AC Installation in Burlington, NC
A new air conditioner in Burlington will run from May through September every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Alamance County will get in touch.
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Five months of Burlington summer heat
Your air conditioner runs from May through September here, and on a lot of those afternoons it is working against 87°F. That is five months of the compressor cycling on and off, day after day, to keep the house where you want it.
Any new central air conditioner installed now has to meet a federal minimum of 14.3 SEER2, so the unit going in will be more efficient than what it is replacing. Alamance County has also seen its share of hail and wind over the past ten years, so the outdoor unit's cabinet and coil fins are worth asking about when you pick a system.
- 5 months
- May through September, your air conditioner is on duty
- 87°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 12 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 $10 a year.
Estimates for a typical Alamance County home, from EIA household energy data, North Carolina fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
North Carolina requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors tests contractors before they can hold this license, and it keeps a record of who holds one. The license belongs to the contractor, not to any single job, so the same license covers the install on your air conditioner and whatever else that contractor takes on.
Because the state licenses the contractor, that license is what stands behind this job. Alongside it, Alamance County will want a permit for the installation, with an inspection once the work is done, the same as most cities and counties in North Carolina.
Sources: North Carolina General Assembly · North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors
- What size air conditioner does my house need?
- It depends on your square footage, your ceiling height, how much shade your house gets, and how well it holds cold air, so there's no single number that fits every home. A contractor works this out with a load calculation, not a rule of thumb based on the size of your old unit. Getting this right matters here especially, since summer afternoons in Burlington average 87°F and an oversized or undersized system will struggle through those months.
- Should I replace the whole system or just the outdoor unit?
- If your indoor coil and outdoor unit were matched when installed, replacing only the outdoor unit can throw that match off and hurt efficiency, and in some cases the parts won't work together at all. Age matters too. If the indoor coil is old, replacing just the condenser now often means replacing the coil again soon after. A contractor can look at both parts and tell you whether a full system swap or a partial one makes sense for what you have.
- Do HVAC contractors in Burlington need a state license to work on my home?
- Yes. North Carolina requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license, issued through the State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors. That license covers the contractor, not the individual job, so it's worth asking to see it before work starts. An AC installation also typically needs a permit from the local building office and an inspection once the work is finished.