HVAC Installation in Decatur, AL
A new system here will heat from October through April and cool from May through September every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Morgan County will get in touch.
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A new system in Decatur works almost every month of the year
Heat runs October through April here. Cooling runs May through September. That covers all 12 months, with only a short stretch in between where the system gets to rest. Winter nights average 33°F, mild enough that a heat pump can carry the load if that is the route you choose. Summer afternoons average 89°F, and the condenser outside will be working hard through all of it.
Most homes here heat with electricity, so whatever you install needs to handle both jobs well. Morgan County has seen 7 winter storms and 246 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and in 2024, 18% of Alabama households lost power for at least 24 hours. That is worth weighing when you decide between a furnace and a heat pump, or whether to add backup heat, alongside how the new system gets sized and installed.
- 7 months
- October through April, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 33°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 89°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 each individual job. It is tied to the business doing the work, not to the furnace or air conditioner going into your home.
For an installation like this one, the license means the contractor answers to that state board. The permit is a separate matter. 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 checks the installation itself, apart from whatever the state license covers on the contractor's end.
Source: Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors
- When should I replace my HVAC system?
- Once your furnace or air conditioner needs frequent repairs, replacement usually makes more sense than paying for another one. Age matters too. A unit that's getting old and struggling to keep up tends to fail at the worst times, and homes here run the furnace October through April and the air conditioner May through September, so there's not much of the year either one gets a rest. If repairs keep coming, have a contractor look at the system before the next season starts rather than after it fails.
- Should I replace my furnace and air conditioner at the same time?
- If they're close in age, replacing both together is usually worth considering, but it depends on the condition of each one. A furnace and air conditioner installed at the same time are matched to work together, and pairing a new unit with one that's already old often means replacing the second one again soon after. If only one has failed and the other is still working well, a contractor can tell you whether they're matched closely enough to leave the working one in place. Either way, the decision comes down to what shape each unit is actually in, not just its age.
- 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 existing ductwork, gas line, electrical circuit, and condensate drain. They'll check that the ducts and electrical supply match what the new unit needs, since equipment sizing and connections vary by house. Once it's connected, they test the system through a full heating and cooling cycle to confirm it's running the way it should. The exact steps and how long it takes depend on the equipment and the house, so a contractor can walk you through what your installation will involve.