from Jason in Markesan, WI :
#615
With the rising cost of energy as a whole, how can I calculate which source of energy (propane or electric) is the most efficient and cost-effective to heat my home based on the unit price? I have a propane furnace with electric baseboard heaters in the basement. Should I supplement the furnace with electric heat to make heating my home more efficient?
You can use this spreadsheet to compare heating fuel costs.
The Department of Energy has an excel spreadsheet that you can download to compare heating fuel costs. By taking the cost per unit of fuel, the btus per unit of the fuel, and the efficiency of the equipment, the spreadsheet will give you costs of fuel in millions of btu (MMbtu). In most cases electricity is significantly (two to three times) more expensive to heat with than propane or natural gas.
Published Monday, November 30, 2009