AC repair and heating in Woodland Hills
Cooling, gas heat, heat pumps, ductless mini splits and duct systems for Woodland Hills houses, condos and Warner Center apartments. We track down the fault, explain it without jargon and agree on the cost before any work begins.
Air Cove HVAC Woodland Hills
Cooling for the neighborhood that holds the county heat record
The weather station for this end of the Valley stands at Pierce College, inside Woodland Hills. Its 1991 to 2020 normals put the average August high at 97.4 degrees, and on September 6, 2020 it logged 121, the hottest reading ever taken in Los Angeles County. Winter runs the other way, with December nights averaging 42 degrees, so the furnace earns its keep as well.
Two kinds of home make up much of the neighborhood. In ZIP 91364 about half the homes went up between 1950 and 1969, and three in four are heated with gas. In 91367, which takes in Warner Center, 41 percent of homes sit in buildings of 50 units or more, and many of them heat with electricity. A ranch house with an attic and a unit in a large apartment building call for different equipment, so every visit starts with what is actually installed.
We cover all of Woodland Hills and neighboring Canoga Park, and we answer every day, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Heating, cooling and duct services
Areas we cover
Days a week, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Services
Heating and cooling services for Woodland Hills
AC repair, AC installation, furnace repair and heat pumps have Woodland Hills pages of their own; the other cards lead to Air Cove's full service pages.
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AC RepairWarm air on an August afternoon, a humming condenser or a breaker that trips.
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AC Installation & ReplacementA replacement matched to the house, with the LADBS permit and the energy tests.
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AC Tune-Up & HVAC MaintenanceA coil cleaning and parts check in spring, ahead of the long hot months.
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Furnace & Heater RepairGas furnaces that short cycle, smell odd or refuse to light on a cold night.
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Furnace Installation & ReplacementA new gas furnace, or a switch to a heat pump when the old one retires.
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Heat Pump Installation & RepairOne system for scorching summers and chilly winter nights, running on LADWP power.
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Ductless Mini SplitsCooling for a converted garage, an addition or an apartment without ducts.
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Air Duct CleaningDust, pet hair and remodel debris cleared from supply and return runs.
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Duct Repair & SealingTorn or disconnected attic ducts sealed so the cool air reaches the rooms.
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Dryer Vent CleaningLint pulled from the vent line so loads dry in one cycle again.
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Swamp Cooler RepairEvaporative coolers with dry pads, a stuck float or a pump that quit.
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Thermostat InstallationA new thermostat wired and set up for the equipment in your home.
Start with the symptom
What is your system doing?
Tell us what you notice and we trace it back to the part behind it.
The condenser runs but the house keeps warming
A clogged outdoor coil, a failed capacitor or a slow refrigerant leak shows up fastest when it is close to 100 outside. Plenty of these end in a repair, not a replacement.
The furnace clicks but never lights
In an older gas furnace the igniter, the flame sensor or a pressure switch is often to blame. We test each part before anything is swapped.
An apartment or condo that runs warm
Where a unit has no ducts, or the old system cannot keep pace, a mini split can cool the rooms that need it. We confirm with you what the building allows for the outdoor unit.
Time for a new system
We size the replacement to the home, file the LADBS permit and book the HERS rater, who checks both the ducts and the refrigerant charge in this climate zone.
Replacing a system in Woodland Hills
The permit and the tests on a Woodland Hills changeout
Woodland Hills is part of the City of Los Angeles, so a replacement goes through the city's building department and the state energy code.
An LADBS permit
Heating and cooling permits here are issued by the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety. Most like-for-like swaps qualify for an Express Permit, and we take care of pulling it.
Two checks in climate zone 9
Woodland Hills ZIP codes fall in the state's climate zone 9. After a changeout, a HERS rater measures duct leakage and also verifies the refrigerant charge, a step the coastal zones do not require.
The Calabasas and Hidden Hills line
To the west the neighborhood meets Calabasas and Hidden Hills, which are separate cities. A home across that line is permitted outside LADBS, by the office that covers that city.
A rebate to check first
Power here comes from LADWP and gas from SoCalGas. LADWP's Consumer Rebate Program includes heat pump systems and is claimed after the install, so read its current terms before you buy.
Cost
What sets the price in Woodland Hills
A ranch house and a Warner Center apartment call for very different work.
Ranch house or apartment
A detached house usually offers an attic or a side yard for equipment. An apartment brings building rules, tight space and sometimes electric heat in place of gas.
Capacity for the heat
With August afternoons averaging 97 degrees, the system has to be sized to the house, its windows and its insulation, not the floor area alone.
The state of the ducts
Sound ducts can stay. Leaky or crushed runs have to be fixed to pass the leakage test, and that adds labor.
Panel and fuel
Moving from a gas furnace to a heat pump can call for a bigger circuit or panel. We look at the panel before we quote.
How it works
From first call to a working system
Tell us what it is doing
Phone or use the form with the symptom and your cross streets. We answer every day, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
We check the whole setup
Thermostat, furnace or air handler, condenser and ducts, so the cause is proven rather than assumed.
You get the diagnosis and a price
Explained plainly, with the options side by side and the cost settled before work begins.
We test it and leave it tidy
The system runs through a full cycle before we go. Want to ask something first? Send us the details, and someone phones you back.
Where we work
Woodland Hills, Canoga Park and beyond
All of Woodland Hills, Canoga Park to the north, and the other areas Air Cove HVAC covers.
Questions
Woodland Hills questions
Does replacing an AC in Woodland Hills need a permit?
Yes. Woodland Hills is in the City of Los Angeles, so a new air conditioner or furnace needs an LADBS mechanical permit, and most straight swaps go through as an Express Permit. Because the area is in climate zone 9, a HERS rater then checks both duct leakage and refrigerant charge. Homes over the line in Calabasas or Hidden Hills are permitted outside LADBS, by the office that covers that city.
Why does my AC struggle on the hottest Woodland Hills afternoons?
Because it is running close to its limit. The Pierce College weather station averages 95 degrees in July and 97 in August, and the 2020 record reached 121. On days like that, a dusty outdoor coil, a low refrigerant charge or a system that was undersized from the start shows up as rooms that never cool down.
What is the most common AC problem?
Poor airflow is the most frequent one, usually from a clogged filter or a coil caked in dust, with worn capacitors and slow refrigerant leaks close behind. Fit a clean filter first. If that changes nothing, shut the system off and call, since handling refrigerant takes EPA certification.
What is the average cost for a new HVAC system?
There is no useful single figure, because the price follows the home. The size and heat load of the house, whether the ducts can be reused, a gas furnace versus a heat pump, the electrical panel and the LADBS permit with its tests all move it. We quote once we have seen the place, and our AC replacement cost guide breaks the factors down.
Do you also work in Canoga Park?
Yes. Canoga Park, on the northern side of Woodland Hills, is covered the same way. It is also part of the City of Los Angeles and climate zone 9, so the permit and the energy tests follow the same route.
Get in touch
Get your Woodland Hills system running right
Tell us what the system is doing. We find the cause, walk you through it and agree on the price before any work.
