Switching out a single appliance can reap Aussie residents thousands in savings on their energy bills, according to a new report. It found electric heaters can now cost 56 per cent less to run than older gas–powered models.
The Environment Victoria study found 44 per cent of homes in the state don’t have cooling. But by switching to a split system, which provides air conditioning and heating, residents could be more comfortable and make savings on their bills.
Installing a new ducted gas heating system at the end of its life was estimated to cost around $4,953, compared to $5,373 for three split systems and gas decommissioning.
The small difference in price would be paid off in 10 to 21 weeks, depending on how energy-efficient the home is and what climactic zone it’s located in.
For older homes the lifetime savings were projected to be between $6,726 to $8,639.
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Home electricity conversion expert Trent Jones told Yahoo Finance installing solar panels will obviously result in further savings, but simply switching off gas has benefits on its own.
“The main problem is your heating. If you’ve got gas heating, that’s your biggest bill. And electric storage hot water systems are a big offender as well,” he said.
His company, All Electric Homes, has an app that estimates reductions in power usage after customers upload their energy bills.
The same tool is then used to track households after they’ve made the conversion.
One home in the southeast suburb of Frankston had an annual bill of over $3800 prior to electrification and solar panel installation, and now almost a year on they’ve reduced that to around $700 per annum.
Another home that did the same, but also added a battery, slashed its bill from over $4400 to less than $400.
Methane gas increasingly expensive in Australia
Environment Victoria is a critic of the gas industry, primarily because the fossil fuel is a key driver of climate change, which results in extreme weather events including severe bushfires, heatwaves, droughts and storms.
But the non-profit also regularly highlights that using methane gas to power homes is becoming increasingly expensive, and that burning it without proper ventilation can be damaging to human health.
This year the Australian Energy regulator found that the industry remains “vulnerable to price shocks” and prices increased more than $13 over the last quarter, due to cold weather driving up demand.
“People who live in efficient electrified homes have lower bills, live more comfortably all year, and have a cleaner, healthier indoor environment,” the Environment Victoria How We Electrify report found.
Residents urged to ‘set themselves up’ for electricity conversion
The report examined different home size and heating scenarios across different climate zones across the state. It found switching to a split system financially benefited every household examined.
Speaking with Yahoo Finance, spokesperson Kat Lucas-Healey encouraged residents with aging gas appliances to prepare a plan to decommission them now.
“If you wait till it’s urgent, then you often find a tradesperson is likely to recommend a like for like replacement. But because gas has got so much more expensive, and electricity has got a lot cleaner, it’s really worth stopping and getting used to the idea of switching,” she said.
That way, when you are in that position, when things inevitably break down, you’ve set yourself up to make a good decision.”
