JIm Baber wrote:

HerHusband wrote:

Which is cheaper, Gas or Electric [heat]?

If you are in California and get electricity from an investor owned
utility it is a sure bet that natural gas cost will be lower by a lot.


I'm sure that varies by region, and by the availability of the fuel at the
time.

However, I prefer electric for a number of reasons, even if it isn't
necessarily the cheapest option.

1. Electricity can be generated in many different ways (hydroelectric, gas
fired plants, wind generators, coal generators, nuclear, fuel cells, etc.).
If one source runs low, there are other ways of generating electricity. So
it's fairly "future" proof. If you choose gas, you're basically stuck with
gas, even if supplies dwindle and get more expensive in the future.

True, but they will pass those higher costs right straight to you plus
any allowed profit margin.

2. Electric heat is 100% efficient. In other words, the heater I buy today
won't be "old technology" in a few years and need replacing. Of course, the
methods used to generate the electricity aren't 100% efficient, but those
improvements are made by the power company, not by me.

Again, they will pass those improvement costs right straight to you
plus any allowed profit margin.

3. Electric heat is safe (barring flammables too close to the heater). No
worries of gas leaks, carbon monoxide poisoning, or explosions.

What about short circuits. rotting insulation on old wiring, bad
equipment, and similar problems. All heat sources have some kind of
problems, usually worsening with age of heaters.

4. Electric heat is easy to zone.

Very true and I like the idea of reduced usage in areas not in use.

We installed individual electric wall heaters (King Electric Pic-A-Watt
heaters) in each room. This lets us heat only the rooms we are in, and
set the temperature lower in the bedrooms than other rooms. This also
means no ductwork to make noise, collect dust, spread allergens, etc...

The wall mounted electric's I had several years ago definitely would
collect dust and smell terrible when first turned on in fall.

Another benefit of individual zoned heaters is if one fails, you still
have heaters in other rooms to keep warm while you fix it.

Agreed, if the power is on, I suffered with one spring snow storm that
dumped 9 foot of snow on us in 30 hours. It took the power company 10
days to get our power back. I do admit at the time we lived in a home
in the Sierra Nevada mountains @ 6600 ft. But, there were 120 homes
in the immediate area, we had underground power in our tract, and it
was still out that long. Fortunately we had 2 wood stoves, and still
had an adequate wood supply. The use of Coleman lamps and hot wood
stove tops to cook on got us back to power. My drive was 300 ft.
long, and I stayed fairly warm for two days digging out to the street.

5. Electric heat doesn't pollute. Yes, some of the generating sources cause
pollution, but those are better monitored and regulated than home furnaces.

Just my 2 cents...
And my dime.

Anthony
Jim Baber in CA