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My home has an old electric, central furnace. All of my neighbors are on natural gas. I pay 5-6 times as much as they do on my heating bills during winter months.

I can either convert my home to natural gas or install an electric heat pump. Air conditioning is not at all important where I live, so considered an insignificant part of the math.

Current rates are:

  • $0.34 per therm, for natural gas
  • $0.14 per kilowatt hour for electricity

As my electric bills are so high, I need to buy the most efficient equipment possible. Upfront costs will be $8-10k regardless of whether I put in a gas or electric furnace.

Based on current rates, what equipment specs and math are needed to estimate the monthly cost of a natural gas furnace vs an electric heat pump?

Update:

Climate average lows in winter: Oct: 29°F Nov: 18°F Dec: 11°F Jan: 11°F Feb: 16°F Mar: 20°F Apr: 24°F May: 33°F

I learned my state offers mail in rebates of $200-375 for installing gas furnaces and a $2000 tax credit for electric heat pumps. Is that indicative of lower costs?

Village
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1 Answers1

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Heat pumps usually supply air conditioning too so they would be part of the equation. The fact that your neighbors all have converted to a gas furnace should tell you something, maybe that gas is the way to go. your neighbors are a reliable source of information, much more than trying to do the math on a bunch of assumed variables. You didn't state where you live and that's important. If you're in a very cold area, heat pumps might not provide all the heat you need where as a furnace would. Heat pimps usually have a shorter life span because they are used year round where a separate AC and furnace split the seasons. As far as equipment specs, you'd have to get them from different manufacturers and they will differ greatly. you'd also need to know the R value of your insulation. Check around and see what the local vendors in your area are recommending. If you get the specs and know your R value you'll need multi-variable calculus and differential equations to answer your question.. (just kidding)

I spend a lot of time in Chicago,Il and Miami,Fl. There are gas furnaces in Chicago and heat pumps in Miami. Older units in Florida are electric strip heaters and their cost to operate is through the roof. Luckily, we don't need them much.

JACK
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