How each one actually cools
Evaporative cooling pulls outside air through wet pads, which cools it by evaporation, then pushes it through the house with windows cracked open. Its performance depends entirely on how dry the outside air is.
A split system recirculates and refrigerates the air inside a closed house. Humidity doesn't matter, and it dehumidifies as it runs. A reverse-cycle split also heats, which evaporative cooling can never do.
The coastal humidity problem
On a 36°C northerly with low humidity, evaporative cooling is superb and costs almost nothing to run. After the sea change comes through — warm, sticky, humid air off the bay — its output drops right when people want relief most.
That single behaviour is why we fit more reverse-cycle splits than evaporative in Portarlington, Indented Head, St Leonards, Queenscliff and Ocean Grove, and why we still recommend evaporative for inland-sheltered spots like Drysdale, Clifton Springs, Curlewis and Marcus Hill.
Salt air and lifespan
Both suffer near the water. Evaporative units sit on the roof with constant water and salt across them — pads, pumps and bases corrode. Split system outdoor coils corrode too, but they can be washed down and coastal-rated units are available.
Either way, an annual clean is the single biggest factor in how many years you get. On the coast that's not an upsell, it's the difference between eight years and fifteen.
Cost and the honest verdict
Evaporative is cheaper to run and cools the whole house at once; a split costs more per hour but works on every hot day and gives you winter heating from the same box.
Whole-house cooling on a budget, inland, with dry summer heat: keep evaporative and service it properly. Reliable comfort on humid coastal days, or you want heating too: go reverse-cycle split. Plenty of homes here do both — evaporative for the whole house, one split in the main living area for the sticky days.
Anything involving gas, refrigerant or the inside of the unit is licensed work. If you smell gas, shut the gas off at the meter and call the gas emergency line first.
Tell us which town you're in and how your house sits to the north and west, and we'll tell you which of the two we'd actually fit — including whether keeping your existing unit is the smarter option.
More guides