If you want home AC installation in Studio City, the work starts at a sizing visit, not with a catalog. Studio AC Co. measures the house, runs a load calculation and gives you the full installed price in writing before anything is ordered. A full central air install has no fixed number, because the house sets it.
When you are ready to price it, ask for the written quote and a sizing visit. Phones are answered 24/7.
What sets the price of a full central air install
There is no flat rate for a new AC, and a number quoted without seeing the house is a guess. The price comes from these parts:
- Equipment size, from the room-by-room load calculation
- Whether the existing ducts can feed the new system or need work
- Where the outdoor unit sits and how long the line set runs
- Electrical, if the panel or the circuit has to change
- Zoning, if floors or wings run at different temperatures
- The permit and the city inspection, which we arrange
The quote lists each of these before you commit. The scope you sign is the scope we install. For the details on equipment and scope, see our AC installation service.
The sizing visit
We measure the rooms and check insulation and window exposure. We look at the ducts, the electrical panel and the spot where the outdoor unit can go. The old unit's label does not size the new one.
Size matters because an oversized unit short-cycles and an undersized one runs all afternoon. A hillside contemporary with a wall of west-facing glass can need far more cooling than a flat-street ranch of the same size. That is why the load calculation comes before any equipment is chosen.
Flat streets and hillside lots
South of Ventura Boulevard, installs are often flat-lot jobs with a side-yard pad and an attic or closet air handler. Tight side yards and attic air handlers on older streets can add a few hours to the day.
Up Laurel Canyon, the condenser may sit on a benched pad or a lower deck with a long vertical line set. Narrow canyon roads limit what a truck can bring up whole, so equipment sometimes arrives in sections. We walk the lot before we quote, so the delivery route and the pad are planned, not improvised on install day.
If the house has an HOA, the outdoor unit location is planned to meet it.
Ducts get tested with the install
A new condenser on leaky ducts loses much of what you paid for. California's energy code can require duct sealing and a leakage test on a change-out, depending on the scope, and a third-party rater verifies it. We test the ducts first, then seal, resize or replace runs as part of the same job. See ductwork services for what that covers.
Where ducts are tight or missing, a ductless system can serve the room instead. We lay out both routes on one estimate.
Install day, start to finish
The crew arrives at the agreed time and lays floor protection. Power and gas to the old system are shut off, the old equipment comes out and the new system goes in. We charge it, test airflow at the registers and check the thermostat.
Straight replacements run one full day. New ductwork or an electrical panel upgrade can turn it into two. Before we leave we walk you through the controls and the filter, haul away the old unit and confirm the inspection date.
New residential split systems are now built for lower-GWP A2L refrigerants, so the equipment on your quote is current-generation.
Comparing two quotes
Put the quotes side by side and check what each one lists. Does it name the equipment size and say how that size was reached? Does it include the ducts, the electrical, the permit and the inspection, or leave them for later? A lower number that skips the duct test or the permit is a smaller job, not a better price. Ours lists every piece, so the comparison is line by line. The sizing visit costs you a morning, and it is the step that turns a guess into a number you can hold us to.
When the AC is already failing
Repair is on the menu too. If the AC quit, call and we diagnose it, write up the fix and say plainly when a replacement is the better spend. Same-day service is available. If replacement is the answer, the sizing visit can happen at the same time.
Home AC installation questions
What does the written quote include?
Equipment, any duct work, electrical, the permit and the city inspection. You see it before anything is ordered.
Does a new AC need a permit in Studio City?
Yes. Replacing a central AC in Los Angeles is permitted work, issued by LADBS. We pull the permit, schedule the duct test and arrange the inspection.
How do I know what size I need?
The load calculation decides it, room by room. Square footage alone does not.
Can a hillside home get a new central system?
Yes, with more planning. We check pad location, line-set length and truck access before we quote.
Who handles the paperwork?
We do. The permit, the duct test and the inspection are on our list, not yours.
To book the sizing visit, call (877) 704-7652 and ask Studio AC Co. for a written home AC installation quote. Serving Studio City and nearby.
Need Professional HVAC Service?
Our HVAC-experienced technicians are ready to help with all your AC and heating needs. Contact Studio AC Co. today for expert service throughout the Laurel Canyon, Toluca Lake, Universal City, Sherman Oaks, and Encino service area.
