HVAC Service in The Highlands, Louisville

Heating and cooling for early-1900s homes along the Bardstown Road and Cherokee Park corridors.

The Highlands is one of the tougher parts of Louisville to condition well, and it is mostly a matter of age. The housing along and behind Bardstown Road is largely early twentieth century — shotgun houses, bungalows, and larger homes near Cherokee Park — built long before central air existed and retrofitted for it later, if at all.

That history produces a recognizable set of problems: ductwork threaded through closets and soffits, one central return doing the work of several, second floors that run far warmer than the first, and third-floor or attic conversions with no duct service at all. Solving them usually means working with the constraints of the building rather than assuming a conventional system can be forced in.

Where ductless earns its place

In a house with no realistic path for new ductwork, a mini-split is often the only way to condition a converted attic, an enclosed porch, or a rear addition without tearing into finished plaster. Each head has its own thermostat, which also addresses the classic Highlands problem of an upstairs bedroom that is unusable in August. It is a targeted fix rather than a whole-house replacement, which suits homes where the existing system is otherwise fine.

Storefronts and upstairs apartments share buildings

Along Bardstown Road it is common for one building to hold retail or a restaurant at street level and apartments above, often on separate systems installed at different times. Sorting out which equipment serves which space, and where thermostats and returns actually are, tends to come before any mechanical work. Restaurant spaces add exhaust and makeup air to the picture, which changes how the rest of the building behaves.

Buildings we work on in The Highlands

  • Shotgun houses and camelbacks on the side streets
  • Craftsman bungalows with finished attic space
  • Larger pre-war homes near Cherokee Park and Cherokee Road
  • Converted duplexes and upstairs apartments
  • Storefronts and restaurant spaces along Bardstown Road

Rolston Heating & Cooling · Louisville, KY · (502) 909-8923 · Mon–Fri 7:00 AM – 5:00 PM