★★★★★
My TOZER team were on time, courteous, put down and taped floor mats, tidied up and swept the floor when finished. They explained what was happening and answered my questions.
The buying guide
Choosing an
air conditioner
Everything Greg and Shaun tell people at the kitchen table, written down. Running costs, sizing, brands, installers, and how to get the most out of the system you already have.
- Family-run
- 5-year workmanship warranty
- Lic AU13377
6regions covered
30+yrseach on the tools
5yrworkmanship warranty
10,000+installs completed
Part one
What it costs
to run
The purchase price is one number. What the system costs every summer and winter for the next fifteen years is the number that matters, and it is mostly decided on the day it is chosen.
Three things drive running cost.
The energy rating
The star label on the box. Check it for both cooling and heating, not just one.
The right size
An undersized unit runs flat out and an oversized one short-cycles. Both waste power.
How it is used
A ducted system cooling every room of an empty house all afternoon costs far more than one zoned to the rooms you are in.
Why reverse-cycle heats so cheaply
1 kWof electricity in
Several kWof heat into the room
Modern inverter reverse-cycle systems move heat rather than make it, which makes them the cheapest way to heat a home in this region. Still heating with an old electric heater? A split system will usually pay for itself in winter bills.
Summer running cost by thermostat setting
Every degree matters. Each degree cooler adds roughly ten per cent to the running cost. Twenty-four is comfortable in a Newcastle summer. In winter, set twenty and leave it there.
The free one. Keep the filters clean. It costs nothing and makes a real difference to what the system costs to run.
Part two
Sizing, and why
rules of thumb fail
Capacity is measured in kilowatts, and picking the right number is the whole job. Bigger is not better.
Too small
Runs flat out and still cannot get the room down on a 38-degree afternoon.
Right size
Gets the room to temperature, then holds it there without wasting power.
Too big
Cools the air quickly, switches off before it has removed the humidity, and leaves the room cold and clammy.
~150Wper square metre of living area. The rough guide in this region, and only a starting point.
What a rule of thumb cannot see
- West-facing glass
- Ceiling insulation
- Ceiling height
- Which way the room faces
- Upstairs or down
- Sea breeze in Newcastle, none in Singleton
That is why Greg or Shaun measure in person rather than quoting from a floor plan. For a whole house the same logic applies room by room, and the answer is usually a zoned ducted system or a multi-split, so the capacity is spread where it is needed instead of one big unit doing everything badly.
Part three
Ducted, split
or multi-split
Three ways to do it. The right one depends on how many rooms you want done, and whether there is roof space.
Split system
One wall unit and one outdoor unit condition one room. The cheapest to buy and install, usually in under a day.
Best for a living room, a bedroom, a home office or a granny flat.
Multi-split
Several indoor units, one in each room you want done, all run from one outdoor unit on the outside wall.
Best for three or four rooms with no roof space for ducting, and apartments and strata units where only one outdoor unit is allowed.
Ducted system
Hidden in the roof, with ceiling vents in every room and zones so you only run what you need. The most comfortable and the quietest. Costs more up front, and takes one to two days to install.
Best for a family home with reasonable roof space.
The quick answer
One or two roomsSplit system
Several rooms, no roof spaceMulti-split
Whole house, roof space availableDucted
Not sureGet measuredThe answer is usually obvious on site.
Part four
Choosing
a brand
We install four. All four are reliable, well supported in Australia and made by companies that have been doing this for decades. The honest answer is that the differences between them are smaller than the difference between a good install and a bad one. That said, they have personalities.
Builds its ducted systems in Australia and has the widest ducted range.
Warranty agent
Strong value in wall splits, with a big local service network.
Warranty agent
Its nanoe X air purification is a real feature for allergy sufferers.
Warranty agent
Very quiet, and well regarded in multi-splits.
We install itWe are warranty agents for Daikin, Fujitsu and Panasonic, so if something does go wrong with those brands we fix it ourselves. Pick the brand whose range has the right capacity and features for your rooms, from an installer who services it. The brands page puts them side by side.
Part five
Choosing
an installer
The installer decides how long the system lasts, how quiet it is, whether the ducting leaks half its cold air into the roof, and whether anyone answers the phone in five years. Ask every installer these six questions and watch for the answers. Ours are underneath each one.
Who does the measure, and will they come to the house?
TOZER: Greg or Shaun, at your home.
Who actually does the install: your own staff or a subcontractor?
TOZER: Our own trained crews. No subcontractors.
Is the unit in stock, or ordered after I sign?
