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Propane vs Electric Furnace
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Beef State Ben
Posted 1/27/2015 21:03 (#4343452)
Subject: Propane vs Electric Furnace


NW of Lincoln, NE

It's been asked before, but times have changed…

We're building a new house and are faced with the question of whether to install a propane or electric furnace. We will have an electric heat pump, so the furnace will only kick on during those coldest times, though we'll probably have a fire blazing at those moments.

Googling the question shows a lot of support for electric, but it's hard to trust the reports based on the fact that the numbers that they put up are quite different than those that I'm getting right now.

First off, I'm currently paying about $0.151 per kWh right now (this is with customer charge, tax, etc. It's closer to $0.10 with the customer charged removed, which probably isn't fair to put on the heat bill, and would make the price/unit change as consumption does), and paid $1.073 per gallon for propane last fill. (This is in SE Nebraska, by the way). Plugging those numbers into a fuel comparison calculator shows propane costing a third of the electric. Could this be right?

Complicating the situation just a bit is the fact that the propane would cost a bit more to install, upwards of $1500.00, according to the contractor. Further, propane is obviously at a low point right now, but it would have to go up to about $3.25 before electricity became more affordable, even when calculating an 80% efficient propane furnace vs a perfect electric furnace.

How about the water heater, then? Keep it the same as the furnace or is there a preferred fuel there, too?

Any help helps. Thanks!



Edited by Beef State Ben 1/27/2015 22:42
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