I am afraid of a gas furnace, for fear of an explosion. I have had this fear since I was a little boy. Hence, I simply must have an electric heating system. However, the area in the MidWest where I have been considering has almost no electric homes, mostly because of the high electric rates compared to gas or at least this has been the case until just recently. I talked to a heating contractor today and he said that it is fairly easy to convert a gas forced air system to electric forced air and would cost maybe $2,500-$3,000. However, my dad says that here in the MidWest, electric homes are built with more insulation and thus replacing a gas furnace with an electric furnace will not work as efficiently as if the home was built originally with an electric furnace. I also wonder how well an electric furnace will work with duckwork that was originally designed for a gas furnace?

The bottom line is that I like a warm house. I keep the thermostat at an even 72 degrees in winter. I hope to buy a home within the next three months. Will I save on utility bills if I look in a different area that has all-electric homes and buy one of them or would such a home be no more efficient than if I buy a home with a gas furnace and replace it with an electric furnace?. Thanks.

Rather than an electric furnace, how about a heat pump? Today's heat pumps are fairly efficient (much more so than an electric furnace) and can keep your home fairly toasty. Air to air systems (most common) do a great job, but GeoThermal is top dog for eficiency-and the price shows it.

Ask your local contractor/installer about your options and go with the highest efficiency you can afford. It will cost you $$$, but in the end the difference will easily be made up by having lower operating costs.

Just make sure you have an outdoor stat to drop the compressor out at 38 degrees or so for maximum efficiency. No sense running a useless compressor AND electric heat.