AC Installation in Chesapeake, VA
A new air conditioner in Chesapeake will run from May through September every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Chesapeake will get in touch.
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What Chesapeake summers ask of a new air conditioner
Your air conditioner in Chesapeake works May through September, five months of the year, with summer afternoons averaging 87°F. That is a long stretch of steady demand on the compressor, not just a few hot weeks.
Any new central air conditioner installed today has to meet the federal minimum of 14.3 SEER2. Chesapeake also sees its share of severe weather, with 58 damaging wind events and 13 hail storms recorded over the past ten years, including hail up to 1.75 inches. The outdoor unit sits exposed to all of that, so how it's installed and protected matters as much as the equipment itself.
- 5 months
- May through September, your air conditioner is on duty
- 87°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 13 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 Chesapeake home, from EIA household energy data, Virginia fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
Virginia requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
Virginia's Board for Contractors tests and licenses the contractor as a business, not job by job. That license is what stands behind the work in this state. Anything under $1,000 falls below the threshold where a licensed contractor is required, but a full air conditioner installation runs well past that mark.
For a job like this, the license is the main protection, since Virginia puts contractors through the state before they can take the work. Beyond that, most cities and counties in Virginia also require a permit for an air conditioner installation, with an inspection once the work is finished. That inspection is a separate check on the installation itself, done by the local building office rather than the state board.
Sources: Virginia General Assembly · Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation
- What size air conditioner does my house need?
- It depends on your home's square footage, how much shade and sun it gets, how well it's insulated, and the layout of your ductwork. There's no single number that works for every house. A contractor will walk through your home and run a load calculation, because a unit that's too big cools the air fast but leaves the house damp, and one that's too small runs constantly and never quite catches up on an 87°F afternoon.
- Should I replace the whole system or just the outdoor unit?
- If your outdoor unit is failing but the indoor coil and furnace or air handler are still in good shape and reasonably new, replacing just the outdoor unit can make sense. The two halves of your system are matched to work together, so pairing a new outdoor unit with an old indoor coil can hurt efficiency and sometimes voids the warranty. A contractor can check the age and condition of what you have and tell you whether matching parts are still available for it.
- Do HVAC contractors in Chesapeake need a state license to work on my home?
- Yes. Virginia requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license through the Board for Contractors, and installing an air conditioner is work that needs one. The license covers the contractor, not the individual job, so it's worth confirming the license before work starts. You'll also want a permit pulled from the local building office, since most places require one along with an inspection once the installation is done.