Why Mildura systems need more attention
The hottest days are very hot
Mildura Airport's January mean maximum is 33.3 degrees and the record is 48.6 (Bureau of Meteorology station 076031). Temperatures pass 40 on a number of days each year, and those are the days a weak fan, a dirty coil or a slow leak gives out.
Dry air suits evaporative
January afternoons average just 25% humidity, so evaporative coolers suit Mildura, and some homes have two kinds of servicing to think about.
A frosty winter on top
July nights average 4.4 degrees and frost is common. A reverse cycle unit that heats through winter has a long year, with little rest between seasons.
Units and flats
5.2% of occupied homes in Mildura Rural City were flats or apartments at the 2021 Census. An outdoor unit on a balcony, roof or high wall is slower to reach and needs safe access.
Refrigerated or evaporative: what each service looks like
| Reverse cycle or refrigerated | Evaporative | |
|---|---|---|
| How often | Mitsubishi Electric recommends a professional service once a year. | Seeley says after the first year, then every two years, and more often in harsh conditions. |
| When | Before summer, and before winter too if it's your heater. | Before summer. Seeley says bleed-system coolers need seasonal maintenance before and after summer. |
| What wears | Filters, the coil and fan get dirty, and refrigerant leaks need finding. | Pads: Seeley expects Chillcel pads to last 7 or 8 years and aspen or woodwool 3 or 4. |
| Who | An RAC01 technician, because the refrigerant gets checked. | Someone who services evaporative coolers every week, ideally for your brand. |
What a Mildura refrigerated service should include
The usual list applies, and our national air conditioning service page sets it out. Here, put extra weight on the outdoor unit. It's the part sitting in the 40 degree sun, and Daikin says leaves and debris around it make it run less efficiently. Ask for the outdoor coil to be cleaned and the fan checked, not just the indoor filters.
Ask for a refrigerant check too. Only a full RAC01 licence holder can do it, and the restricted RSS03 licence some split installers hold doesn't cover service work that touches the refrigerant. If the charge is low, the leak has to be found and fixed before anything is added.
Evaporative cooler servicing in Mildura
An evaporative service is about water, pads and drains. Seeley says to keep the reservoir and pads clean and replace pads on the manufacturer's schedule. It also says drain water carries high levels of mineral salts, so check with a garden centre before running it onto plants.
The installer sets the bleed rate on bleed-system coolers, so if you see more water running off than you'd expect, raise it at the service rather than adjusting it yourself. Our evaporative cooler service and pads and parts pages go further.
Between services
You can
- Clean the indoor filters with the power off. Daikin says at least once a month through summer.
- Keep the outdoor unit's surrounds clear of weeds, leaves and stored items.
- If you're in a unit, note how the technician can reach the outdoor unit before they come.
Leave to a licensed installer
- Cleaning the coil, fan and drain inside the indoor unit.
- Any refrigerant check or leak repair.
- Roof work on an evaporative cooler, and any unit beyond a short, steady ladder.
Questions to ask when you book
- Do you hold an RAC01 licence, and what's your business's RTA number?
- Will you clean the outdoor coil, not just the filters?
- For an evaporative cooler: will you check the pads, reservoir, water supply and bleed?
- How will you safely reach a unit on a balcony, roof or high wall?
- Will any repair be quoted in writing first?
What we'd do
If it were our Mildura home
We'd book a refrigerated system's service in late winter or early spring, with the outdoor coil and refrigerant charge on the list. If we also used it as our heater, we'd add a quick heating check before June. For an evaporative cooler, we'd follow the manufacturer's schedule to the letter, because a summer here leans on it hard.
When you're ready, tell us what you've got and your postcode. Licence-checked technicians near Mildura who service that kind of system can see your job, and the one who takes it contacts you. If none of them takes it within 48 hours, technicians elsewhere in Victoria may see it too. See our Mildura heating and cooling page for choosing a new system.
