Overhead view of a gray outdoor AC condenser unit on a concrete pad beside a mulched garden bed and a house with vinyl siding.

AC Installation in Centralia, WA

Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Lewis County will get in touch.

Tell us about the job

It takes about a minute.

Step 1 of 3: Equipment

What kind of equipment?*

An outdoor air conditioning condenser unit installed beside the exterior wall of a blue vinyl-sided house at sunset.

Centralia summers barely ask anything of an air conditioner

Summer afternoons here average 72°F. That is mild enough that a lot of homes get by without cooling at all, and the ones that do install it are not asking it to fight real heat.

Any new central air conditioner installed now still has to meet the federal minimum of 13.4 SEER2. In a place this mild, that unit will spend most of its life running well under what it is rated for.

72°F: the average summer afternoon it cools against
13.4 SEER2: the federal minimum any new unit must meet

Isometric cutaway illustration of a house showing interior ductwork, an air handler, and an outdoor condenser unit connected by lines, with simple furniture in the rooms.

Your air conditioner works hardest from July through August.

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NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals

Aerial view of a square outdoor air conditioning condenser unit on a concrete pad beside a house wall with a sliding glass door.

Going above the federal minimum saves little here, about $0 a year.

A new unit at the federal minimum, 13.4 SEER2$50 a year
A higher-efficiency unit$50 a year

Estimates for a typical Lewis County home, from EIA household energy data, Washington fuel prices and NOAA climate normals. Your home will differ.

Washington requires contractors to register with the state.

That registration puts the business on file with the Department of Labor and Industries. It is not a trade exam and not a license. Nobody at the state tested this contractor's work before handing them that record.

For an air conditioner installation, the check that matters happens closer to home. In most cities and counties here, putting in a new air conditioner needs a permit from the local building office, and an inspector looks at the work once it is done.

Source: Washington State Legislature

What size air conditioner does my house need?: The right size comes from a load calculation, not the square footage of your house alone. A contractor looks at your windows, insulation, ceiling height, and how much sun the house gets before settling on a size. An oversized unit cools the air fast but shuts off before it pulls the moisture out, so the house feels damp. With summer afternoons here running around 72°F, cooling needs in Centralia are light, and an undersized unit is rarely the issue people run into.
Should I replace the whole system or just the outdoor unit?: If your indoor coil and outdoor unit were matched when installed, replacing just the outdoor unit can throw that match off and hurt both efficiency and how well the system removes humidity. Age matters too. An old indoor coil paired with a new outdoor unit often fails sooner than either would on its own. A contractor can check whether your coil and any ductwork are in shape to pair with new equipment, or whether replacing the whole system makes more sense.
Do HVAC contractors in Centralia need a state license to work on my home?: Washington requires contractors to register with the Department of Labor and Industries, but this is a business registration, not a trade license or exam. Ask to see the registration before work starts. Separately, installing a new air conditioner in most cities and counties requires a permit from the local building office and an inspection once the work is done, so check that the job is pulled through the proper permit as well.

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