Air-con - Get only ducting or get fully installed ?

Hello all...

Our builder has quoted $12,500 to install Actron Aircon with 6.3HP, 3 Zone, 3 Phase specifications to our double storey house. As an option, just to provide the ducting and droppers, they are charging $3,500. What do you guys think about the quotes and feasibility of installing the aircon after the handover ?

How easy is it to do it after handover? Maybe we can save some money now

Any suggestions would be great ! Thanks !

I dont know heaps about ducted air-con (even though we got it!!) but I was under the impression that it costs the same whether you do it while building or after handover.

I am not sure what you were talking about with droppers though so not sure if what I said above is helpful or not

When I talked to my consultant, I was told that installing it after the building would be $2,000-2,500 more expensive. The reason was is that there is a unit that goes to the roof and apparently to install it after will require more intrusion plus some extra stuff.

I have been told that installing after lock up will be more expensive.

My sister got ducted air con put in her house which is already built and it cost the same as what we've been quoted for ducted air con with M*tr1con - $11,900.

I reckon you are best off going through the builder, for the extra headache you won't be saving much money, if anything.

Definitely get ducting at least, I wish I got ducting but they wanted $4500 for that and said I'll have plenty of breeze were I live so they talked me out of a.c! Big mistake! Last November we nearly cooked ourselves, so we installed an a.c after all in a post-build situation, much harder to do and not as good, hard to get droppers everywhere but luckily we managed.

If I was you, I'd certainly at least get the ducting, $3500 is money but it isn't all that much in the grand scheme of things.

Actron are great air-con's but is that a good deal? It depends on exactly which model and size unit it is.

Actron have a "standard" ("conventional air-con"), ESP, ESP Plus and Ultima, check their web site out for details (or ask and I'll spit it out for you;-) But if they're talking about the "standard" model then it's not so great but if any of the others then it's looking pretty OK.

Do some searches on this site, we've discussed Actron prices a fair bit. You'll see $12k isn't bad but again it depends on the exact size and model.

Don't worry too much about the builder's margin, they also get massive discounts so it all evens out.

We ended up paying what the builder wanted anyway! Doing it all post build was not good but we ended up with an Actron ESP Plus 19kW which is great.

They were only offering a basic conventional compressor 2 zone thing. So for the same money we ended up with a much better machine.

Get them to quote on some extra zones, 3 is pretty ordinary. One great advantage of the Actron is it can manage 8 zones easily. Extra zones should not cost too much, maybe $200 each.

And exactly which model is the 6.3HP one, is the 15kW model?

So yeah, at least get ducting, maybe get some quotes of other air-con guys see what they say.

Good luck.

Our supply+install of a 6.5 HP a/c is (I think, might need to double check) $12.5k with 4 zones, with max of 2 zones to be used at any one time. Includes 3ph power, roof trusses stuff etc.

About the post-handover installation:
Unless you are buying a monster, physically large internal unit, there is no difference in installing it via them or later by yourself. In fact, some builders install the internal unit post-handover anyway. There's nothing special about it, it's just a (pretty poor) sale tactic by some unscrupulous con people (sorry, air con). There is a video on Yu tube or somewhere showing every step of the installation - not a worry.

About the cost. Well, I got a few quotes while the builder's a/c guy was waiting for us to make up our minds . Although they are not exactly for the same unit (I mean brand name), all the external quotes were higher than our deal with the builder (at least by 1-2k). Not knowingly, I even called one of the guys who "does" a different builder. In the end, we just cut it short and went with the builder.

I agree the outdoor unit can easily be done post build but that isn't the hard part. What is difficult is the extra wiring needed inside the house.

Having a 2nd controllers downstairs requires a wire from the roof cavity to the ground floor. A 2nd controllers is not only a convenience it has a temperature sensor which helps the air-con do its job better.

I think we all agree getting downstairs droppers post-build can be difficult, in my case we just went through some built in robes and luckily that coincided with good outlet positions in the kitchen, home theatre and living room, the dining room missed out completed but there's enough around it to cover for that loss. My study also missed out, I had to get a split system for that. Ouch.

If you get an Actron Ultima or similar system from another brands where there is a temperature sensor in *every* zone then you'll need more cables on the ground floor. Going post build meant we couldn't go for that option.

