Why servicing works differently in Bendigo
It's working in both seasons
A reverse cycle system here cools through a January mean maximum of 30.2 degrees and heats through a July mean minimum of 2.7, on Bureau of Meteorology averages for Bendigo Airport (1991 to 2020). Its service should test both.
Frosty mornings mean defrost cycles
Bendigo averages 26.1 days a year below zero. Mitsubishi Electric says frost forms on the outdoor unit when it's cold and humid, and the unit stops for up to 10 minutes to clear it. That's normal. A unit that keeps icing over, or stays stopped for long stretches, is worth a technician's look.
More than a quarter of homes are rented
26.9% of Greater Bendigo households were renting at the 2021 Census. Every Victorian rental must have a fixed heater in good working order in the main living area, so if that heater is a reverse cycle split, keeping it serviced is part of keeping it working.
Terraces and tight access
Bendigo's terrace houses tend to come in short runs, with little room beside them. An outdoor unit on a high wall bracket or down a narrow side path takes longer to reach and clean safely.
What a Bendigo service should cover
The routine part is the same as anywhere: filters, coil, fan and drain tray on each indoor unit, leaves and cobwebs cleared from the outdoor unit, and the electrical connections checked. Our national air conditioning service page sets that out in full.
What's worth adding here is a proper run on heat. It's easy to think of servicing as a pre-summer job, but in a Bendigo home the system can matter most on a July morning. Ask the technician to run it in both modes and to note how it handles the heating side.
Checking the refrigerant charge needs a full RAC01 licence from the Australian Refrigeration Council. If the charge is low, there's a leak somewhere, and the ARC says topping up before the leaks are found and repaired is illegal. Our regas page explains what should happen instead.
What makes a Bendigo service bigger or smaller
- How many indoor units there are, since each head is cleaned and checked on its own.
- Whether it's ducted, which adds the return air filter, zone controls and a look at the ducts.
- Access: a second storey wall unit, or an outdoor unit high on a terrace wall, takes more time and gear.
- How long it's been. A unit that has heated and cooled for years without a clean may need a deeper mould clean rather than a routine visit.
Your part between visits
You can
- Clean the filters on your manual's schedule. Daikin's general rule is every two weeks.
- Turn the unit off at the power before taking the filters out, and dry them in the shade.
- In autumn, switch to heat for a short while before you need it, so any problem shows up early.
- Keep the outdoor unit clear, and never stand on it or put things on top of it.
Leave to a licensed installer
- Opening the indoor unit to clean the coil, fan and drain.
- Checking the refrigerant charge and finding any leak.
- Electrical connections and controls.
- Any unit you can't reach from a short, steady ladder.
Questions to ask a Bendigo technician
- Do you hold an RAC01 licence, and what's your business's RTA number?
- Will you test the system on heat as well as cool?
- How will you safely reach the outdoor unit where it is?
- Do you service my type of system, whether that's a wall split, cassette or ducted, every week?
What we'd do
What we'd book
If the system is your main heater, we'd book the service in autumn and ask for a run on heat before the technician leaves. If it mostly cools, spring is the better slot. Either way, we'd want an RAC01 technician who services reverse cycle systems week in, week out, and any repair put in writing so we can think it over.
When you're ready, tell us what you've got and your postcode. Where we have licence-checked technicians near Bendigo who service that kind of system, they can see your job, and only the one who takes it gets your contact details. If no Bendigo technician takes it within 48 hours, technicians elsewhere in Victoria may see it too. There's more on local heating and cooling on our Bendigo page.
