Mini Split Installation in Moses Lake, WA
A new system here will heat from October through May and cool from July through August every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Grant County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Moses Lake asks a mini-split to work most of the year
Winter nights here average 25°F from December through February, and a mini-split has to hold heat against that on its own. Summer afternoons average 85°F, so the same unit switches over and runs the other direction in July and August. Homes here need heat from October through May and cooling in July and August. That leaves a mini-split idle only a couple months a year.
A mini-split installed new has to clear the federal minimum for a split-system heat pump. That means 14.3 SEER2 for cooling and 7.5 HSPF2 for heating, whether it is replacing an old unit or going into a room that never had one.
- 8 months
- October through May, your system heats
- 2 months
- July through August, it cools
- 25°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 85°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
Washington requires contractors to register with the state.
Registration puts the contractor's business on file with the Department of Labor and Industries. There is no trade exam behind that number. It tells you the business is on record, not that the state tested their skill at installing a mini-split.
What backs up the work itself, in most cities and counties, is the permit. Replacing or installing equipment like this needs a permit from the local building office, and an inspection once the work is done. That inspection is what checks the installation, not the registration.
Source: Washington State Legislature
- Is a mini split worth it?
- For most homes here, yes, because a mini split heats and cools the same space with one system. Moses Lake needs heat from October through May and cooling in July and August, so a single unit that does both is working most of the year. It also runs on electricity, which is how 94.4% of homes here already heat, so there's no new fuel line or tank to add. A contractor can look at your house and tell you how many units your layout needs.
- How many rooms can a mini split cover?
- A single outdoor unit can run anywhere from one indoor head to eight, depending on the system. Each indoor head is sized for the room it's in, so a bedroom and a living room won't pull from the same head. The right count for your house depends on how many rooms need separate temperature control and how they're laid out, which is something a contractor sizes on a walkthrough, not something to guess at ahead of time.
- Can a mini split heat a whole house?
- It can, if it's sized and placed for the whole house rather than added room by room. A multi-zone system with enough indoor heads can cover every room, and since Moses Lake winter nights average 25°F, the unit installed has to be rated to keep up with that. That's a heating load calculation a contractor runs on your specific house, room sizes, windows, and all, before recommending how many heads and what size outdoor unit you need.