Air Conditioning in Waurn Ponds
High ground, open to the west, and built almost entirely since the 1990s. Large modern homes around the Deakin campus with the heat load to match.
- Mitsubishi Electric Diamond Dealer
- Ducted and zoned systems
- Rentals and student housing
- Free site visits
Modern housing on the western edge
Waurn Ponds sits at the south western edge of Geelong around the Deakin University campus and the Ring Road. Almost all of its housing has gone up since the 1990s, on rising ground that catches the westerly with very little between it and the open country beyond.
The homes are large, well built by the standards of their era, and generally straightforward to work in. What makes them demanding is size and exposure rather than construction: big floor areas, multiple living zones, and a lot of afternoon sun on the western elevations.
Nineties and two thousands housing
Large brick veneer family homes with good roof cavities and generally adequate switchboards. Predictable to quote.
Newer estates and townhouses
Smaller lots and higher density near the campus, including a substantial rental and student market.
Western exposure
High and open to the west. Afternoon sun and wind both arrive with nothing in the way.
Multiple living areas
Formal lounge, family room, rumpus. The zoning plan matters as much here as the equipment capacity.
What Waurn Ponds households ring us about
Size and exposure account for most of it.
Original ducted systems reaching end of life
Homes built in the late 1990s and early 2000s are now at the point where the first system is due for replacement. Often the ducting outlasts the unit.
West facing rooms that stay hot
With little shelter and few established trees on the newer streets, western rooms hold heat well past sunset.
Zoning that does not match the household
Zones set at build for a family that has since changed. Rezoning is frequently cheaper than adding capacity.
Rental and student properties
Investment properties near the campus, where robust equipment and simple controls matter more than features.
Townhouses with shared or shallow roofs
Higher density housing near the campus often cannot be ducted at all. Multi head is usually the better answer there.
How we work out what a Waurn Ponds house needs
The houses are big, so the mistakes are expensive. We spend the assessment on zoning and western glazing.
1. Measure the western glass
This is the dominant afternoon load. It is measured, along with any external shading, rather than estimated from a plan.
2. Work out the zone plan around occupancy
Which rooms are used when. In a house with three living areas, that is what decides whether the system is economical to run.
3. Check the return air
Large single storey homes need a return sized for the whole system. This is the most common defect we find on original installs here.
4. Assess the existing ducting
In a twenty year old home much of it is worth keeping. We check every run rather than judging from the manhole.
Matching the problem to the work
What we would normally recommend here.
Large family home
Zoned ducted reverse cycle with the zones set around how the house is used. The roof spaces here are good and the layouts suit it.
Original system at end of life
Unit replacement with the ducting inspected and reused where sound. Usually the best value work available in this suburb.
One hot western room
A split sized for the glazing. Cheaper and better than upsizing a whole ducted system to fix a single bedroom.
Investment or student property
Robust splits with simple controls, plus a service booking each year. Tenants will not read a manual and features you cannot explain get misused.
Twenty year old ducted unit finally failing?
The ducting is often worth keeping even when the unit is not. Ring us and we will tell you what survives.
Comparing quotes in Waurn Ponds
In a large home the differences between quotes concentrate in zoning and airflow rather than in the equipment itself.
How many zones, and can each run alone?
Every zone has to be big enough to operate without starving the unit. Ask whether that has been checked or simply drawn on the plan.
Was the western glazing accounted for?
If the sizing came from floor area, the afternoon load has not been considered, and afternoons are the problem here.
Is the return air being upgraded?
A new unit on an old undersized return will underperform and be noisier. It is regularly omitted from quotes.
What condition is the existing ducting in?
Ask what was found, not just what is being reused. The two are not the same question.
Replacing gas ducted heating with high efficiency reverse cycle may attract a Victorian Energy Upgrades discount. Eligibility depends on the existing equipment, the property and current program rules, which we check before quoting.
Waurn Ponds questions
Most relevant services here: ducted air conditioning. split system installation. servicing and maintenance.
Nearby: Highton, Grovedale, Armstrong Creek.
Why are my west facing rooms so much hotter?
Afternoon sun on western glass is the hardest load to deal with, because it arrives late in the day when the house has already been warming since morning. Waurn Ponds sits high and open to the west with few established trees on the newer streets, so there is nothing to soften it. Sizing for those rooms specifically, and external shading where you can add it, both help more than extra capacity elsewhere.
Is my original ducting worth keeping?
Frequently yes. Ducting installed in a late 1990s or early 2000s home here was generally decent, and what damages it is people crawling through the roof rather than age. Where it is intact and correctly sized, reusing it takes several thousand dollars off a replacement. We inspect it and give you both prices rather than assuming either way.
How many zones does a large home need?
Usually four or five. Living and kitchen, bedrooms, master, and a rumpus or study if there is one. More zones give finer control and cost more, and each has to be large enough to run on its own. We set them around how the household actually uses the house rather than by floor plan boundaries.
Do you work on rental and student properties near Deakin?
Yes, and regularly. For investment properties we recommend straightforward equipment with simple controls and an annual service, because complexity generates callouts. We can deal directly with agents and quote against an approval threshold so jobs are not held up.
Is Waurn Ponds inside your service area?
Yes. Waurn Ponds is part of our regular Geelong run and site visits are free with no travel charge. It sits inside our Mitsubishi Electric Diamond Dealer territory.
Do the newer townhouses near the campus need a different approach?
Often, yes. Smaller lots mean the outdoor unit sits close to a neighbouring wall, and townhouse roof spaces are frequently shared or too shallow to duct through. Multi head systems tend to suit them better than ducted, and placement matters more than capacity. We look at the setback and the neighbour before recommending anything.
Get a quote in Waurn Ponds
Tell us the number of living areas and which way the main one faces. In Waurn Ponds the western aspect drives the sizing.
If there is an existing ducted system, tell us its age. Whether the ducting survives is worth several thousand dollars.
Site visits are free and we will get in the roof before quoting anything ducted.
Phone (03) 5214 8711
Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 5:00pm. Weekends by appointment.
Air Conditioning Geelong
Unit 2, 112 Balliang Street
South Geelong VIC 3220