Some people are using the FreshDuct name and pretending to be us to scam customers. Please don't fall for it. We are the only genuine FreshDuct, operating in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth. Only deal with us through freshduct.com.au, or call us directly on 04 3191 8137 or 0480 004 051. We are taking legal action against these impostors. Thank you.
A bathroom is the one room where the fitting has to be chosen for where it sits, not just how it looks. Above a shower, over a bath, beside a vanity mirror: each spot has its own zone and its own ingress rating, and the exhaust fan next to them decides whether the ceiling stays dry. Our licensed electricians fit the right downlight for each zone and can sort the fan in the same visit.
Tick two or more and it is time to book — every one of these gets worse, never better, on its own.
A bathroom ceiling is divided into zones by how close a point is to water. The space directly inside and above a shower or bath is the wettest, the band around it is next, and the rest of the room has fewer restrictions. Downlights carry an ingress protection rating, the IP number on the box, that says how well the fitting keeps out moisture and splashes. The rule is simple: the fitting must carry a rating that suits the zone it sits in. You will see IP44 and IP65 on bathroom fittings; which one a spot needs depends on its zone, and a fitting that is fine over the vanity is not necessarily fine inside the shower.
That is why we do not choose bathroom fittings from a catalogue photo. The electrician measures where each fitting will sit, checks the zone, and fits a downlight whose rating matches it. Above a shower that usually means a sealed, moisture-rated LED with a diffused face; in the open part of the room a standard IC-4 fitting is often the right choice, and it lets the batts run over it.
One thing worth knowing: an ordinary fitting installed in the wrong zone can fog, corrode or trip the safety switch, and the fix is a fitting rated for the spot, not a new lamp. If you are not sure what is above your shower now, tell the office and we will look.
The fitting above the shower lives in a cloud of steam every morning. The moisture-rated downlight handles that on its face, but the ceiling around it does not, and neither does the roof space above if the steam gets through. A bathroom that keeps growing mould on the ceiling usually has a light that is coping and a fan that is not.
So when we plan bathroom downlights, the exhaust fan is part of the plan. Is there one at all? Is it in the right place, near the shower rather than by the door? Does it duct to the outside, or just dump wet air into the batts? Is it big enough for the room, and does it run long enough after the shower to clear the air? Our exhaust fan services cover cleaning, repairs and new fans, and the electrician who fits the lights can fit the fan in the same visit and wire it the way you want it.
Switching is where the two meet. Many customers want the fan on its own switch so it can run on after the light goes off; others want it tied to the light so it always runs. Some want a run-on timer. All three are simple to set up when the ceiling is open for the downlights. If the ceiling is already showing black spots, read our bathroom mould and ventilation page first; the lights are the last thing to fix, not the first.
A bathroom needs less light than people expect and needs it in different places. One centre fitting lights the floor and puts every face at the mirror in shadow. A well-placed pair either side of the vanity, or a single fitting set forward of the mirror rather than directly above it, lights the face evenly. That is the fitting you use every day, so it goes in first.
Shower and bath. One moisture-rated downlight over each is usually enough. It is a sealed fitting with a diffused face, so steam and splashes stay outside the housing, and it is switched with the room.
The open floor. A small bathroom is often one or two fittings in the open area; a larger ensuite with a separate toilet is a handful, spaced so the light overlaps at head height and does not stripe the tiles. Fewer fittings, placed properly, beat a grid.
Colour. A neutral white makes a bathroom look clean and shows skin tones honestly at the mirror; a warm white suits a bath you soak in at night. Tri-colour fittings let us set one at install and change it later without touching the ceiling.
Dimming. A bathroom is one of the few rooms where a dimmer earns its keep: full brightness for shaving, a low glow for a 3 am visit. We fit a trailing-edge dimmer matched to the fittings so the low end does not flicker.
Bathrooms in Melbourne fall into a few types and each brings its own ceiling. A weatherboard or Edwardian home often has a high ceiling, a single bulb on a cord and cabling that has been extended a few times; the electrician checks the circuit and the safety switch before any new fittings go in. A 1970s brick veneer with a small bathroom often has a three-in-one heater, fan and light in the middle, which cannot be covered by insulation and does not light the mirror. A 2000s estate home or apartment is often a row of halogens over the vanity, hot enough to feel on your head.
In a renovation, the ceiling is the part nobody books. The plumber and tiler are lined up, the vanity has been chosen, and the lights are left until the plaster is up. Bring us in while the ceiling is open: the fittings, fan ducting and switching go in cleanly, without cutting fresh holes in new plaster.
Above the ceiling, the rules are the same as the rest of the house. Fittings in the open part of the room are IC-4 rated so the batts can run over them; the fan is ducted out, not into the insulation; and if the rest of the ceiling is being insulated, the bathroom is done in the same pass. Every job finishes with photos of the finished ceiling, and of the roof space if you want to see where the duct goes.
Trusted by thousands of clients — homes, councils, universities & agencies
Brands we service — heating, cooling & fireplaces
Everything below is part of the job, not an extra on the invoice.
Shower, bath or both, what is in the ceiling now, and whether the fan works. That is enough for a free phone estimate.
The office confirms the firm price before anything is ordered and, if there is a renovation on, books around the tiler and plumber, 7 days a week.
Zone-rated fittings over the wet areas, IC-4 in the open ceiling, fan ducted and switched, everything tested.
The fan is run, every light is checked at the mirror and over the shower, you see the photos, and you pay after the job.