If all the electrical, including wires to 2nd controller and any additional sensors are in place and all droppers / outlets are in place then a post-install is easy enough.

Errrr, I was talking about the indoor unit, not outdoor . It's the indoor unit for which we were told that roof trusses and sarking would need to be cut and what not so that they can put it into the roof space ( !!). Again, not true if the system s/he ends up choosing will be of a size similar to what the OP has already mentioned and if s/he accepts and does all the prep work for which the builder has already provided them a quote (and if the internal a/c access is not in some very peculiar location on the top floor). Of course, the electrical changes also need to be done as part of the house build since it’s much easier.
Also, if the builder is doing the prep option only, I would assume that the ducts and droppers are planned and installed in advance, so not sure how can this be a problem in this case .

I don't think there's an issue with installing the outdoor unit in terms of access, but again all the prep work that the builder has quoted should be accepted and done (yes, there will still be some minor connection work needed between the 2 units and other parts, and, as far as we were explained by various companies, this is typically pretty much straight forward).

If the OP does want a second controller, this obviously needs to be catered for as well. From his/her post, I would assume it’s only 1 controller and since s/he seems to know what are they talking about, I’d say s/he would be well aware to plan in advance for any such extra wiring.
To me, the OP seems to be interested simply in the feasibility of installing the air con after the handover – how easy (or not) it would be to do it after handover. They seem to be tossing between the 2 quotes – the whole lot, or the prep work only. The main determining factors seem to be the cost difference and ease/conveniece. They seem to be well aware that the prep work (the optional quote) would need to be thorough and include all the bits which are very hard to do post handover.

Not sure about the comment "Actron Ultima or similar system from another brands where there is a temperature sensor in *every* zone then you'll need more cables on the ground floor " - it seems like in this case the OP has to decide on the actual exact system pretty much before they accept any of the 2 options from the builder. Dunno ...

BTW, just double checked the details of our external quotes - from one company, 2 systems were cheaper than the builder's, 2 were more expensive. All other companies were a bit more expensive than the builder (with one being quite a bit more expensive). So, cost-wise for us, it was almost about the same (on average). But again, we didn't get any formal quote on the exact same system that the builder was offering. In the end, we didn't want to have to think and worry about any potential forgotten wiring or other bits ...

Oops my mistake, I originally said "I agree the outdoor unit can easily be done post build ..."

I should now say, "the indoor unit can easily be done post build - in most cases. We have the 2nd largest Actron model and didn't need to butcher any sarking or trusses".

The rest of what I said can remain intact.

The original question "is this a good quote", well that depends on *exactly which model and size* Aircon is being quoted on, how many zones and how many controllers.

"Is the 'duct-only' option at $3500 good", again that depends on exactly what's included with that. Does that at least include wiring for 2 controllers? I would double check that.

There's another thread where the owner assumed as much but it won't get done, disappointment.

If an elaborate system like the Ultima is wanted and the "duct-only" option is chosen I would not assume all the additional wiring will be included, I'd confirm that.

We usually charge more for installations during construction because it takes several visits instead of a one hitter...

the 2nd largest Actron model and didn't need to butcher any sarking or trusses".

heheheh, this is funny
Yeah, I can only imagine how physically large the indoor unit has to be not to be able to fit through the usual opening in the ceiling. Lucky the OP doesn't seem to be after a large unit anyway ... Seriously, there was a video somewhere on utube which opended my eyes ...


Well, how unfair is this for the poor home builder! When I called around to get quotes to sort out this exact dilemma which the OP is having - I got the opposite response, sort of "mmm, oooo, well I'm gonna have to charge you bla bla because it's more complicated for me because whatever ... " So, now it's actually cheaper, at least for this company ... Not happy Jen ...

Sorry...!

There are also more possibilities during construction which adds to the cost...

Most installers will charge LESS during construction as certainly it is easier to run wiring and ducting with no plaster up.

Yes, there may be more visits to the site, however most installers are doing more than one job in the construction area and it does allow the most efficient use of time.

With that being said.....it also depends on how much your builder is whacking on top for his spending money. He most certainly won't be arranging it for nothing and some love to obtain their toys!