Mini Split Installation in Bakersfield, CA
A new system here will heat from November through April and cool from May through September every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Kern County will get in touch.
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Kern County runs mini-splits almost year round
Eleven months out of the year, a mini-split in Bakersfield is either heating or cooling. Winter nights average 37°F from December through February. Summer afternoons average 93°F from May through September. The system gets almost no break between the two.
A new unit installed here has to meet the federal minimum for a split-system heat pump. That means 14.3 SEER2 for cooling and 7.5 HSPF2 for heating. That's the floor, not a feature, and it holds whether the mini-split is replacing an old one or going into a room that never had one.
- 6 months
- November through April, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 37°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 93°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
California requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The Contractors State License Board tests HVAC contractors and keeps a record of that license. It covers the contractor's business, not this one mini-split, so it stands behind the person coming to your house rather than the job itself.
A mini-split still counts as new equipment going into your home, and in most cities and counties that means a permit from the local building office before the work starts and an inspection once it is done. That check is separate from the state license, and it is what has someone look at this particular installation rather than the contractor in general.
Sources: California Legislative Counsel · Contractors State License Board
- Is a mini split worth it?
- For most homes here, yes. Bakersfield needs cooling from May through September and heat from November through April, so a system is running most of the year, and a mini split handles both with one piece of equipment. It also gives you a way to heat or cool a single room, like a converted garage or an add-on bedroom, without extending ductwork into it. Whether it makes sense for your house depends on what you're heating and cooling now, so a contractor should walk through your specific rooms before you decide.
- How many rooms can a mini split cover?
- It depends on the system. One outdoor unit can run several indoor heads, and each head is sized for the room it serves, so covering more rooms means adding more heads and sizing the outdoor unit to run all of them at once. A contractor will size the system room by room rather than guess at a number that fits every house.
- Can a mini split heat a whole house?
- It can, if it's set up with enough indoor heads to reach every room. A house with a few closed-off spaces or a large open layout may only need one or two heads. A house with many separate rooms needs a head in each one to actually heat that room. Winter lows here average 37°F, so the system also needs to be sized for that cold, not just for a mild day, and a contractor should calculate the heating load for the whole house before settling on how many heads it takes.