HVAC Installation in Dothan, AL
A new system here will heat from November through March and cool from May through October every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Houston County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Eleven months of the year, one of the two is running
Houston County only gets a real break from heating or cooling for about a month. Summer afternoons average 91°F for six months, May through October, and winter nights average 41°F for the other five. A new system has to handle both ends of that without much rest in between.
Most homes here heat with electricity, so the system you install is likely doing double duty, running the compressor for the heat pump and the air conditioner off the same power. That matters when the power goes out. Alabama saw 18% of households lose power for 24 hours or more in 2024, and this area has logged 205 damaging wind events over the past ten years. Whatever gets installed should be able to come back on and run again once the power does, without anyone having to reset it by hand.
- 5 months
- November through March, your system heats
- 6 months
- May through October, it cools
- 41°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 91°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Alabama requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The license is issued to the contractor, not the job, so it is the same license whether the work is a repair call or a full system change out. The Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Contractors is the body that tested and holds the record on that contractor before they ever get to your address.
For an installation, that license is the piece that answers for the work itself, but the job doesn't end there. Putting in a new furnace or air conditioner means new gas or electrical connections and new ductwork or lines, and in most cities and counties that calls for a permit from the local building office along with an inspection once the work is finished. That inspection is what checks the installation was done right, separate from anything the state license already covers.
Source: Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors
- When should I replace my HVAC system?
- Once your system needs repairs more than once a year, or the repairs are getting expensive, replacing it usually makes more sense than continuing to fix it. Watch for signs like uneven temperatures room to room, rooms that just don't cool or heat well, or utility bills that keep climbing even though you haven't changed how you use the system. With 92.3% of homes here heating with electricity, an aging furnace or heat pump running inefficiently shows up fast on a power bill. A contractor can look at the age and condition of your system and tell you whether it's worth fixing again or time to replace it.
- Should I replace my furnace and air conditioner at the same time?
- If both are old, yes, it's usually worth doing together. A furnace and air conditioner installed at the same time are matched to work with each other, and a contractor can size both correctly for your house in one visit instead of two. Homes here need heat November through March and cooling May through October, so both systems get real work most of the year. If one unit is much newer than the other, replacing just the older one is fine, and a contractor can tell you whether pairing them makes sense for your house.
- What happens during an HVAC installation?
- A contractor removes the old equipment, checks the ductwork for leaks or sizing problems, and installs the new furnace, air conditioner, or heat pump matched to your home's size. They connect the electrical and, for gas furnaces, the gas line, then set the refrigerant charge for the air conditioner and test the system to make sure it's heating and cooling correctly before they leave. In Alabama, any contractor doing this work has to hold a license through the state Board of Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Contractors. The exact steps and timeline depend on your home's setup, and a licensed contractor can walk you through what your installation will involve.