Self-contained
One box under a settee holding the compressor, the coil and the blower, ducted to a grille. The cheapest to fit and the loudest in the cabin.
How it worksMarine Air Conditioning in Australia
Compare marine air conditioning systems, installation costs and sizing for Australian boats and yachts.
Independent advice for boat and yacht owners, with BTU sizing tools, system comparisons and an Australian installer directory. Our cost and performance figures are planning estimates to verify against your vessel and current supplier information.
$7.7k–$13.8k
Indicative single-unit installation model, excluding GST
Size by cabin
Layout, glazing and cruising conditions determine the brief
6.5 A
Of a 10 A marina lead, before anything else is on
15 guides
Installation planning, maintenance and onboard checks
How Marine Air Conditioning Works
A typical water-cooled marine air conditioner removes heat from cabin air and transfers it to seawater. A pump draws seawater through a through-hull and strainer, across the condenser and back overboard. Cabin air passes through the evaporator and returns through supply grilles. Both circuits matter: the unit needs the airflow, seawater flow and service clearances specified in its installation manual.
- 1Seacock and skin fitting
- 2Strainer
- 3Pump
- 4Condenser
- 5Evaporator and blower
- 6Overboard discharge
Six components, and the first one an owner should check is the last: if there is no warm trickle leaving the hull while the unit is running, the seawater side has stopped and the cabin will not cool no matter what the thermostat says. A change in discharge flow is a useful observation for a technician; use the marine air conditioning troubleshooting guides to understand the next checks.
Self-Contained, Split and Chilled-Water Marine Air Conditioning
The compressor, the coil and the blower have to go somewhere. Where you put them decides the price, the noise and how many cabins you can cool — and it is the first real decision, before any brand.
Split
The compressor lives in the lazarette and a small air handler goes in each cabin. Quieter where you sleep, and the sensible answer at three zones.
Compare the unitsChilled water
A chiller makes cold water and a loop carries it to a fan coil in every cabin. Past three zones it is the only architecture that keeps scaling.
When you need itMost Australian sailing yachts under 45 ft land on one self-contained unit. Above that, or past two cabins, the arithmetic starts pointing elsewhere — the sizing pages work through where the line falls for your boat.
Plan the whole installation
Planning a Marine Air Conditioning Installation
The unit is the easy part. Water, air, drainage, power, access and commissioning decide whether it cools quietly for years or becomes the least convenient locker on the boat.
01Choose a Boat Air Conditioning System
Self-contained, split or chilled water. Most sailing yachts under 45 ft land on one or two self-contained units — but the quiet option, the low-power option and the big-boat option are all different answers. Compare marine air conditioning system types
02Calculate Cooling Capacity in BTU
Oversized units short-cycle and never dry the air; undersized ones run flat out at 3 pm in Airlie Beach. Our calculator works from length, cabins, climate and hull colour. Boat air conditioner sizing
03Plan Air Conditioning Power at Anchor
On shore power almost anything works. Off the lead, a night of cooling comes down to your battery bank, your inverter and whether the compressor can throttle. Estimate boat air conditioning power use
04Check Seawater Pumps and Installation Access
Marine AC is water-cooled. The through-hull, strainer, pump and condensate drain decide how well it works and how often you clean it — before you ever pick a brand. Marine air conditioning installation checklist
Marine Air Conditioning by Australian Location
Australian marine air conditioning requirements vary with seawater temperature, humidity, cabin layout and where you cruise. The local guides explain the assumptions used in our sizing and cost models. For tropical cooling or southern winter heating, ask an installer to check the selected unit's performance at the conditions your boat will encounter.
Tropics
18,500 BTU
A 40 ft boat in Cairns, Townsville or Darwin. Size up: the sea is warm enough that the label stops being true.
Subtropics
16,000 BTU
Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Perth. Where most of the Australian cruising fleet lives, and the reference for most figures here.
Temperate
13,000 BTU
Sydney, Adelaide, Hobart. Cooler water means the unit makes close to its rating — and the heating side earns its keep.
Every figure on this site assumes 240 V / 50 Hz, Australian humidity and the boats we actually sail. Nine lengths from 28 to 50 ft are worked through on the sizing pages, and eight home ports on the Australian marine air conditioning location guides.
Marine Air Conditioning Installation Costs
Marine air conditioning installation cost includes the unit, seawater plumbing, ducting, electrical work and labour. These indicative Australian planning ranges come from our cost model, not a survey of completed installations. Use the breakdown to compare quotes with the same scope and confirm taxes, access work and commissioning.
Self-contained
$7.7k–$13.8k
One 14–16k unit on a 35–45 ft monohull, ducted fore and aft. The most common job in Australia and the number most people arrive looking for.
Split
$12.2k–$22.1k
One compressor in the lazarette, an air handler in each cabin, on a boat of 38–48 ft. Dearer to fit, quieter to sleep beside.
Chilled water
$26.6k–$49.3k
A chiller feeding fan coils, each cabin on its own thermostat, 48 ft and up. An option for multiple independently controlled cabin zones.
Supplied and installed, including the seawater side and the electrical work, ex GST, at 2026 prices. These are ranges computed from a published model, not quotes — the marine air conditioning cost breakdown show every line item, and the quote checker tells you where a quote you have been given sits against them.
Boat Air Conditioning Troubleshooting
Twenty faults, each written as a path rather than a list of possibilities — what to check, in what order, and what the answer tells you. The order is the same every time: the cheap and common before the expensive and rare, because that is the order that stops you paying somebody to clean a strainer.
It runs but the cabin stays hot
No water leaving the hull
Ice on the coil
Tripping the breaker
Water in the bilge
A musty smell
Starting and stopping
A new noise
All marine air conditioning faults
Every page names the point at which it stops being an owner job. Handling refrigerant in Australia needs an ARCtick licence, and fixed 240 V work on a vessel is licensed under AS/NZS 3004.2 — both exist for good reasons.
Marine air conditioning advice
Marine Air Conditioning Guides for Boat Owners
Use these marine air conditioning checklists to prepare a retrofit survey, reduce cabin noise, estimate overnight battery use and compare installation quotes. Each guide addresses a different owner task, with links to the relevant technical pages.
Marine Air Conditioning Retrofit Checklist
Survey access, air routes and the whole installation.
Read the field guide →Boat Air Conditioner Noise and Vibration
Separate airflow noise from vibration and cycling.
Read the field guide →Marine Air Conditioning Battery Runtime
Plan usable energy, a reserve and next-day recharge.
Read the field guide →Compare Marine Air Conditioning Quotes
Compare complete scopes and resolve missing items.
Read the field guide →BTU/h
Cooling capacity per hour. It describes heat removal, not the electrical power the system consumes. See the glossary for the full definition.kWh
A measure of energy. A steady 1 kW load running for one hour uses 1 kWh, before allowing for other loads or conversion losses.Return air
Cabin air drawn back into the system. A blocked return path can undermine comfort even when the supply outlet feels cold.“If a wind scoop and a shade cloth will fix your boat, we will say so. Air conditioning is a big install — you should only do it once.”— The editors
Find Marine Air Conditioning Installers and Advice
Browse the marine air conditioning installer directory to compare provider profiles and contact details. Confirm service coverage, current qualifications and availability directly. If you need help preparing an enquiry, tell us your boat, home port and cooling requirements.
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