HVAC Installation in Birmingham, AL
A new system here will heat from November through March and cool 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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Ten months of work most years
Jefferson County asks for heat from November through March and cooling from May through September. That's ten months where the system is doing something, not sitting idle. Winter nights average 35°F, so the furnace side isn't fighting extreme cold, but summer afternoons average 90°F, and that's the load the air conditioner answers for five months straight.
Storms are part of the picture too. This area has logged 166 damaging wind events and 3 winter storms over the past ten years, and statewide, 18% of households lost power for at least 24 hours in 2024. A new system should be sized and installed with that in mind, not just the temperature it has to hit.
- 5 months
- November through March, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 35°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 90°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Alabama requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Contractors issues that license, and it covers the contractor, not the individual job. That means the state has tested this contractor and keeps a record of them, but licensing them once does not license every installation they do afterward.
For an install like this, that license is what stands behind the person doing the work. In most cities and counties, putting in a new furnace, air conditioner or heat pump needs a permit from the local building office, and the work gets inspected once it is done. That inspection is what confirms the gas and electrical connections were done right, since a bad connection is the dangerous part of an installation like this.
Source: Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors
- When should I replace my HVAC system?
- Replace it when repairs get frequent, when it's old enough that parts are getting hard to find, or when it can't keep up on the coldest or hottest days. A unit that keeps breaking down is costing you more than the repair bill each time, since a tech has to come out and diagnose it again before anything gets fixed. An aging furnace or air conditioner also works harder to do the same job it once did without strain. If your system is short cycling, running longer than it used to, or your bills are climbing for no clear reason, have a contractor look at it rather than wait for it to fail on a 35 degree night or a 90 degree afternoon.
- Should I replace my furnace and air conditioner at the same time?
- If they're close in age, replacing both together usually makes sense. Homes here need heat from November through March and cooling from May through September, so both systems run hard for five months a year and wear down on a similar schedule. A furnace and air conditioner installed years apart also don't always match well, since a new coil paired with an old blower can mean the new equipment never runs the way it's supposed to. A contractor can look at both and tell you if one is close enough to failing that it makes sense to replace them together.
- What happens during an HVAC installation?
- A contractor removes the old furnace, air conditioner, or both, and sets the new equipment in place, connecting it to the ductwork, refrigerant lines, gas line or electrical circuit, and venting it needs. After that, they test the system, check refrigerant charge and airflow, and confirm the thermostat and controls are working. A full system swap involves both an indoor and an outdoor unit coming out and going back in, so there's more to the job than just setting a new box down. A contractor can walk you through what your specific installation will involve before the work starts.