HVAC Installation in Athens, GA
A new system here will heat from November through March and cool from May through September every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Clarke County will get in touch.
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Athens asks for both heat and cooling, most of the year
A new system in Clarke County has ten months of work ahead of it. Heat runs November through March, on nights that average 35°F. Cooling runs May through September, on afternoons that average 88°F. Only two months sit idle.
Most homes here heat with electricity, so the furnace or heat pump answering those cold nights is carrying real load, not backup duty. Wind is the storm risk that matters most in this county, with 48 damaging wind events recorded over the past ten years, and close to a third of Georgia households lost power for at least a day in 2024. A system that comes back on by itself when the power returns is worth asking about.
- 5 months
- November through March, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 35°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 88°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Georgia requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The State Construction Industry Licensing Board tests and records the contractor before they can hold that license, and it covers them as a contractor, not the individual job at your house. A license number tells you the person doing the work has met the state's standard, but it is the contractor who carries that standing, not a stamp on this particular installation.
For a heating and cooling system installation, the license is what stands behind the contractor's qualification, and the permit is what stands behind this job. 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 finished work gets an inspection before it is signed off. That inspection is where the gas connections, the wiring and the refrigerant work on this specific system get checked, separate from whatever the state license already vouches for in the contractor.
Source: Georgia Secretary of State
- When should I replace my HVAC system?
- Look at age and how often it breaks down first. Once a furnace or air conditioner starts needing repairs more often, and each one costs more than the last, that's usually the point where replacing it makes more sense than fixing it again. Homes here run the furnace November through March and the air conditioner May through September, so the system rarely gets a real break, and that adds up over the years. A contractor can look at the specific unit and tell you whether it's worth repairing again or replacing.
- Should I replace my furnace and air conditioner at the same time?
- If they're close in age, yes, and here's why. A furnace and air conditioner installed together are matched to work as one system, and pairing an old unit with a new one can mean the new one never runs at its rated efficiency. Furnaces and air conditioners here go through the same 10 months of heating and cooling every year, so they tend to wear out around the same time anyway. If one just failed and the other is still holding up, a contractor can tell you whether it's worth waiting on the second one.
- What happens during an HVAC installation?
- A contractor removes the old equipment, sets the new furnace and air conditioner or heat pump in place, and connects it to your ductwork, electrical, and in the case of a furnace, gas line. They check the refrigerant charge, test the system through a full heating and cooling cycle, and make sure airflow at the vents is right for the size of your home. In most cities and counties here, this work needs a permit from the local building office and an inspection once it's done. A contractor pulls that permit and schedules the inspection as part of the job.