AC Installation in Birmingham, AL
A new air conditioner in Birmingham will run from May through September every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Jefferson County will get in touch.
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Five months of Birmingham heat, every year
Your air conditioner works from May through September here, with summer afternoons averaging 90°F. That is five months of steady run time, not just a few hot weeks. A new system installed now has to carry that load every year it's in your house.
Jefferson County has also seen 166 damaging wind events and 46 hail events over the past ten years, with hailstones up to 2.5 inches. The outdoor unit sits exposed to that. Any new central air conditioner installed today has to meet a federal minimum of 14.3 SEER2, so the efficiency baseline is already set. What matters after that is a system sized and installed to hold up through a Birmingham summer, year after year.
- 5 months
- May through September, your air conditioner is on duty
- 90°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 46 hail events
- in ten years, and hail bends the fins on outdoor coils
- 13.4 SEER2
- the federal minimum any new unit must meet
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Going above the federal minimum saves little here, about $20 a year.
Estimates for a typical Jefferson County home, from EIA household energy data, Alabama fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
Alabama requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Contractors licenses HVAC contractors in this state. That license belongs to the contractor, not to any one job, so it covers the person or company doing the work rather than this particular installation.
For an air conditioner installation, that license is what stands behind the contractor's qualifications. In most cities and counties in Alabama, the installation itself also needs a permit from the local building office, along with an inspection once the work is done. That inspection is separate from the state license and it is what confirms the finished installation meets code.
Source: Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors
- What size air conditioner does my house need?
- The right size comes from a load calculation, not the square footage of your house alone. A contractor looks at your insulation, your windows, your ductwork, and how much shade your house gets before landing on a number. An oversized unit cools the air fast but shuts off before it pulls the humidity out, so the house feels clammy even at the right temperature. With summer afternoons here averaging 90°F for five months of the year, getting that sizing right matters more than in places with a shorter cooling season.
- Should I replace the whole system or just the outdoor unit?
- In most cases, if the outdoor unit is failing and the indoor coil is old too, replacing both is the sounder move. Mixing a new outdoor unit with an old indoor coil can mean the two never run at the efficiency either was built for, and the mismatch can void the manufacturer's warranty on the new part. If the indoor coil is fairly recent and in good shape, a contractor can tell you whether it will pair correctly with a new outdoor unit. That's a judgment call that depends on the age and condition of what you already have, so have someone look at both before deciding.
- Do HVAC contractors in Birmingham need a state license to work on my home?
- Yes. Alabama requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license, issued by the Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Contractors. Ask to see the license number before work starts, and you can check it against the board's records if you want to confirm it's current.