Natural Gas
Where available natural gas is the least expensive and easiest heating solution because it is still plentiful in Michigan and is piped directly into your home from the utility company.
It normally doesn’t make sense to replace a perfectly good furnace with a natural gas unit just to save money, but when it’s time to replace your furnace be sure to look at natural gas as an option. Natural gas is a great choice if its available in your area and if the utility company does not charge too much to bring it to your door.
Propane, LP (Liquified Petroleum) or Bottled Gas
Often thoguht of as a gas, propane is a stored and shipped as a liquid and only changes to gas when it is used by your heating system. Although propane is similar to natural gas in many ways (they both can be used by the furnaces with a conversion package, for instance) propane has some characteristics that are important to understand – the biggest of which is that it is heavier than air.
If you have a propane leak in your home propane can pool and create a safety hazard. We always recommend to propane customers that they buy a propane detector (available for $49.95 plus tax and shipping from our online store ) as well as a carbon monoxided detector. Put the propane detector on the floor near your furnace and put the carbon monoxide detector in your kitchen or bedroom.
That said, if installed and maintained properly, propane can be a great way to heat especially if you have other appliances like a gas stove, gas liights, or an automatic standy generator (also available from us).
Heating Oil
If you live in a rural area and natural gas is not available or if you already have an oil furnace that is working properly, then heating oil can be a a very cost effective and safe heating solution. Although initially more expensive to install than gas equipment, it is often cheaper to operate longterm than propane or electric and can pay for itself over a period of time.
Heating oil used to be the primary source for heat both in the city and the country, but it has been losing market share to natural gas a propane for many years. Since heating oil is less common today, especially with younger homeowners, it is often considered a dirty, smelly and environmentally unfriendly way to heat. The reality is that, if installed and maintained correctly, fuel oil is a very clean, safe and reliable way to heat your home.
Safety and warmth are really heating oils biggest advantages. Unlike either natural gas or propane, heating oil is not explosive under normal conditions. And heating oil burns much hotter than propane or natural gas so your register air feels warmer and your hot water heats up much faster. Also, heating oil furnaces generally last a lot longer than gas furnaces beacuse they are made out of heaver materials.
But heating oil also has disadvantages, primarily that it price has had dramatic swings recently which makes it very hard to price protect. Sitll, since heating oil is so safe, it should always be considered as a a heating source.
Electric
Although the most expensive heat source in our area, electric heaters work well to heat cold spots in homes that have inadequate heating systems. Electric heat also works well for towel warmers and other small radiant products.