The benefits of evaporative air conditioning

June 11, 2019
  • Australia, Europe, Asia, Africa, Americas
  • Residential
  • Cooling, Health and Wellbeing

Harness the power of nature

The benefits of evaporative air conditioning are plenty, there’s never been a better time to invest in an evaporative air conditioner.With energy prices escalating and Australian summers typically involving heat waves, evaporative air conditioning offers a significant and increasing edge on reverse cycle, when it comes to energy efficiency, healthier air flow, performance and lifestyle.

Ducted evaporative cooling is one of the oldest and most beneficial technologies for keeping cool. Evaporative air conditioners also have many key advantages vs. refrigerated air conditioners that keep more money in your pocket and less pollutants in the air.

Evaporative cooling delivers 100% fresh, filtered outside air.

Based on the principles of evaporation, hot and dry outside air is pumped through water-soaked cooling pads using an evaporative cooling fan. As the air is pushed through the cooling pads, the water evaporates and the heat in the air is absorbed, which lowers the air temperature. A fan then pushes the cool air throughout a house via a network of ducts.

It is important to remember that cooled air inside a home is not recirculated, so a door or window is left open for this air to escape, providing a home with a complete change in air at least every two minutes.

Evaporative Cooling or Reverse Cycle?

At a time when Australians are faced with high energy costs, there is plenty of debate when it comes to evaporative vs refrigerated air conditioning running costs. The reality is that one of the most significant benefits of evaporative air conditioning is that running costs are far lower vs. refrigerated options.

Modern and innovative evaporative cooling products see savvy consumers save up to 85% on energy bills when compared to a reverse cycle air conditioner.***


* According to Canstar Blue – How much electricity does my air conditioner use? http://bit.ly/2iUA389
** Australian Bureau of Statistics – sources of energy used by households http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4602.0.55.001
*** Based on approximate running cost figures sourced from publicly available data. Assumes a whole house area of 166 square metres, with 300 hours usage, 60% duty cycle for air conditioners, and an electricity tariff of 28 cents/kWH. Note that evaporative coolers also use water. Correct at time of publishing. 90% running cost saving based on a Breezair 16kW costing $37 per year to run, compared to a reverse cycle 20kW costing $383 per to run (not zoned standard efficiency).
**** South East Water Corporation article: ‘How much water do you use’ http://www.southeastwater.com.au, 10/2015. Breezair usage calculation is by Seeley International – based on Melbourne 2005 weather data using 115m2 house with medium to large Breezair evaporative air conditioner unit running for 687 hours per year. Note all figures are based on common use assumptions.
^ Seeley International calculations, based on publicly available data (2008). CO2 emissions based on 1.08kg CO2 e/kWhr electricity purchased from grid for Victoria. Data sourced from Part 6 or schedule 1 to the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (Measurement) Determination 2008 (Compilation No. 9. dated 1 July 2017).