Mini Split Installation in Kankakee, IL
A new system here will heat from October through May and cool from June through August every year. Tell us about the house, and a licensed contractor who covers Kankakee County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
What a mini-split has to handle in Kankakee County
Winter nights here average 20°F from December through February, and most homes still lean on gas for heat. A mini-split installed here needs to hold its own on those cold nights, not just take the edge off in fall and spring. Summer is shorter, with afternoons averaging 83°F from June through August, but the same unit has to cover both jobs since heat or cooling is needed 11 months of the year.
Any mini-split manufactured now has to clear federal minimums either way, 14.3 SEER2 for cooling and 7.5 HSPF2 for heating. Kankakee County has also seen 9 winter storms and 99 damaging wind events over the past ten years, and power outages of a day or more aren't rare in Illinois. Worth asking how the new system holds up when the power drops and the temperature outside doesn't.
- 8 months
- October through May, your system heats
- 3 months
- June through August, it cools
- 20°F
- the average winter night it heats against
- 83°F
- the average summer afternoon it cools against
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
In Illinois, HVAC licensing for homes is left to the cities and towns.
Illinois does not test or license HVAC contractors at the state level. Whether this contractor needs to hold anything comes down to the city or county the house is in, since that rule is set locally rather than by the state.
For a mini-split installation, the protection here comes from the local building office. In most cities and counties, putting in a new mini-split needs a permit, and the work gets inspected once it is done. That inspection is what checks the unit was installed and connected the way it should be.
Source: Illinois General Assembly
- Is a mini split worth it?
- For the right space, yes. A mini split heats and cools without ducts, so it works well for a room addition, a garage, or a house that relies on window units and space heaters now. Winters here run cold, down to 20°F on average on a January night, so ask about the unit's low-temperature performance before you decide, since not every heat pump holds its output at that temperature. A contractor can tell you whether one matches what your space needs.
- How many rooms can a mini split cover?
- A single outdoor unit can run one indoor head or several, up to eight on many multi-zone systems. Each indoor head is sized for the room it serves, so a one-room install uses a single-zone system and a whole-floor install uses a multi-zone one. The right number depends on the size and layout of the rooms, which is something a contractor works out room by room.
- Can a mini split heat a whole house?
- It can, if it is sized and placed for that. A multi-zone system with a head in each main room can carry the whole heating load, and homes here need heat from October through May, so the system has to be sized for that stretch, not just for mild days. Whether it works as your only heat source depends on the house, the number of zones, and how well the unit performs at low temperatures, so have a contractor look at the whole house before deciding.