Daikin Split System AC units

[ol' boy]

I have no idea what has happened to this company or its products over the passed few years.
Once it was the industry leader, now i've had 1 in 3 units fail within the warranty period.

When i say 1 in 3, that is about the average i have found on jobs and installs i've been to in the passed 12 months.
And yes, another one today!
Customer installed 3 Daikin units in his house 8 to 10 weeks ago, one unit has gone from running to failure.
Just wasted an hour on it double checking everything and doing some tests...

Only to end up having to log the fault with Daikin and now wait for one of their Tech's to come out. Which will mean a second visit from me to let him in and show him the unit.

Not sure if ive just seen a bad run of them or what. But you soon get sick of making unpaid visits to clients homes to trace a fault in someone else's product.

I'm in the market for a new Split System at home myself, and feel i'll have to shop around for another brand, but i'm sure they are all as bad as each other now.

Anyone running a new inverter split that looks good? The Fujitsu Designer range looks ok... I used to use Fujitsu in the passed, had good mileage out of them.

[peteramjet]

Just had 2 units installed in our place - both Fijitsu's. Got 4 quotes, 3 recommended Fijitsu, one LG (closely followed by Fijitsu).

All recommended to steer clear of Daikin, unless you have a Govt contract. Reason being they get to replace them every 2 years cause they reckon that's all they last.

[ol' boy]

As contractors, we were all told how good Daikin units were, the only units to be corrosion treated etc. You used to never see them in shops, because i dont think they wanted to play the rebate game like other brands.
I know for a fact they play the rebate game very well now.

And to be honest, they are not the most attractive units anymore.

The first Daikin Inverter Units were great, 900mm head unit, whisper quite, but that was over 10 years ago.

[ol' boy]

Just had 2 units installed in our place - both Fijitsu's. Got 4 quotes, 3 recommended Fijitsu, one LG (closely followed by Fijitsu).

I see Fujitsu has 3 Ranges for Wall Mount.
Did you get Classic, Lifestyle or Designer?

I'm going to need a 8Kw, so i think Designer is out for me.

[admin]

The only problem I have had with mine turned out to be excessive dust build up on the roller fan which made the fan appear to surge. Once cleaned, has been fine.

I would buy another. I also had one in my last house bought new that was running perfectly when I sold 7-8 years later. Both have been big units (7-8kw)

[peteramjet]

I see Fujitsu has 3 Ranges for Wall Mount.
Did you get Classic, Lifestyle or Designer?

I'm going to need a 8Kw, so i think Designer is out for me.

Lifestyle range.

Get a couple if quotes. From only estimates we assumed we'd need a 7kw or higher. All installers who attended advised on either 5kv or 5.5kv systems. Massive difference in cost.

[shred]

I think Daikin lost quality when they started manufacturing in Thailand. Their ability to heat effectively even with low outside temperatures makes them very popular here in Tasmania. Many people I know have had the Thai made Daikin air conditioners fail catastrophically after 6 or 7 years. Mine was DOA and after weeks of people coming and going replacing various boards, both the inside unit and outside unit had to be replaced together to get it working. It's now seven years old, so it won't be long before I'll need to replace it.

A mate of mine bought a beach residence with an old Japanese made Daikin. It has spent 15 years within a few hundred metres of the beach and is still going strong.

One of my relatives replaced a failed Daikin with a Mitsubishi Electric air con. It is super quiet - you hardly know it is on, so I think my next one will be one of those, just for the peace and quiet.

[Antennaman]

Their ability to heat effectively even with low outside temperatures makes them very popular here in Tasmania.

I have a 7Kw Daikin, in a 25 year old house with only ceiling insulation, once the outside temperature gets below +5°C it seems the efficiency drops off markedly.

The unit is 7 years old, & has been this way since new. A check 2 years ago showed no issues with the unit. It was suggested I leave it on 24/7, & use the home leave function to adjust temperatures between when the premises is occupied, not occupied, or sleeping.

