Heat Pump Installation in Los Angeles, CA
A new system here will heat from November through April and cool from June through September every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Los Angeles County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
A heat pump here runs most of the year, in both directions
Winter nights average 41°F from December through February, and summer afternoons run about 87°F. Homes here need heat November through April, six months, then cooling June through September, four more. That's 10 months of the year your heat pump is doing one job or the other.
A split-system heat pump installed new has to meet a federal minimum of 14.3 SEER2 for cooling and 7.5 HSPF2 for heating. With this much of the year riding on both sides of the system, that minimum is the floor to plan from, not the target.
- 6 months
- November through April, your system heats
- 4 months
- June through September, it cools
- 41°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 87°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
California requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The license is issued to the contractor, not to this particular job. California tested that contractor and keeps a record of the license, but no state inspector signs off on this install itself.
That check comes from the local building office. In most cities and counties here, installing a heat pump needs a permit, and an inspection once the work is done. That inspection is what looks at this job in particular, the wiring and the connections, separate from whatever the contractor's license already covers.
Sources: California Legislative Counsel · Contractors State License Board
- Is a heat pump better than a furnace?
- A heat pump does both jobs, heating and cooling, where a furnace only heats. Your winters here average 41°F at night, which is mild enough that a heat pump can carry the heating load without much strain. A furnace burns gas and handles heating only, then sits unused while a separate AC does the cooling in summer. If you already have a working furnace and AC, replacing both with one heat pump is a bigger decision, and a contractor can look at your ductwork and your home to tell you what fits.
- What's the difference between a heat pump and an air conditioner?
- An air conditioner only moves heat out of your house. A heat pump has a reversing valve that lets it also move heat into your house, so it cools in summer and heats in winter. Mechanically they're close cousins, same compressor, same refrigerant lines, but the heat pump can run backward and the AC can't.
- Does a heat pump work in cold weather?
- Yes, and here it barely gets tested. Heat pumps pull heat from outside air even when that air feels cold, and they lose efficiency as the temperature drops, but winter nights here only average 41°F. That's well within the range where a heat pump keeps up without help from backup heat strips. In places that see real cold, well below freezing for stretches, a heat pump has to work harder, but that's not the climate you're heating in.