Switching from Gas to Electric.

In the 1880s, homeowners were switching from gas lighting to electric. We abandoned natural gas as a way of finding our way in the dark because of the downsides: choking fumes, smoke, blackened walls and the risk of explosion. All good reasons why homes now are lit with electricity.

Over 100 years after Edison and his contemporaries began making the lightbulb a household reality, we’re taking the electric car seriously and making our homes electric-ready, leaving both natural gas and petrol in the rearview mirror. Last year, California energy regulators approved energy efficiency standards that expand the use of electric appliances for space and water heating in new homes and businesses, shifting away from the use of fossil fuels to heat and cool buildings. And it's not just California--cities in six other states have already adopted the same plan or have it in development.

The new effort is called building electrification or building decarbonization and part of the effort includes making new construction natural gas-free and electric-ready (you know, so you can plug in your car). While we love our gas appliances, we know that they're not good for the environment, and we'd like to clean up our carbon footprint a bit. So, we decided to research the best alternatives to the natural gas appliances we are using now and share the info with you.

In the kitchen, we're cooking with gas. In order to switch this out for electric, we don't have to think hard. There are two kinds of electric ranges: resistance and induction. Resistance cooktops use heating elements under the surface, while induction cooktops use a more efficient method of heating and can only be used with certain types of pots and pans like stainless steel or cast iron. (Yes, you can still get the OG resistance style with the coiled elements if you're filled with 1950s nostalgia.) The nice thing about electric ovens is that you can get a convection oven, which eliminates hot spots and honestly, bakes better than gas.

In the laundry room, our clothes dryer is something we're not giving up. We're not going back to pins and a line. Nope. Nope. Nope. We like fluffy towels. Traditional gas and electric dryers have the same features and they look similar. Some electric dryers use heat pump technology, making them more efficient.

What's heat pump technology? Glad you asked. Simply put, a heat pump is a device that uses a small amount of energy to move heat from one location to another. Heat pumps are typically used to pull heat out of the air or ground to heat a home or office building, but they can be reversed to cool a building. Heat-pumps work by transferring heat rather than burning fossil fuels to create heat. This makes them extremely efficient.

Replacing the HVAC system: Heat-pumps for space heating and cooling come in two basic forms. Split systems are similar to the standard ducted systems, where the air is delivered through ducts into the different rooms. Then there are ‘mini-splits’ which are also becoming popular. These still have an outside unit, but allow homeowners to use several cartridges inside the house. They don’t use ducts; instead, the cartridges are placed right in the room, so they blow hot or cool air depending on the need, to condition the room. Some people like these because it allows them to heat or cool one room or area at a time.

Water heaters: The most efficient type of water heater is a heat pump water heater, which looks similar to traditional tank water heaters. Tankless water heaters are also efficient, but require significant changes to your existing electric system.

Phasing out fossil fuel is going to be a challenge, but if any state can do it, it's California.

If you are looking for a great resource for going electric, check out UCLA's Institute of the Environment & Sustainability's guide: https://www.ioes.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/The-ABCs-of-Electrifying-Your-Gas-Appliances.pdf