Ducted System - Waikato area

Forums › Home Workshop DIY › Ducted System - Waikato area

Lullapie

7 posts

Wannabe Geek

#319264 7-Apr-2025 12:31

Hi,

We're building two properties in the Waikato area and have previously had a Fujitsu Ducted Heat Pump system.

We were really happy with it and were going to go with one for each property again.

The properties are 300m2 and 60m2. However, we had a few problems getting quotes and someone also said that Mitsubishi Electric systems might be better.

We had 3 boards blow on our previous system due to a cockroach getting in each time. Apparently ME systems are sealed.

Could I have everyone's advice please? We also only had one unit for a 14 vent system (for the larger house) whereas this time we have been told we have to have 2 units for the larger house.

Finally, who would you all recommend :).

Lullapie

7 posts

Wannabe Geek

#3361754 7-Apr-2025 15:33

I've also been told to have a look at Daikin. Good quality and good support.

MadEngineer

4271 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#3361763 7-Apr-2025 16:05

All the above mentioned are good

Maybe find the KW rating required then compare features between the specific models, including efficiency.

Interesting comment about MHI and bug resistance.

You're not on Atlantis anymore, Duncan Idaho.

Lullapie

7 posts

Wannabe Geek

#3361767 7-Apr-2025 16:18

I heard the Mitsubishi Electric are sealed and cockroaches can't get in, but someone who installs all three brands said that it wasn't true. All heat pumps run the risk of cockroach infestation.

timmmay

20574 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3361774 7-Apr-2025 16:43

I can't answer your question, but I'll point you to some information I posted about ducted systems here.

60m2 seems pretty small to need a ducted system. I wonder if high wall or multi-split might be more appropriate.

tweake

2391 posts

Uber Geek

#3361788 7-Apr-2025 17:37

Lullapie:

Hi,

We're building two properties in the Waikato area and have previously had a Fujitsu Ducted Heat Pump system.

We were really happy with it and were going to go with one for each property again.

The properties are 300m2 and 60m2. However, we had a few problems getting quotes and someone also said that Mitsubishi Electric systems might be better.

We had 3 boards blow on our previous system due to a cockroach getting in each time. Apparently ME systems are sealed.

Could I have everyone's advice please? We also only had one unit for a 14 vent system (for the larger house) whereas this time we have been told we have to have 2 units for the larger house.

Finally, who would you all recommend :).

you can get a single big enough, however it may be more practical to have two. all depends on layout (single or multi story, large rooms, long house etc), but also many people like bedrooms cooler so it can be better to put bedrooms on a different system. some houses they put on system on the cold side of the house, the other on the hot side of the house. that way they can tune it a bit better. also where can you run ducting and where the units can be placed.

with large houses, this is where having a sheathed and insulated roof (ie conditioned attic) comes in really handy.

highly recommend getting a proper load calc done (for heating an cooling), if you can find anyone who can do it (passive house guys would know)

60spm house you may struggle to find a ducted system small enough and i do not recommend oversizing. it might be better to have individual units.

Lullapie

7 posts

Wannabe Geek

#3361995 8-Apr-2025 14:15

Cheers Tweake :).

We have 5 rooms in the 60m2 with no corridors. We've done it previously in a 70m2 and it worked really well.

We've decided it is going to have to be 2 units in the bigger house. It's really hard to get competitive, detailed quotes and I'm shocked how little many know that sell the systems, about how to lay them out.

We had one installer who was very comprehensive with his quote and his plan that I asked if we could go with a single unit in the main house and he is now ignoring me. It's really odd peoples' attitudes when you ask a question before spending in excess of $30k.

neb

11294 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3362128 8-Apr-2025 18:30

Lullapie:

I've also been told to have a look at Daikin. Good quality and good support.

One caveat with Daikin, which we're otherwise very happy with, is that their WiFi control is ridiculously overpriced and not very good. Depends on what other features you want and whether it's worth trading off the poor computer control for it.

Equinox IT

Cloud spending continues to surge globally, but most organisations haven’t made the changes necessary to maximise the value and cost-efficiency benefits of their cloud investments. Download the whitepaper From Overspend to Advantage now.

tweake

2391 posts

Uber Geek

#3362139 8-Apr-2025 20:16

Lullapie:

. It's really hard to get competitive, detailed quotes and I'm shocked how little many know that sell the systems, about how to lay them out.

We had one installer who was very comprehensive with his quote and his plan that I asked if we could go with a single unit in the main house and he is now ignoring me. It's really odd peoples' attitudes when you ask a question before spending in excess of $30k.

yeah sales people just sweet talk to make a sale and get their commission. there's a few threads about some installs that have turned bad. unfortunately some people think that any customer who ask details is a "problem customer" and avoid them.

however it can be tricky as you can put a lot of time and effort into a designing a system only for the customer to not buy or even worse go with someone else and copy their design. there's always a bit of a disconnect between installers and sales.

Lullapie

7 posts

Wannabe Geek

#3362217 9-Apr-2025 08:49

neb:

Lullapie:

I've also been told to have a look at Daikin. Good quality and good support.

One caveat with Daikin, which we're otherwise very happy with, is that their WiFi control is ridiculously overpriced and not very good. Depends on what other features you want and whether it's worth trading off the poor computer control for it.

Thanks Neb. We're not over bothered about the Wi-Fi side. In your opinion though, Daikin are ok? How long have you had your system for?

Lullapie

7 posts

Wannabe Geek

#3362218 9-Apr-2025 08:50

tweake:

Lullapie:

. It's really hard to get competitive, detailed quotes and I'm shocked how little many know that sell the systems, about how to lay them out.

We had one installer who was very comprehensive with his quote and his plan that I asked if we could go with a single unit in the main house and he is now ignoring me. It's really odd peoples' attitudes when you ask a question before spending in excess of $30k.

yeah sales people just sweet talk to make a sale and get their commission. there's a few threads about some installs that have turned bad. unfortunately some people think that any customer who ask details is a "problem customer" and avoid them.

however it can be tricky as you can put a lot of time and effort into a designing a system only for the customer to not buy or even worse go with someone else and copy their design. there's always a bit of a disconnect between installers and sales.

I fully agree and understand ☺️.

timmmay

20574 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3362221 9-Apr-2025 08:58

I have three Daikin heat pumps, including one ducted. I'm happy with all of them. The ducted one outdoor unit is a bit loud, louder than the similarly sized Fujitsu we had there before. It is much much quieter than the Panasonic ducted system we had for a couple of months before we had it removed due to noise.

We have an air touch zone controller on the ducted system which works well. If Daikin zone controller with individual room temperature control I would look at that, but I do appreciate that the air touch has an API and I can control it from home assistant.

Lullapie

7 posts

Wannabe Geek

#3362244 9-Apr-2025 11:01

timmmay:

I have three Daikin heat pumps, including one ducted. I'm happy with all of them. The ducted one outdoor unit is a bit loud, louder than the similarly sized Fujitsu we had there before. It is much much quieter than the Panasonic ducted system we had for a couple of months before we had it removed due to noise.

We have an air touch zone controller on the ducted system which works well. If Daikin zone controller with individual room temperature control I would look at that, but I do appreciate that the air touch has an API and I can control it from home assistant.

Brilliant - thank you Timmmay for your assistance 👍.

neb

11294 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3362319 9-Apr-2025 16:09

Lullapie:

Thanks Neb. We're not over bothered about the Wi-Fi side. In your opinion though, Daikin are ok? How long have you had your system for?

About four years, replacing a crappy old Panasonic. No complaints so far, been working fine and much quieter than the Panasonic was.