That doesn't suit the lifestyle here, so a 6Kw gas heater is being installed (natural gas passes my door). The heat pump will be left in place as there is no point in removing it, & it will be used when the outside ambient is high enough to make it efficient.

The option existed for a wood heater (free wood available), but I just can't be bothered. Whether this option should have been pursued in lieu of proposed gas price rises, will only become evident in the fullness of time.

A friend bought a house with a Daikin unit, at 4 years of age the outside unit failed & was replaced under the 5 year warranty. Must have been a catastrophic failure!

[ol' boy]

A mate of mine bought a beach residence with an old Japanese made Daikin. It has spent 15 years within a few hundred metres of the beach and is still going strong.

Thanks Shred, that explians it well.
The first Daikins we installed, the very first Inverter Scroll Compressor splits ever, were great.
Super quite, great ability in cold outdoor temps and small, great for coastal installs. The indoor unit was only 900mm wide and weighed 9kg!

Since they started making the bigger, ugly looking units, they have seemed crap.

I wasn't aware the changed from Japan to Thai built. Seems to makes sense with the timeline of them being good units and being a company that has rested on its name while the units just got cheaper and cheaper, a very common business practice.

[ol' boy]

I have a 7Kw Daikin, in a 25 year old house with only ceiling insulation, once the outside temperature gets below +5°C it seems the efficiency drops off markedly.

I wonder what gas your unit is running????

R22 was fantastic!!!! you could push it and it handled really big temp changes, ie: it could be -2 outside and still make really warm air inside.
R401 has been in for a while and now its R32 in some units (which is some what flammable)

I know of one Refrigeration installer that deliberately went out of his way to install a cheap chinese split in his own home, just because it used R22.

The worst thing is for me, my old Fujitsu which died a while ago is R22. THe new units that run on R401 should really have new pipe work run, as the oils are not compatible. Not sure where R32 fits in all this.

[Antennaman]

I wonder what gas your unit is running????

The outside unit is a RXD60BVMA running R22.

Since posting, I've had a close look at the inside unit. Always clean the filter, but I notice the fins have a greasy film & some crud on them. Would this be dropping the efficiency?

Can the fins be cleaned with the wall unit in situ?

[ol' boy]

Yes, clean as much as you can, the whole concept of these units working is airflow.
Airflow means, Heat transfer, Means Pressure, Means working

Traces of oil don't sound good though.... A simple way to tell if your unit is low on gas, is on a really hot day, run the unit as cold as you can get it with a slow fan speed inside. Open the cover of the indoor unit, if the bar is starting to ice up, you are low on gas.
Mine used to tell me it was low on gas by spitting water and bits of ice at me.....

Mind you, finding a really hot day this time of year is going to be a struggle.
Gauges also work

[admin]

My current 7 year old Daikin is made in Thailand, as I mentioned, no problems except for an excess build up of dust on the roller fan.

I would suggest that anyone having issues have their internal unit cleaned totally inside and out. My unit was surging, fan going up and down, and was barely cooling or heating the house (it was also at the extreme rear of the house heating and cooling a looong 32 sq house so its a big ask).

A few months ago I had the unit moved in to my main living area. The internal unit was cleaned inside and out and the amount of dust in it was amazing. It now runs as new , no fan surging and easily heats and cools the house.

I was thinking of possibly replacing it, and all it needed was cleaning. You need to remove the up/down - side to side louvers to get inside it to get the roller fan out. If you cant be bothered doing it, get a professional to do it. Its well worth it.

[ol' boy]

I wish a third of the Daikin units i attend would run long enough to get dirty!

[ol' boy]

No way, i just received a phone call from the guy that had 3 Daikin Splits installed, another unit has failed (3 months old)
The last unit took 1 week and 2 visits from the service guy to fix.

Here we go again.... Seriously, either the kids installing these units stuff something up or QC has gone way down hill.
Pretty disappointing when you shell out $10,000 for Air conditioning.

[admin]

No way, i just received a phone call from the guy that had 3 Daikin Splits installed, another unit has failed (3 months old)
The last unit took 1 week and 2 visits from the service guy to fix.

