Make way for more air con compressors
Show 3 more photos Show 9 more photos Hide additional photos
Five heads. Three compressors. One less shrub.
I'd posted about the installation two weeks earlier — three heads downstairs, with the upstairs install still pending. The wall above the loft windows couldn't fit a head: not enough clearance inside, and the outside woodwork would have made the conduit ugly. The installer suggested low-mount floor units. The office took a few days to settle on the fix, then a fortnight for the supplier and an install date.
Today they went in. Two floor-mounted Daikin units, 2.5 kW cooling and 3.5 kW heating each, tucked under the angled section of the loft ceiling — one in each room. The slim shape sits beautifully where a wall-mount never could. Vera, our robot vac, slides under them happily on her cleaning runs.
The compressor count was the disappointment. Emerald doesn't make a floor unit, so the planned upstairs units changed to Daikin — and the Daikin floor units don't share a compressor. Each one runs as its own standalone split with its own outdoor unit. So, instead of a single shared compressor beside the house, we now have three: the existing 18 kW Emerald multi-head for downstairs, plus two smaller Daikin compressors beside it.
Three compressors need three concrete bases, and that meant clearing space. I spent an hour or two digging out one of the shrubs by the roots so the second new compressor had somewhere to sit. The shrub didn't make it.
The app side is a work in progress. The original plan had everything controlled through the Emerald app, and Andre — the installer from O'Brien — helpfully pointed out we could still do that for the Daikins, via Emerald's AC Links bridge units. They even supplied two. Early tests showed the built-in Daikin Wi-Fi to be more reliable, even if the Daikin app itself is a bit ugly. I'll work out how to consolidate everything into one panel later.
It's not the tidy single-compressor picture I'd have chosen if I'd known up front. But the upstairs now heats and cools as easily as the rest of the house.
This finishes the replacement of gas for heating our home. We can now efficiently heat (or cool) the living area, each bedroom and my office — without the losses of ducted heating, and without the emissions and cost of gas.
Related Posts
- Two weeks earlier — the downstairs three-head install: Multi-head air conditioning installation 4 Feb 2026
- Cutting the gas-ducted heating: Goodbye gas — disconnecting the ducted heating 4 Feb 2026
- Earlier in the gas-off journey — heat pump for hot water: Heat pump installation 3 Dec 2025
- Why we chose against ducted in the first place: Why ducted air conditioning is inefficient 1 Mar 2026
- Series index — solar, battery, electrification: Solar, battery and electrification — series intro 4 Dec 2025
We contemplated years ago and I decided not to. It is wonderful to share it!!!
We love our Bosch induction cooktop and oven, as well as heat pump clothes dryer and hot water system. Fast, efficient and very economical. I hope you find someone to be install yours very soon!
We got split systems, heat pump dryer and heat pump hot water system. I decided not to film myself and sharing on YouTube to explain the process… 😂
I am enjoying following your transition to going electric!
With us, we did it years ago with absolutely no regret!!! By the way, we also changed cars!
All of this electric tech has to function within the envelope of our single phase grid connection too. We have to be careful what is turned on and when.
Going off gas heating ain’t easy and I respect your journey and its documentation very much. Many thanks.
I had 2 heads on one compressor in an apartment to save space. That was the wrong move. When it failed I had to replace both units.
In my house I took off the multi splits as it would consume 1.5kw at idle to run a small room (Daikin 3 phase vrf)
I swapped all the heads off and put in individual splits.