If you are thinking about going solar, you might consider electrifying your home at the same time. Installing a solar system is a great investment for your home, a fantastic choice for the environment, and a great way to save money in the long run. It really puts you in control of your energy costs.
Electrifying your home means switching out any appliances that operate on natural gas, which contributes to carbon emissions that foul the air in our homes with pollutants. A fully electrified home powered by a home solar energy system runs completely on clean, renewable energy. It improves your indoor air quality and comfort, and lets you pay less for energy every month, and it’s also a big help in the battle against climate change. But where do you start when you want to think about electrifying your home?
Starting Big
Your home’s heating and cooling system is one of the most significant investments you can make, but switching to a heat pump system will lower your power bills. Heat pump technology is simple–it gathers thermal energy from one place and pumps it to another. During the summer, it takes the heat from inside your home and sends it outside through a compression system. In the winter, it just reverses that process. Even if your home doesn’t have a central HVAC system, you can still use heat pump technology. Ductless “mini-split” heat pumps are often easier to install than other air conditioning systems. The hook-up between the outdoor and indoor units generally requires only a three-inch hole through a wall for the conduit. These sophisticated units can manage as many as four zones, depending on how many air-handling units are connected to the outdoor unit. Each zone has its own thermostat, allowing you to cool only the areas you’re using.
Appliances For Efficiency and Electrification
Heat pump technology can bring efficiency to many types of appliances. After years of popularity in Europe, heat pump water heaters and clothes dryers are making inroads in the American market. Safer, more efficient, and more environmentally friendly, these appliances can save you money by keeping your water hot using the heat energy from inside your home.
One electrification upgrade that you’ll hear about often is an induction stove. Electric stovetops have come a long way since those ancient coil burners that glow red when they’re hot. Induction stoves are all the rage nowadays, even with many professional chefs. Clean, efficient, safe, and powerful, these innovative cooktops generate heat by interacting magnetically with the iron in your pots or pans. The surface stays cool when cookware isn’t present, making your kitchen much safer.
Of course, the coolest way to electrify is to upgrade your ride. Although technically, electrifying your home doesn’t mean you have to get an EV, why wouldn’t you? They’re fun to drive, efficient, and models with longer ranges are coming on the market every day. And at pennies per gallon, comparatively, you can laugh all the way past the gas station.
Upgrading Your Supply
Switching to highly efficient electric appliances and away from fossil fuels will reduce your overall energy requirements. But eliminating natural gas from your home means you’ll use more electricity. Whether you are generating that electricity with solar panels or buying it from your local utility, you may need to upgrade your home’s breaker panel. A great reason to fully electrify your home at the same time you go solar is that you can save money by having the electrical contractor do the solar wiring and panel upgrade at the same time.
A growing trend is energy storage. When we think of batteries for our homes, we think of them as emergency backups for energy outages. Sure, they can be great for that, but they’re also very useful for managing your energy costs, especially if your utility charges are based on time of use (TOU). By storing your solar energy during the day—you can save money by using it when rates are high after the sun goes down
Electrifying your whole home can be a big project. But taking it on as part of a solar upgrade is a great money-saving way to diminish your environmental impact and invest in your future.
Over the long term, electrifying your home can save your family money. With the many federal tax incentives available from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), along with those from other state and local governments, you’ll likely see significant savings. Many local utilities will help offset the costs of electrification with incentives, rebates and subsidies.
You do your part to invest in a cleaner future for the climate and you achieve a cleaner, healthier home for yourself. Electrifying your home does all that.
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