AC Installation in Morgantown, WV
A new air conditioner in Morgantown will run from June through August every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Monongalia County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Three months of real heat, then it stops
Cooling season in Morgantown runs June through August. Summer afternoons average 82°F, which is warm enough to run an air conditioner hard but not the kind of heat that pushes a system to its limit day after day.
The bigger question is what the unit sits through the rest of the year. Monongalia County has logged 114 damaging wind events and 31 hail events over the past ten years, with hail up to 2 inches. A new outdoor unit needs to be installed where it can hold up to that, not just sized to cool the house.
Any new central air conditioner installed now has to meet 13.4 SEER2, the federal minimum that took effect in 2023. That is the floor, not a special upgrade, so it is worth asking what a unit actually delivers above that number.
- 3 months
- June through August, your air conditioner is on duty
- 82°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
- 31 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 Monongalia County home, from EIA household energy data, West Virginia fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.
West Virginia requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
The license is issued to the contractor, not for this particular job. West Virginia's Commissioner of Labor tested that contractor and keeps a record of them before they're allowed to take on work like yours.
For an air conditioner installation, that license is what stands behind the person in your home, but it's not the only check on the work. Most cities and counties in West Virginia also require a permit from the local building office for this kind of job, along with an inspection once it's finished.
Source: West Virginia Legislature
- What size air conditioner does my house need?
- The right size depends on your square footage, your ceiling height, how much shade your house gets, how well it's insulated, and how many windows it has facing the sun. There's no shortcut number that works for every house. A contractor sizes your system with a load calculation that weighs all of that together, and it's worth insisting on rather than going with whatever size the old unit happened to be. An oversized unit cools the air fast but shuts off before it pulls the moisture out, so the house feels clammy. An undersized one runs constantly and still can't keep up on the hottest afternoons.
- Should I replace the whole system or just the outdoor unit?
- In most cases you're better off replacing both the outdoor unit and the indoor coil together. The two are matched to work at a specific efficiency and capacity, and pairing a new outdoor unit with an old coil often means you lose the efficiency gain you're paying for, sometimes voids the manufacturer's warranty, and can cause problems if the refrigerant types don't match. A contractor can look at the age and condition of your indoor coil and tell you whether it's a reasonable match for new equipment or whether it's due to fail soon anyway.
- Do HVAC contractors in Morgantown need a state license to work on my home?
- Yes. West Virginia requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license through the Commissioner of Labor. That license covers the contractor, not each individual job. On top of that, installing a new air conditioner generally needs a permit from the local building office, with an inspection once the work is finished. Ask to see the contractor's license number and confirm the permit is pulled before the work starts.