Real reviews from verified FreshDuct customers — find hundreds more on our Google profile.
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
“Cannot say enough about Gabriel and his team. They were very professional with their job. He taught me what I am supposed to know about vents and how to take care of them. They did an amazing job.”
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
“Our ducts had not been cleaned in 9 years. I was really happy with their professionalism and speed. They respected our house rules and the air in my home is really fresh and clean.”
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
“Outstanding service! Manny was very professional and polite. This is by far the most thorough cleanup that we have experienced. All vents were cleaned and sanitised.”
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
“Adam and his team were professional and very service oriented. They provided detailed before and after pictures to confirm the work and effort. Highly recommend FreshDuct.”
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
“Tom and Eddie did an outstanding job cleaning my air ducts. I scheduled my appointment yesterday and the job was completed within 24 hours. Very satisfied with the service.”
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
“We had pet stains and a bad smell in the carpet and air ducts. After FreshDuct visited, the house smells fresh and clean again.”
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
“Our house flooded in the storms with over a metre of water. FreshDuct came recommended by our neighbours and arrived the same day.”
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
“They were clear up front about pricing and exactly what was included. Very thorough from start to finish.”
Branded vans, uniformed technicians, professional equipment — the team your neighbours already know.
Yes, with the right fitting. The space directly above a shower is the wettest zone in the room, so the downlight there has to be a sealed, moisture-rated fitting chosen for that zone. A standard downlight fogs, corrodes or trips the safety switch. Our electrician measures the zone and fits a downlight rated for it.
It depends on where each fitting sits. The IP number on a fitting, IP44 or IP65 on most bathroom downlights, describes how well it keeps out moisture. Fittings inside or directly above a shower or bath need a higher rating than fittings in the open part of the room, and the electrician matches every fitting to its zone on the day.
The fittings in the open part of the ceiling should be, so insulation can run over them. Fittings over the shower are chosen for moisture first, and some of those are also rated for insulation contact. A heater-fan-light combination is not, and insulation has to be kept clear of it.
Either works, and we set it up your way. Tying the fan to the light means it always runs when someone is in there. A separate switch or a run-on timer lets it keep clearing steam after the light goes off, which is better for mould. Most customers choose the timer once they know it is an option.
Yes, and a bathroom is one of the rooms where a dimmer is genuinely useful: full brightness at the mirror in the morning, a low glow at night. The fittings need to be dimmable and the dimmer needs to be a trailing-edge type matched to them, otherwise the low end flickers.
Yes. The three-in-one unit comes out, a proper exhaust fan ducted to the outside goes in near the shower, and downlights are placed where the light is needed. If you still want heat in the bathroom, tell the office and the electrician will talk you through the options while the ceiling is open.
Fewer than a grid. A typical family bathroom is a fitting or two at the vanity, one over the shower, one over the bath if there is one, and one or two for the open floor. A small ensuite may be three in total. The mirror fitting matters most, so it is planned first.
A neutral white shows skin tones honestly at the mirror and makes tiles look clean; warm white suits a bath you relax in. Tri-colour fittings let us set one colour at install and change it later from the fitting, so you are not locked in. Every fitting in the room is set to the same colour.
Usually because it is a standard fitting sitting in the shower zone, where it was never meant to be. Moisture gets past the trim, condenses on the lens and works into the fitting. Swapping the lamp will not fix it. The answer is a sealed, moisture-rated downlight chosen for that zone, fitted by a licensed electrician.
FreshDuct fits bathroom downlights across metropolitan Melbourne with licensed electricians. Each fitting is chosen for the zone it sits in, so the downlight above a shower or bath carries the ingress rating that spot needs while the rest of the ceiling gets IC-4 fittings the insulation can cover. The office estimates it free over the phone, confirms the price before any work, and takes payment once the bathroom is done.
The space directly above a shower or bath is the wettest zone in the house. Standard downlights there can fog, corrode and trip the safety switch. We fit sealed, moisture-rated fittings in those zones, with the IP rating the zone calls for and a diffused face that keeps steam out of the housing, and the electrician confirms the zone on the day rather than guessing from a plan.
A bathroom ceiling stays dry only if the fan does its job. When we plan the downlights we check the fan, its ducting and its switching, and the same electrician can replace or re-duct it in the one visit. Fan with the light, on its own switch, or on a run-on timer, set up your way.
One centre light puts every face at the mirror in shadow. We place the vanity fitting first, then the shower, bath and open floor, with every fitting set to the same colour temperature and a trailing-edge dimmer where you want a low light at night. Fewer fittings, placed for the way the room is used, beat a grid across the ceiling.
All of metropolitan Melbourne, 7 days a week — and if your suburb is not listed, we still come to you. The office confirms the details for your address when they call with your free estimate.
The hub for every other room in the house: new points, halogen swaps and replacements.
Open →
Bathroom, laundry and kitchen fans cleaned, repaired and installed, ducted to the outside.
Open →
Why the ceiling keeps going black, and the ventilation fix that stops it.
Open →
The trailing-edge dimmer that gives you a low night light without the flicker.
Open →
What the mark on the fitting means, and why the open part of the bathroom ceiling should carry it.
Open →
A fogged, rusted or dead bathroom fitting replaced and matched to the rest of the ceiling.
Open →
Tell us what is in the bathroom now and whether the fan works. The office estimates it free over the phone, confirms the price before any work starts, and you pay once it is done.
FreshDuct
