Heating with electricity when there is no furnace or perhaps when your basement is too cold is a perfectly viable alternative. Many homes with basements and forced air furnaces are usually very cold in the winter time. It can be almost impossible to keep them warm without spending a lot of money changing the duct work of the furnace. You may need to add hot air ducting and cold air ducts just to get the basement a little bit warmer in the winter time. There is an alternative, and it makes sense to heat with electricity. We purchased an electric heater like the one in the picture.
It can be moved around, on wheels, and plugged into a wall outlet. Oil is heated inside to heat the vanes on the outside. Simple air convection causes the air to move and heat the rest of the room. This heater is the one we chose. However, any heater is good for heating with electricity if it has the necessary capacity. They can be great for just taking the chill off the room without heating the rest of the home just to make the basement more comfortable. Heating with electricity can make sense in this situation.
Heating with Electricity
In fact, if you keep your home’s temperature low and only heat the room you are in with one of these heaters, you can result in net savings in total cost. You are burning less fuel to heat your home since it is being kept at a lower temperature overall, and you are only heating the room you are in with the electric heater.
Does buying a home and heating it with electricity make sense?
The real answer is that it depends. In most areas, heating with natural gas, propane, or oil is cheaper than heating with electricity. However, some locations have relatively cheap electricity compared to other fuels. If you are considering purchasing a home with electric heating, ask the homeowner for copies of their heating bill for a year. For more information on managing energy use, click here.
Next, quiz them about the temperature setting they use in the winter. You will have some idea about how warm they keep their house compared to the temperature you prefer. You can compare the numbers to other homes in the area, your current home, etc., taking into account personal preferences regarding the temperature you prefer in your own home.
Remember, not everyone uses electricity the same way. So, take into account how much energy conservation you practice compared to the person you’re buying the home from. All of these factors will impact the home’s electricity cost and your overall electric bill.