Here we go again.... Seriously, either the kids installing these units stuff something up or QC has gone way down hill.
Pretty disappointing when you shell out $10,000 for Air conditioning.

I would find it very unlikely that 4/4 units fail for no obvious reason.....obviously Daikin wouldn't be in business if that was the case.

[ol' boy]

There is always an obvious reason.
I'll see if this is same as the last or something different.

Considering most installations would be 1 unit, how would the customer ever know if it a more general problem?

Speaking with the Seller/Installer, he tells me they have had some issues.
Speaking with the Third Party service agent, he says it happens, he was of the opinion things started to change when the units got made in another country.

Either way, does any of it really matter, i would not expect a brand new product to do anything wrong period for at last 5 years.

To have property owners calling you to say another unit isn't working is just embarrassing, thank christ i used a AC company to Supply and Install.... At least i can just rip into them.

[admin]

A google shows no widespread complaints with Daikin, any widespread problems with any consumer item ultimately end up on the internet where people are always quicker to post a complaint than a compliment. productreview.com.au which is the biggest whingefest in Australia doesnt really have anymore negatives on Daikin than what it does on any other AC brand. The second biggest whingefest in Australia, Whirlpool, also doesnt have any more negatives against Daikin than any other manufacturer.

Of course no one expects any brand new product to break down, but they of course do. However with 4 in a row having issues, its certainly a bit strange, especially given Daikin arent a "harvey norman/good guys/any department store" bulk stockist and only sell from specialist dealers. If its all 4 with the same issue, maybe they have an issue with a specific part but it would be hard to see 4 with a number of different issues.

I am in my 8th year of my 8/7kw Daikin thats made in thailand and the only issue I have had is leaking gas after 6 months (which was an installation issue...sand/dirt in thread) and the recent "full of dust" issue which is a good reminder of why they say you should have them serviced. Most of Australia's best selling (and highly rated) cars come out of Thailand these days, moving location isnt going to realistically make any difference unless you change quality control.

Sellers/installers/agents all have their own opinions and agendas, very similar to solar. The company I bought from pushed Mitsubishi , "as good as Daikin only cheaper", obviously they were receiving a better deal from Mitsubishi than Daikin. I declined not knowing the anything about the Mitsubishi, and wondering if I should purchase from a company that spent 1941-1945 trying to kill my grandfather.

With aircon, I always buy from a large reputable specialist company that warrants the installation as well as the product. I have a couple of mates that always buy one anywhere cheap and find the cheapest bozo to install them.

[Godzilla]

I have a big Daikin inverter installed about 5 or so years ago.

My ducted heating started playing up not long after i installed it, never got around to fixing it, the Daikin is on day and night for years now, heating the whole house in winter and cooling in summer.

All ive ever needed to do is clean the filters to stop surge and once the system had trouble controlling the temperature, it was some dust in the little opening where it senses the temp inside, just blew into the hole and problem fixed.

Cant fault it, can only sing praises about them.

Maybe the current models are not so good?

[ol' boy]

Daikin Service just left.
New Fan motor and logic board has to be ordered from Sydney.
So now waiting for parts and second service appointment.

Different problem from the others. So its not really showing up as a common problem.

Just waiting for the next failure now.
Even the Service Guy joked about that.

Thank god its under warranty... the logic boards are over $1000! And that's without travel and installation and testing.

Consider the units are in a holiday home and used maybe 4 times a month... its pretty sad.

Internet complaints are of little comfort to this client, let me assure you.
And longevity is yet to be proven (with these units) ....
Like all big business models, once you've reached the top, cost cutting and profitability come into the mix on future models.
Its also probably not real smart to make an AC that lasts 18 years either.

Who knows.... but it has sure put me off buying one for home.
To be honest, even when they are working, the heat output at the vains is warmish, not hot like my 16 year old Fujitsu.
That might be a gas difference though (R22 vs R410)
It might be all part of some Eco Standard across the board... I'm really not sure.
All I know is my old unit pumps out heat, you almost can't hold your hand there.... these new units you can leave your hand in the luke warm air as long as you like.