Mini Split Installation in Hobbs, NM
A new system here will heat from November through April and cool from May through September every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Lea County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
What a mini-split in Hobbs has to handle
Homes here need heat or cooling 11 months a year, heat from November through April and cooling from May through September. Winter nights average 28°F, summer afternoons average 94°F, so the same unit has to hold heat on cold nights and pull it back out on hot afternoons with barely a break between.
A new system has to be sized and installed to cover both jobs, not just one. Any mini-split manufactured now has to meet 14.3 SEER2 for cooling and 7.5 HSPF2 for heating, the same federal minimum that applies to any other split-system heat pump.
- 6 months
- November through April, your system heats
- 5 months
- May through September, it cools
- 28°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 94°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
New Mexico requires HVAC contractors to hold a state license.
New Mexico licenses HVAC contractors through the Construction Industries Division, and that license belongs to the contractor, not to any single job. It covers this mini-split installation the same way it covers any other HVAC work that contractor takes on.
Most cities and counties in New Mexico require a permit for this kind of installation, along with an inspection once the work is finished. That inspection is separate from the state license itself, and it is handled by the local building office rather than the Construction Industries Division.
Source: New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department
- Is a mini split worth it?
- For most homes here, yes, especially where a room or two never gets right with the main system. Hobbs winters drop to 28°F on average and summers push past 94°F, so a mini split needs to handle real heating and real cooling, not just take the edge off. Because it's a heat pump, it does both from one outdoor unit, and units sold new have to meet 14.3 SEER2 and 7.5 HSPF2 minimums. Where it makes less sense is a home already heated and cooled evenly through ducts with no problem spots.
- How many rooms can a mini split cover?
- A single outdoor unit can run one indoor head or several, depending on how it's set up. A single-zone system covers one room or open area well. A multi-zone system ties several indoor heads to one outdoor unit, and each head runs on its own, so one room can heat while another cools or shuts off. How many rooms a given house can cover comes down to the size of the outdoor unit and the layout of the home, and a contractor works that out room by room.
- Can a mini split heat a whole house?
- It can, if enough zones are installed to reach every room, but that takes real planning. A mini split heats by pulling heat from outside air, and it keeps working in Hobbs winters where nights average 28°F, so the cold isn't the obstacle. The obstacle is coverage. A single indoor head only heats the space it's in, so a whole house needs a head sized and placed for each room or open area, and a contractor sizing the job will look at the layout before saying how many that takes.