The Pros & Cons Of Electric vs Gas Heating Furnace

When you are thinking of purchasing a furnace for your house heating system, you will have to choose whether you want it to be electric or gas powered. Each of the choices has its own pros and cons as explained below :

Advantages of Electric Furnace

• The price of an electric heating system is usually lower. This is probably one of the most important reason why more people choose to go with an electric furnace compared to those who would go for a gas furnace. Especially if you are on a budget, this heating system will help you a lot because you will spend much less in acquiring the equipment.
• It is usually more durable than a gas heating system, as an electric furnace is estimated to take 30 years before it completely breaks down. That is a very long time.
• It is usually not noisy compared to gas furnace.
• More user-friendly setup. You can easily install an electric furnace in your home by simply reading the manufacturer’s manual. There is hardly any difficulty during installation; an inexperienced homeowner could finish installing it in just a few minutes.
• You usually do not need an HVAC professional to conduct an inspection when you have problems on your electric furnace. You can simply troubleshoot it yourself and within a short time, you would have solved the problem(s).
• Electric heating systems are usually less health hazardous.

Disadvantage of Electric Furnace

• Operating on-going cost is relatively higher than the initial purchase price, mainly on the monthly electricity bills.

Advantages of a Gas Furnace

• Up to recent years, the use of gas has been pretty costly. However, things have changed now. Now, cost of using gas is a lot more affordable. In fact, natural gas is very cheap. Which means it is usually cheaper to run a gas furnace as compared to an electric heating system in terms of the operating/on-going monthly costs.
• In a very cold environment, gas furnace has usually been recommended because it tends to warm or heat the entire house a lot faster. In extreme temperatures, the quickest way to warm the house is by using a gas furnace as compared to an electric ones.

Disadvantage of Gas Furnace

• Though the cost of gas has gone down in recent years, the initial amount of money you need to purchase the gas equipment is higher than what you would expect when purchasing an electric heating unit.
• Compared to an electric heating system, a gas heating system usually doesn’t last long. In fact, your gas furnace is likely to serve you for around 10 years, after which, it will usually breaks down.
• The installation process is more tedious compared to that of the electric furnace, which means you might need to hire a professional installer to do the job.
• A gas furnace usually requires regular service. The system needs to be inspected and serviced by a qualified HVAC professional.
• Gas furnaces emit carbon monoxide. Therefore, homeowners are advised to ensure there is a proper ventilation in their houses if choosing to go with a gas furnace.

After looking at the pros and cons of both home heating systems above, the decision rests on you.

So, which one would you choose?