TOZER: New units are held at our Beresfield warehouse.
What workmanship warranty do you give, in writing, on top of the manufacturer’s?
TOZER: Five years, in writing.
Are you a warranty agent for the brand you are recommending?
TOZER: Yes for Daikin, Fujitsu and Panasonic.
Who do I call if something goes wrong, and will they answer?
TOZER: The office. Lee answers the phone.
Read how we work on the About page.
Part six
Getting through
winter
A reverse-cycle system is the most efficient heater you can put in a Hunter home, but only if it is used well.
18 to 20°
Set it here
Every degree above that is real money, and 20 is warm enough once the house has settled.
Heat mode, not auto
So the system is not flicking between heating and cooling on a mild day.
Close the doors
Shut rooms you are not using, so the system heats the space you are in.
Sun in, curtains shut
Let the sun in during the day and close the curtains at dusk to hold the warmth.
Clean the return-air filter
Before the cold weather starts. A clogged filter makes the system work harder for less heat.
Icing up or blowing cool?
If the outdoor unit ices up and does not clear, or the air is not warm, book a repair before the first cold snap fills the diary.
Part seven
Getting ready
for summer
The first heatwave of the season is when every system that was going to fail, fails, and when the service diary is fullest. Get ahead of it.
- Spring
Book a service
Book a service before the rush, not after the first hot day.
- October
Test run it
Run the system for an hour on a warm day to check it is cooling properly.
- Before the heat
Filters and space
Clean the filters, and clear plants and clutter from around the outdoor unit so it can breathe.
- On the hot days
Set 24 and leave it
Close the western blinds in the afternoon, and run ceiling fans with the air conditioning so it feels cooler at a higher setting.
18°24°
Setting 18 will not cool it faster. It will just run longer. Set 24 on the hottest days and let the system do its job.
Our approach
Six steps,
every single job
One split system or a whole-home ducted install, the job runs the same way. That is what makes a five-year workmanship warranty easy to put in writing.
Measured in person
Greg or Shaun visits your home or site, checks the rooms, roof space, power and where the outdoor unit can live. No sizing off a floor plan alone.
A fixed written quote
You get the system, the brand, the price and what is included, in writing. If something is not in the quote, you will not be charged for it later.
Booked, stocked, ready
Units and ducting come from our own Beresfield warehouse, so the install date we give you is the date we turn up, not the date the supplier delivers.
Installed by our own crews
Trained in-house, in TOZER uniform, floor mats down and taped. Neat penetrations, sealed and capped, and the site swept before the van leaves.
Commissioned and checked
Every system is run on heating and cooling, pressures and temperatures checked, and signed off against our completion checklist before we hand over the controller.
Backed for five years
A 5-year workmanship warranty on top of the manufacturer's warranty, honoured by our own service department. Call the same office that installed it.
What we stand for
We’re not comfortable
until you are
Honest advice
Free, whether you buy from us or not. If the system you asked for is the wrong one for the house, we will tell you and show you why.
Our own people
Installers and service technicians trained in-house and employed by TOZER. The crew that quotes, installs and services your system all sit in the same building.
Stocked, not waiting
Our own warehouse at Beresfield holds the units and ducting, so installs are booked against stock on the shelf, not a supplier's delivery run.
Local, answered by people
A local number for every region, answered in our Beresfield office by Lee and the service desk. You get a person who knows the job, not a queue.
★★★★★
The word
around town
Real reviews from real jobs, via Google and Facebook.
★★★★★
Advice was honest. Quick service. Installers were excellent at their job including tidiness, friendliness and caring manners. Many thanks.
★★★★★
Quick and efficient service, very friendly installers. Happy to recommend Tozer Air to anyone wanting any type of air con or electrical work.
★★★★★
A highly professional company with trustworthy, hard working tradesmen.
★★★★★
A professional company who care about their customers. Everyone we have dealt with has been extremely professional and courteous. We have no hesitation in recommending Tozer.
★★★★★
I can think of no other tradesmen who were so professional yet attentive to every issue individual to my situation. From first phone call to completion, TOZER were absolutely superb.
★★★★★
Very professional from sales to installation. Never dealt with a company so determined to ensure one hundred percent customer satisfaction.
Free quote · free advice
Let’s get you
comfortable
Tell us what you are after and the office will call you back, usually the same business day. Or skip the form entirely:
Call 02 4951 4522
or email comfort@tozerair.com.au
- Measured in person by Greg or Shaun
- Fixed written quote, no pushy follow-up
- 5-year workmanship warranty on every install