Practical advice on heating and cooling your Perth home
Straight answers from the engineers who design and install the systems. Floor heating, radiators, heat pumps, geothermal and heat recovery.
What types of geothermal system are there?
Trenches, bores or groundwater: the ways a geothermal heat pump reaches the ground, and which one suits a Perth block.
Does geothermal work in a hot climate like Perth’s?
Summer is where the ground earns its keep. Why cooling into the ground beats cooling into hot air, and the one job where the air wins.
Can I have hydronic heating in an apartment or small home?
A small home needs less heat, but the kit doesn't shrink with it. When hydronic is worth it, and when a split system is the honest answer.
Should I replace my gas hot water with a heat pump?
Usually yes, when the old unit is due. When keeping gas makes sense, the rebate, and where to put a heat pump so nobody hears it at night.
Can you put underfloor heating into an existing home?
Yes, but only by lifting the floor. When retrofitting makes sense, and the option that leaves your floors alone.
Can I heat and cool my home with bore water? Open loop and closed loop geothermal explained
Perth sits on 20 degree groundwater. How an open loop uses it, how a closed loop differs, and when air-source is the better buy.
Gas boiler or heat pump: what should heat my floor heating?
A boiler costs less to buy, a heat pump usually less to run. How to choose, and the one thing that decides it.
What approvals and safety rules apply to geothermal heating and cooling in WA?
Bore water needs a licence and a return bore. The approvals, the real safety risks, and what to sort out before the drill arrives.
Can one system heat, cool, make hot water and warm the pool?
One heat pump can do the lot, and in summer the heat pulled out of the house warms the pool. When it pays, and when separate machines win.
Underfloor cooling vs air con: can floor cooling replace air conditioning in a Perth summer?
It covers about a quarter of what a Perth house needs. What a cool floor does well, and why it works best alongside air con.
What geothermal heating costs in Australia, and when it pays off
The heat pump is about 20% dearer and the bores add $30,000 to $150,000. When the ground earns that back, and when it never will.
How loud is a heat pump, and how do I keep it quiet?
A good one sounds like a fridge, a cheap one like a motorbike. What figure to buy on, WA's night limit, and where to put it.