Do I Need Title 24 for an HVAC Replacement?

02Start with the system change, not the equipment nickname

A furnace replacement, air-conditioner changeout, heat-pump conversion and a new duct system are not identical energy scopes. “New HVAC” leaves important questions unanswered: which components remain, which spaces they serve and what distribution or controls change. The answer to whether documents are needed comes from that actual work, not from the equipment being sold as efficient.

For an existing single-family home, applicable alteration requirements can be documented through focused compliance records. A full-house performance model is not automatically necessary for every equipment change. Conversely, a small equipment-only job can still need applicable certificates, installation records and required verification. Ask the AHJ and preparer which task fits before ordering a general report.

The contractor’s equipment proposal and the energy record serve different purposes. Neither an installation contract nor a product efficiency label replaces required compliance documents. Identify who provides the system design, prepares applicable forms, certifies installation and arranges any required qualified verification.

03An HVAC application-date and scope checklist

Assemble a short system record so the responsible participants can identify the applicable pathway.

• +Permit basis: address, reviewing agency and AHJ-recorded building/mechanical permit application date. Include prior permit references and any direction about the applicable Energy Code edition.
• +Equipment scope: existing and proposed heating/cooling types, fuel, supported make/model and efficiency information. State whether this is replacement, added cooling, relocation or a changed system configuration.
• +Distribution: identify retained, replaced, added or extended ducts, equipment locations and the rooms served. Do not assume new equipment means no change to the distribution scope.
• +Related work: identify an addition, ADU, window/insulation changes or other alterations occurring under the same application. Separate existing-home work from the new-space boundary.
• +Handoff: name the responsible designer/installer, identify open selections and ask which design, installation and required verification records will accompany the work.

What to send for an energy review

04Heat pump versus like-for-like: do not assume either answer

A heat pump supplies heating and cooling through a different equipment configuration from some existing systems. It can raise design and documentation questions about the served areas, distribution, equipment ratings and other systems. The product name alone does not prove that the selected installation satisfies every applicable requirement.

A like-for-like proposal also needs scope review. Retaining the same broad equipment type does not establish a blanket exemption for efficiency, controls, ducts or documentation. Compare supported proposed information with the actual applicable alteration requirements, not only with the old unit’s label.

The responsible mechanical designer/contractor handles system selection and design. Energy-document preparation is not a substitute for load calculations, electrical design or installation work outside its agreed scope. Do not buy a system based on an assumed future modeling tradeoff or a website’s generic yes/no answer.

CEC HVAC requirements chapterExisting HVAC changeout guide

05Statewide requirements and local altered-cooling overlays

Some existing city guides describe CEC-approved altered-cooling local provisions. Those summaries distinguish the statewide Energy Code from an additional local layer; they do not establish a universal California heat-pump mandate for every replacement. The linked reach-code guide explains the already-sourced heat-pump and air-conditioner-with-additional-measures framing.

If the property is in Palo Alto, Mountain View, Menlo Park or Moreno Valley, use its existing guide as a preparation aid and confirm current applicability with the city. A CEC approval date is not automatically the ordinance’s local effective date or the controlling date for this permit. Confirm the actual application and altered-system scope rather than assuming all equipment changes are covered.

This page adds no new ordinance summaries, thresholds or parcel climate-zone claims. Local questions should be resolved with the reviewing authority before a final equipment choice is represented in compliance documents. Keep that direction with the project record.

Altered-cooling reach-code guidePalo Alto service-area guidanceMountain View guidanceMenlo Park guidanceMoreno Valley guidance

06Which forms—and which participant—are you actually missing?

Where the single-family family applies, CF1R records design compliance. The current CEC catalog includes CF1R-ALT-02-E for prescriptive alterations to space-conditioning systems. Its presence in the catalog is not a claim that one blank PDF fits every job. Select the actual pathway and follow its registration instructions.

Installers complete applicable CF2R; qualified ECC-Raters complete required CF3R verification. ECC, Energy Code Compliance, is current terminology. HERS may still appear in older-cycle documents. Where field verification and diagnostic testing apply, registered documents and the appropriate provider process are required; report preparation does not perform the testing or operate a registry.

Multifamily and commercial systems can use different document families. A residential address or a contractor calling the unit “residential equipment” does not settle building classification. State the building and system scope before choosing a single-family certificate.

CEC current single-family formsCF1R preparation and handoffs

07Worked decision: replacement equipment plus changed ducts

ILLUSTRATIVE ONLY: a homeowner requests a cooling replacement described as like-for-like. The proposal later includes changed ductwork and equipment serving a remodeled room. The applicant sends the old and proposed system information, distribution scope and application record rather than ordering a generic whole-house model.

The responsible team identifies applicable altered-component documents and required verification, checks any relevant local layer and coordinates the selected equipment with the permit package. No test result, exemption or passing margin is invented. If the design changes again, the applicable forms are reviewed before installer or verifier records rely on obsolete information.

08Confirm the edition before reusing an old system certificate

The 2025 California Energy Code applies to permit applications on or after January 1, 2026. Ask the AHJ to confirm the recorded date and any treatment of amendments or new applications. Equipment order, breakdown and installation dates do not substitute for that record. Older certificates retain their code-cycle context.

If a reviewer has already issued comments, send the full comment list and actual reviewed set. If the job is urgent, identify the missing decision and participants without assuming an emergency creates an exemption or guaranteed service window. The published pricing/intake process can establish report scope; it does not control contractor availability, verification scheduling or permit approval.

Plan-check supportAdditions/remodel documentation

09Six HVAC decisions

10Choose the next documentation step

Use the published residential/commercial square-footage menu to understand report pricing, then send a scoped request rather than assuming a full model is necessary. Field testing, acceptance testing, registry fees, CALGreen and AHJ permit fees are separate. Intake is not payment, production acceptance or permit approval. This is educational information, not legal advice; confirm the applicable requirements and documentation with the authority having jurisdiction (AHJ).

Start with the Title 24 decision hubDo I need Title 24 for remodel?Do I need Title 24 for water heater?Do I need Title 24 for kitchen bath?Confirm the application’s code editionWhat to send for an energy reviewCF1R versus installation/verification recordsSee published PricingGet a Quote / upload plans