AC Installation in West Palm Beach, FL
Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Palm Beach County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Your air conditioner runs every month of the year here
There is no season off. Summer afternoons average 91°F, and homes here need cooling 12 months a year, so the compressor doesn't get a stretch of months to rest.
That kind of runtime calls for equipment sized and installed to handle constant use, not just a hot spell. Any new central air conditioner installed today has to meet a federal minimum of 14.3 SEER2, so the starting point is already set. What matters from there is getting the size and the installation right for a system that runs all year.
- 91°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 48 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
A higher-efficiency unit would save about $40 a year to run in Palm Beach County compared with a new unit at the federal minimum.
Estimates for a typical Palm Beach County home, from EIA household energy data, Florida fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
Florida requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Construction Industry Licensing Board tests contractors before they can hold that license, and the license belongs to the person or company, not to any single job. That means the contractor putting in your air conditioner is the same one the state checked, no matter which house they show up to next.
For an installation, that license is what stands behind the work itself, but it is not the only check on the job. In most cities and counties, installing an air conditioner needs a permit from the local building office, and the work gets inspected once it is done. That inspection is separate from the license. It is the local government looking at what was actually installed, not the state looking at who installed it.
Sources: Florida Legislature · Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation
- What size air conditioner does my house need?
- There's no single number that works for every house. A contractor figures this out with a load calculation that looks at your square footage, ceiling height, insulation, window placement, and how many people live there. Going bigger than what the calculation says isn't a safeguard, it actually causes the unit to cool the air fast without running long enough to pull humidity out, which leaves the house feeling damp. Since your home needs cooling all year here, getting the size right matters more than in places where the system gets a break.
- Should I replace the whole system or just the outdoor unit?
- In most cases, if the outdoor unit is failing, the indoor coil should be replaced with it. The two are matched to work together, and pairing a new outdoor unit with an old indoor coil can mean the system never runs at the efficiency it's rated for. A contractor can check the age and condition of both and tell you whether replacing just one piece makes sense for your system. New systems installed today also have to meet a federal minimum of 14.3 SEER2, which older matched pairs won't hit.
- Do HVAC contractors in West Palm Beach need a state license to work on my home?
- Yes. Florida requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license, issued by the Construction Industry Licensing Board. 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.