Heating Comparison: Heat Pump vs. Gas & Oil in Ames, Iowa

Because heat pumps move heat rather than generating it via combustion, they deliver 300% to 400% seasonal efficiency. Wherever electricity is reasonably priced relative to gas, operating costs remain competitive or lower.

Yes, immediately. Delivered fossil fuels like propane and heating oil carry high per-BTU costs. Replacing them with an electric heat pump routinely reduces annual heating costs by 40% to 60%.

Replacing an older oil or gas furnace with an efficient heat pump prevents 5,000 to 10,000 pounds (2.5 to 5 metric tons) of CO2 emissions annually in a typical single-family home.

1 gallon of heating oil contains roughly 40.7 kWh of thermal energy (propane ~27 kWh). A modern heat pump with a COP of 3.5 provides that same thermal output using under 12 kWh of electricity.

As a rule of thumb, if the price per kWh of electricity is less than 3.0 to 3.5 times the cost per therm of gas divided by 29.3, an electric heat pump operates cheaper than a gas furnace.

Yes. Dual-fuel systems pair an electric heat pump with an existing gas or propane furnace. The heat pump handles mild heating and cooling, while the gas furnace engages only during extreme sub-zero weather.