[makahagirl]

My house currently has natural gas that is used for the water heater and stove. The gas bills are getting ridiculous and I think it is time to convert to electric. I need to know how to and if it will need a professional or can I do it myself?

[ma0641]

Not worth the effort. You will need a new stove, new water heater, new wiring, possibly a new electrical panel box. Natural gas is historically cheaper than electricity. Where is the water heater? Put an insulating jacket on it and insulate the hot water pipes if you can. Turn the thermostat on the water heater to no more than 105.

[massplumber2008]

Yeah... agree with MA0641 on fact that it would take much time to recoupe the cost associated with swapping over, but if electricity is MUCH cheaper than gas (as in my area) you can certainly do it IF you are comfortable working with electricity. This would NOT be a place to start learning basics, for example!

I would NOT reduce the temperature on the water heater as mentioned above as it is a known fact that dishwashers MUST have a minimum operating temperature of 120F to give you clean/disinfected dishes... ;)

Ideally, the manufacturers would actually like to see somewhere between 130-140F for cleanest dishes but this would require the gas water heater to fire more often and it would require a mixing valve to be installed at your water heater. Homeowner's don't usually like these additional costs and most don't go for it, but if the manufacturers had it their way it would be that way in every home!

Best bet is to insulate the hot water line as mentioned above and don't forget to set the water heater to its vacation or pilot setting when you go away for extended times... that will save you some money!

Any questions just let us know... OK?

Mark

[tkrussell]

For a job like this, yes, a professional is needed. Much too many details to go over to get this all done properly, esp if you have no or little experience.

I can almost guarantee you will need a new electric service.

You need to find a small to medium size contractor that can deal with a design/build project.

The electric heat needs to be sized, the wiring designed, load calculations done to size the service, and design the service , doing the same with the branch circuits to each electric appliance you need converted, and then produce an estimate.

Be sure the estimate includes insurances, permit and inspection fees. There are various national , state and local building and fire codes to consider, and follow, along with coordinating with the utility company.

You can then use the cost to determine the payback on any savings over time there would be converting.

If you do convert, leave as much gas piping in place as possible, properly capped, just in case you need to go back.