Should You Convert Gas to Electric?

Many customers worry about natural gas being phased out and if they’ll be forced to switch to electric. Here’s what homeowners should know.

Many Pacific Northwest residents want to keep natural gas an option and are concerned about rumors that a natural gas ban is looming on the horizon. The concerns about subsequent higher costs and questionable reliability if we’re forced to switch are valid.

Fortunately, it’s unlikely to go away anytime soon, and limitations also vary by location.

You’re cooking with gas (now and into the future)

There’s no nationwide phase-out and no federal mandate requiring homeowners to abandon their existing natural gas systems. In fact, across much of the country, natural gas remains the primary source of home heating, and the majority of US adults want to keep it as an energy source.

Policies on natural gas are set locally, so rules can vary by city or state. Even in areas that are encouraging electrification, homeowners with existing gas systems are typically grandfathered in. That means if your home already has a gas furnace, boiler, or insert, you can typically continue maintaining it or replace it with a similar system when the time comes.

Are Washington homes more vulnerable?

While Washington has incentives to move away from natural gas (and Seattle has tighter restrictions that affect new construction and some upgrades), homeowners can keep their existing systems.

For those with commercial buildings over 20,000 square feet in Seattle, however, it’s required that they reach net-zero emissions by 2045 (multifamily buildings must reach net-zero by 2050). This means fossil fuel appliances must be replaced with heat pumps and other electric options.

An overstressed grid creates a need for alternative options

One of the biggest reasons natural gas isn’t going away anytime soon is that the electric grid isn’t ready to replace it. With so much reliance on electrical technology (and the growth of AI, which consumes massive amounts of power), we’re placing extreme power demands on an already stressed grid, leading to more frequent rolling blackouts. And this is in addition to seasonal grid strain and extreme-weather outages.

Ultimately, until the grid is significantly upgraded — which is a slow and expensive process — eliminating natural gas isn’t realistic, as we need alternative energy sources to meet demand.