walls, as this minimises the amount of work needed to connect the indoor and outdoor unit.
Of course, this isn’t always possible – in these cases, we might need to install it on an interior wall and run the tubing through your ceiling to connect it to the outdoor unit.
Needless to say, this takes longer.
Another factor that can drive up the amount of time taken is the type of split system.
While most Melburnians decide on wall-mounted split systems, there are other options such as ceiling cassettes and bulkhead units. Since these are installed in the ceiling, these can take longer to install.
And of course, there’s always the number of split systems you’re getting installed in your home!
How long does it take to replace a home AC compressor?
It isn’t just air conditioning installation that can take a while – what about service?
Ducted reverse cycle air conditioning service is essential if you want to keep your system running for years to come (and keep your home comfortable, while you’re at it).
Most of the time, said maintenance services are relatively quick. Sometimes however, it can take longer – a good example of this is when your outdoor AC compressor needs to be serviced or replaced.
This is the biggest part of any ducted heating and cooling system, be it split or ducted. So, how long can it take?
Again, it depends – this time, on what exactly needs replacing. Topping up coolant can be done safely and relatively quickly. Replacing the compressor however, is much more involved, as it requires at least partially-disassembling the thing first.
There are a lot of different factors at play, even when it’s supposed to be a regular service or repair. And remember, there’s no harm in asking your specialist how long they expect the job to take.
What are the major components of a heating and cooling system?
A heating and cooling system – be it ducted or otherwise – has countless different moving parts.
Some of the main ones include…
- Refrigerant: responsible for actually cooling your air
- Evaporator coil: the part of your system where your refrigerant does its work
- Condenser coil: stores “used” refrigerant, cooling it and restoring it to a usable state
- Compressor: responsible for keeping the all-important refrigerant flowing through your system
- Ducts: these are what move air around your home
Each plays a distinct but important role in your home. More importantly for today’s topic, they also have different maintenance requirements, and take different amounts of time to replace.
Alpha Air offers one-day HVAC installation
Many people assume that ducted heating and cooling installation is a multi-day process.
That may have been true in the past – however, thanks to our team’s intricate system design process, unique experience, and quality workmanship, we’re able to get your system done in a single day.
Each installation is preceded by an in-depth inspection of your home, as well as of any issues that we might encounter when doing the job.
Armed with this information, we apply years of experience to create workarounds and a thorough plan that minimises the amount of time required to get the job done.
While the exact time we spend at work can vary, you can be confident that we won’t need to be at your home for more than a day, no matter what you need!
We’re specialists in Daikin ducted heating and cooling and Mitsubishi reverse cycle ducted air conditioning, as well as experts in installing a wide range of different systems quickly and efficiently.
Find out what we can do for you today – call Alpha Air on 1300 854 525, or click here to get in touch online.
