If you're shopping for a new furnace to heat your home, you may be tempted by the cleanness, safety and ease of installation of an electric model. But there's a reason why gas is more popular, particularly for homes in cold winter areas.
Efficiency and Lifespan
Of all the kinds of furnaces available---oil, gas and electric---the most efficient are powered by gas, at more than 95 percent efficiency. Electric furnaces come nowhere close to this. Electric furnaces do have the edge in terms of lifespan. While gas furnaces typically need replacing after 15 years, electric furnaces will last for 20 to 30 years.
Installation and Running Costs
You will pay more for an electric furnace than for a gas furnace. In terms of ongoing costs, too, gas is significantly cheaper than electricity for heating the air in a furnace, and is likely to remain so for the foreseeable future. When it comes to installation, neither is complicated, but electricity wins: It is essentially plug and play, whereas gas furnaces require venting to the outside of the house.
Safety
Under normal conditions, electric furnaces are extremely safe---as safe as any other electric appliance. They don't produce noxious fumes because they don't require the combustion of fuel. A gas furnace, on the other hand, does come with a low risk---minimal provided you maintain it properly, but a risk nevertheless---of carbon monoxide poisoning or explosion.
Maintenance
It is vital that you have your gas furnace checked by a qualified professional at least once a year. Maintenance is critical because of the risk that carbon monoxide may escape through cracks or holes into the surrounding air. Electric furnaces require less attention, and if they don't get it, the issue is one of efficiency rather than safety.
Noise
A good deal of noise associated with furnaces is produced by the fan that moves the warm air through the ducts. A well-maintained gas furnace will not be obtrusively noisy. However, because they involve no combustion, electric furnaces are silent.
Making a Decision
Gas is much more efficient than electricity, and as a result gas furnaces are much cheaper to run. The only reason to choose an electric furnace is if you have no other choice, if you live in a warm winter area where you will seldom have to run it, or if you are installing it in a second home that you seldom occupy in winter. Electricity can, though, be an efficient way to heat targeted spaces in order to avoid having to heat the whole house or an entire heating zone, but for this you could use some kind of space heater.
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