Diggers Rest
Gas to Electric Heating and Cooling Upgrades in Diggers Rest
Diggers Rest homes fall into two groups for a gas to electric conversion: the older township houses whose gas heater and evaporative cooler are both near the end, and the earlier estate homes built with a gas heater that is now due. Either way the job is the same in principle and different in the roof, and the team doing it is based a few minutes up the road.
- Gas heater removed and decommissioned to program requirements
- New ducted reverse cycle system with new insulated ductwork, sized for the house
- Estate roof spaces and township roofs planned for before the installation day
- Eligibility checked at the site visit and confirmed in the written quote
A Diggers Rest conversion, plainly
The job is this: the gas ducted heater is removed and decommissioned as the program requires; the evaporative cooler is removed or kept after we have inspected it; a new ducted reverse cycle system sized for the house is installed with completely new insulated ductwork, new outlets and a proper return air; and the house heats in winter and cools in summer from the one system. It normally takes one to two days on site.
The ductwork is where a conversion is won or lost. Gas heating ducts were designed for a gas heater and are commonly too small and too poorly insulated to carry the airflow a reverse cycle system needs; on the compact-roofed estate homes in Diggers Rest they were also often squeezed in around whatever was in the way. We never reuse them. Our guide on reusing gas heating ducts has the detail.
Designed for the house, not the floor plan
The system is sized on the home’s real heat load in both directions, because Diggers Rest gets Sunbury’s hot summers as well as its cold winters. Zoning follows how the household lives, with upstairs and downstairs zoned separately in double storey homes. The outdoor unit goes where it has airflow, service access and the least effect on the neighbours, which matters on the closer estate blocks, and the switchboard is checked for the new load before the quote is written.
The systems
We install ActronAir and Rinnai ducted reverse cycle systems, for which we are factory-trained dealers buying direct from the manufacturers, and we have substantial hands-on experience installing Mitsubishi Electric ducted systems. For whole-home comfort ActronAir is our premium recommendation, and the Diggers Rest air conditioning page explains the zoning and variable-capacity operation behind that. We recommend one system for your house rather than list three.
Where a conversion is not the right answer
Some households only want the heater replaced and the cooler kept, in which case a new gas ducted heater or a Braemar Dominator direct replacement may be the better spend. The Sunbury gas heater replacement page sets out the three options in a home very like most Diggers Rest homes. We install all of them, so the recommendation follows the house.
The program, briefly
The replaced gas heater must be decommissioned so it is permanently unusable and removed, and the work must be documented. Only accredited providers can apply the discount, and only approved equipment qualifies. VEU rebate administration for Macedon Ranges Gas & Air projects is processed under Melbourne Gas & Air, another trading name of the same legal entity; the accreditation details that apply to your job are shown in your written quote. We handle the decommissioning, the documentation and the discount as part of the installation. Eligibility rules and discount amounts change, so we confirm them for your home at quote time rather than publishing a figure here; the VEU eligibility page explains what we check.
Local knowledge
What we see in Diggers Rest
Township homes with both systems due
Around the station and the Old Calder Highway many homes have a gas ducted heater and an evaporative cooler of the same age. A whole-home conversion heats and cools through its own ducts, so the heater goes, the cooler stays or goes after inspection, and both decisions are settled in one job rather than two.
Estate homes and tight roofs
The earlier estate homes in Diggers Rest were built with gas ducted heating in compact roof spaces. New ductwork for a reverse cycle system has to be laid out for the roof that is there, which is why we look in the roof at the assessment rather than on the installation day. Double storey homes are zoned upstairs and downstairs separately.
Sunbury's weather
Diggers Rest gets the same hot, dry summers and cold winters as Sunbury, so the system is sized for both a frosty July morning and a 38 degree January afternoon, not a Melbourne average.
Our own team, close to home
Diggers Rest is part of our home service area, so the assessment visit, the installation and the follow-up are all done by the same in-house team. Bulla and Toolern Vale are covered too.
Why our installations perform
The MRGA Standard
What a properly designed and installed system includes, and what our quote is built around.
Sized for your home, not a rule of thumb
We size heating and cooling from the home: floor area, ceiling heights, insulation, glazing, orientation and how the rooms are used. An oversized unit short-cycles and an undersized one runs flat out on the coldest and hottest days, which is exactly when you need it.
New, correctly insulated ductwork on every ducted reverse cycle installation
Ducted systems live or die by the ducts. A new ducted reverse cycle installation gets new ductwork, sized for the system's airflow, insulated to the current standard, sealed at every joint and supported so it does not sag or kink in the roof. We do not reuse old gas-heating ductwork for a new ducted reverse cycle system. When a gas ducted heater is replaced like for like, the existing ducts can stay where we have inspected them and they are suitable.
Return air and outlets placed for even comfort
Outlet positions, return-air size and location decide whether the back bedrooms are as comfortable as the living room. We design outlet placement and return air for the floor plan and confirm it with you before installation day.
Zoning and sensors where they help
Zoning lets you heat or cool the rooms you are using. Where a system is zoned we set the zones around how the home is lived in, and place temperature sensors where they read the room rather than a hallway or a draught.
Factory-trained dealers
Trained by the manufacturers, buying direct
We are factory-trained dealers for ActronAir, Brivis and Rinnai and purchase equipment directly from these manufacturers.
We also install, service and repair all major heating and cooling brands, including Mitsubishi Electric.
Accountability
9Year Labour & Workmanship Warranty
It applies to the installation work our own team does. Equipment is covered by the manufacturer's warranty, repairs and servicing carry their own workmanship warranty, and pre-existing or reused components are not covered by the nine years.
Gas to Electric Whole-Home Upgrade in Diggers Rest: your questions
Is my Diggers Rest home eligible?
Eligibility depends on the program's current rules, the heater being replaced, the equipment going in and the provider doing the work. We check your situation at the site visit and confirm the discount that applies in the written quote. We do not publish amounts because they change and depend on the home.
My estate home already has ducted reverse cycle. Does the program help me?
The gas to electric activity is about replacing a gas heater with an electric system, so a home that already heats and cools electrically is a different conversation. If your ducted system is due for replacement, the Diggers Rest air conditioning page covers that job; tell us what you have and we will explain what applies.
Can the new system use the gas heating ducts?
No. Every ducted reverse cycle system we install gets new, correctly insulated ductwork sized for its airflow. Gas heating ducts are commonly too small and poorly insulated for reverse cycle heating and cooling, and reusing them is the most common reason a conversion disappoints. New ductwork is in the quote from the start.
What happens to my evaporative cooler?
It can stay or go, decided after inspection. Many households remove an old cooler in the same job because the new system cools through its own ducts; others keep a sound cooler for cheap dry-day cooling. Our guide on keeping the cooler when going electric sets out the trade-offs.
How long does it take?
Typically one to two days on site for a Diggers Rest home, depending on size and how much ductwork is replaced.
Get in touch
Request a written quote in Diggers Rest
Prefer to talk? Call 1300 369 400, monday to friday 8:00am to 5:00pm, Saturday 9:00am to 1:00pm.