Air quality is a constant issue on our minds, and nowadays, so is home affordability. Eliminating natural gas combustion from our homes and buildings is an important part of the puzzle to both reduce local air emissions and save homeowners money. However, most Utahns don’t know what all-electric technologies are, or that they are affordable and available today.
What is All-Electric and Why is it Better?
It comes down to how you cool and heat your house, heat your water, and cook your food. Electric homes opt for efficient electric heat pumps instead of gas-powered appliances like a furnace or gas water heater. They also use electric stoves instead of their natural gas counterparts. These simple changes are all it takes to become “all-electric” at home.
The Affordability Factor
Utah’s affordable housing crisis coupled with global energy stressors from the Russia-Ukraine conflict have accentuated the need to reduce energy costs, and to limit our dependence on fossil fuels. But can it be done, and is it affordable? New reports show that making the switch to all-electric technologies are a win for our wallets and health.
A recent study from E3, “The Economics of All-Electric New Construction in Utah” compared homes built with appliances that only use electricity to homes built using both electricity and natural gas. The study found that efficient all-electric housing is more affordable over a 15-year lifecycle, and that Utahns can build and operate an all-electric home more affordably than a home using natural gas appliances.
“Affordability is more than just what you pay for rent or a mortgage. High energy bills burden many Utah families. All-electric housing is an investment in affordable housing because all-electric homes can have lower utility bills,” states Thomas Kessinger, the electrification specialist for Utah Clean Energy.
Another new study by the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project found that homes in our region built with highly efficient electric heat pumps will reduce their annual heating cost by 30%, compared with gas while reducing climate emissions by 60%.
“For new homes across the Southwest, building with heat pumps rather than gas appliances is by far the best economic choice,” said Elise Jones, Executive Director of SWEEP. “Heat pumps lock in more affordable utility bills while eliminating a major source of climate and air pollution. It’s a win-win.”
Make the Switch
Electrifying our homes is the best option for our pocketbooks, and our health. We hope that these studies will inspire Utah’s community to make the switch to all-electric homes, benefiting our entire community.
Here are 5 simple steps to go electric!
We would like to clarify that Utah Clean Energy is not a solar company. We are a nonprofit organization that advocates for solar and other clean energy technologies, but we do not install or sell solar in any way.