There’s been a lot of talk in recent years about home electrification. To hear some policymakers tell it, the only responsible way to heat your home and power your appliances is with grid electricity. This argument is flawed.
When it comes to home comfort and appliances, propane is typically more affordable, dependable and even eco-friendlier than electricity.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration studied power outages recently and found that American homeowners were enduring the highest number of hours without electricity since they started tracking data! There’s more demand for grid electricity than ever, and the infrastructure the grid uses is not well-maintained.
On the other hand, propane is an energy source that you control. Your fuel tank is dedicated to your home, and with a reliable propane delivery partner like us, you’ll never be without the fuel you need. Want total freedom from the grid? Consider installing our off-grid propane appliances.
Just because electric appliances don’t emit greenhouse gases from your home, that doesn’t mean they are green. Right now, roughly 56 percent of Arizona’s electricity comes from fossil fuels. And about 63 percent of New Mexico’s total in-state generation comes from fossil fuels (35 percent from coal).* This is far from clean.
We lose 60 percent of all energy used in electricity generation during conversion; it takes 3.03 units of electricity to deliver one unit of energy to an American home! Conversely, you only need 1.01 units of propane for one unit of home energy.
How do you compare propane and electricity when propane is measured in gallons, and electricity is measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh)? One gallon of propane generates about the same amount of energy as 27 kWh of electricity.
If you check the price per kWh on your next electric bill and multiply it by 27, you can compare that to the per-gallon cost of propane in your area. But you also need to consider the relative efficiency of propane and electric equipment.
Propane furnaces are much more effective at heating spaces than electric heat pumps. Propane furnaces boast efficiencies of up to 98 percent and can reliably heat air to 140 degrees, regardless of the temperature outside. Because heat pumps rely on warmth from outside to heat your home, they struggle on frigid winter nights.
Propane water heaters have a hot water recovery rate that’s roughly twice as fast as an electric unit. They are also significantly less expensive to power since they use up to 30 percent less energy than their electric counterparts. In fact, a Propane Education & Research Council study found that a household using a propane water heater can save over $350 annually compared with a house using an electric water heater.
While electricity and propane both power many of the same appliances, propane options generally have the edge. For example, propane clothes dryers work 25 percent faster than electric dryers, producing less static cling and fewer wrinkles. And propane stoves offer far superior temperature control.
From Springerville and Snowflake to Magdalena and Quemado, Sierra Propane is the most trusted home comfort partner around. Get in touch with us to discuss installing high-efficiency propane equipment in your home!
*Source: Energy Information Administration