Gas or Electric? Let’s Break it Down…

Are you considering doing home renovations and want to evaluate all your options? There are a lot of factors to consider when making larger financial investments in your home such as updating appliances. So, let’s break down the benefits and withdraws between gas and electric appliances.

Our first consideration, safety!

• Often, we forget to consider what our appliances can be doing to our air quality. A benefit to using electric appliances, especially regarding stoves, is that they do not let out free-floating gases. Gas stoves also run the risk of fair hazards if left unattended or there is a leak. Electric stoves offer you the peace of mind to focus on your cooking, instead of your family’s safety. If you choose a gas stove, ensure your home has proper ventilation and that you have a carbon monoxide alarm installed, and that you are regularly checking it.
• Electric appliances come with a minor risk of fire or electrocution if they are not installed and maintained well. So, if you choose electric, ensure all your home’s wiring systems are kept up to date. Another safety concern of electric stoves is the hazard of children touching the hot surfaces, unaware of their risk.

Which is better for cooking?

• For stoves, many enjoy gas stoves for how much temperature control you have with flame level. Additionally, with gas stoves, you do not have to wait long for the burners to heat up or, for them to cool down.
• Many enjoy electric stovetops for their fast boiling, smooth cooktop surfaces that make clean up much easier and the convenience of no gas hook-up needed.
• When it comes to an electric or gas oven there are benefits to both. Many prefer electric ovens for baking due to their consistent heat. Electric ovens also offer a perfect drier environment for roasting and broiling. Although some enjoy a gas oven for the fast preheating and how quickly it can cook food, many often opted to buy both electric and gas ovens so they had options.

Resell Value

Now, this is where it gets tricky. There are a lot of factors to consider when evaluating this. Some believe that gas appliances increase your home value while others argue electric appliances do.

• At least 70% of homebuyers want natural gas appliances. Although buyers who prefer electric appliances, often find it very important to them and with fewer options on the market, they may be willing to pay more.
• Policy changes are happening, while gas is currently much cheaper, clean energy is growing more affordable. In some states, they are beginning to ban natural gas in most new buildings and the cost of building homes with electric appliances is becoming cheaper than building with gas.
• To meet some states’ decarbonization goals, electricity demand is expected to double by 2050. Keeping this in mind, switching early, potentially wouldn’t be a bad idea.

At the end of the day, there are benefits to both. If you are in a home that already has the infrastructure for gas, and you enjoy these appliances, there may not need to be a rush to switch over. If you already have the infrastructure for electric appliances, make sure to evaluate all the factors. Although, the benefit of being a homeowner is you can make the decisions based on what you want, so follow what feels right. If you one day decide to sell, our agents will be ready to talk through finding sellers that will see the value, your home has to offer!