I have noticed a fair bit of buzz happening in Australia about Solar Air Conditioning. The technology has been around for a few years, but is really starting to gain traction with consumers in Australia – many of who have had Solar Panels installed on their roofs with the help of the Government STCs for Solar Power.

Most manufacturers claim that their solar air conditioners will cut the air con running costs by up to 80%. This is pretty significant considering that during the Aussie summer (and Spring depending which part of OZ) air conditioning is the number 1 household device for electricity usage.

With the electricity costs increasing in the near future due to the Carbon Tax, and many other factors, Air Conditioning will become an extremely expensive luxury on those blistering summer days. And so saving 80% of these costs while making your home more eco-friendly seems like a win-win situation.

But how much will it cost?

Solar Air Conditioning prices will obviously vary from supplier to supplier, but a typical cost would be $2,000-$2,500 for a split system solar air conditioner fully installed. Solar air conditioning costs will definitely go down over time and when more and more people start using it. The reality is that it will pay itself back within 5 years (and those projections are based on today’s energy costs. The split systems cost a lot less – but if you wanted to go for a ducted system you will be forking out anywhere from $9,000-$12,000.

I “youtube’d” solar air conditioning and one of the first results was this hilariously over-the-top video with an intro that paints current day air con systems as being gigantic parasites attached to the sides of buildings. That is a bite extreme, but I do agree with the fact that solar air con runs a lot quieter than traditional air conditioning, check out the video: