Electrifying Your Home
- What is electrification? Building electrification is the process of replacing fossil-fueled equipment like furnaces and gas stoves with their electric counterparts. Switching to electricity to run your home means that your energy can come from clean and more affordable sources like solar or wind. It also means you can protect yourself from high gas costs and improve indoor air quality.
- Why does CUB support it? While it won’t happen overnight, CUB, as a consumer advocate, supports a thoughtful, managed transition away from gas for all consumers, for the sake of our bottom lines, our health and our climate. Read CUB’s quick explainer.
Electrification requires planning. The first step toward going all-electric is to make your home as energy efficient as possible. This will maximize savings before you switch from gas, and it will help when the time comes to replace your gas-heating equipment with an electric heat pump: An energy efficient home may require a smaller, less expensive pump.
- Energy Assessments and Audits–The best way to create a personalized checklist of efficiency upgrades for your home is through a home energy audit, which is offered by local contractors. a home energy assessment or audit. The cost of an audit may be partially covered by federal or utility company incentives.
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- ComEd and Ameren Home Energy Assessments
- Home Energy Audit contractor directory
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- Energy Efficiency and Weatherization–Once you have your checklist of efficiency upgrades, you can get started on them.
- Technology–The best way to electrify is by replacing your gas furnace or boiler with an electric heat pump system, which can be 50-60 percent more efficient. These devices are more economical than their traditional counterparts because they simply move heat, rather than producing their own warm air. Heat pump systems come in two principal types: air source and geothermal (or ground source) heat pumps. Read more about them below.
- Heat Pump Resources:
The Inflation Reduction Act enacted in 2022 contains several federal incentives for electrification and home improvement. (The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency says Illinois residents may not see rebates available until summer 2024 due to delays in federal program guidance. In the meantime, you can take advantage of the available tax credits and utility company incentives.)
Hear from residents around the state who have installed heat pumps in their homes!
CUB and advocates around the state are working towards implementing building electrification in a way that is equitable and consumer-friendly. Learn more about initiatives in Illinois below.
- Chicago’s proposed Clean Affordable Buildings Ordinance in Chicago
