Types of electrification and efficiency solutions
A house isn’t just a house. It’s a place people return to for rest and relaxation, and to make meaningful memories with family and friends. For these reasons and more, homeowners may take umbrage at the idea of installing an unfamiliar appliance or technology into their home. Of course, consumers will also have questions about specific electric appliances.
Let’s dig into each.
Heat pumps
Heat pumps use electricity to transfer existing heat from one location to another, making them a natural addition to any whole home electrification system. It can be helpful to envision them as reversible air conditioners. In hot weather, they work just like a traditional air conditioner to cool the home; in cold weather, they reverse and warm air is pushed in through the home’s vents.
Heat pumps enable consumers to reduce electricity used for heating by 65% if using a ducted air-source heat pump (which uses a home’s existing ventilation system to transfer heat) and between 70% and 80% if using a geothermal heat pump (which uses the Earth's constant temperature to heat, cool, and provide hot water for buildings). What’s more, the carbon emissions produced by the electric grid are expected to fall rapidly as clean energy resources grow, making heat pumps a smarter climate choice than gas-fired furnaces today.
Heat pump hot water heaters
Like regular heat pumps, heat pump hot water heaters use electricity to move heat from one location to another, so they work well in a whole home system. The key difference is that, as the name implies, heat pump water heaters are explicitly used to heat water, rather than for other purposes like home heating.
💡 Did you know?
Heat pump hot water heaters are three to four times more energy-efficient than traditional water heaters!
General appliances
Appliances like stoves and clothes dryers can make up a significant chunk of a homeowner’s monthly utility costs.
Consumers can cut down these operating costs by opting for electric appliances over their fossil fuel-powered counterparts to net superior energy efficiency. That way, they can clean and dry last night’s gym clothes and heat up leftovers while they wait without having to worry about adding much to their next utility bill.
Electric vehicles
The electric vehicle (EV) revolution is here to stay: According to Experian, at the end of 2023, there were about 3.3 million electric cars on U.S. roads, a staggering 1.3 million vehicle increase from the end of 2022.
But what do EVs have to do with whole home electrification?
More than you might think: If a homeowner is considering a solar system to defray electric bills, adding system capacity to account for an EV at the beginning can result in even greater bill savings. So next time you meet with a client, find out whether they have, or are looking to buy, an EV so you can show them how solar can save them even more.
Smart thermostats
Smart thermostats are a lot like regular thermostats, except that they can change the temperature for you. Specifically, they automatically adjust heating and cooling settings based on exterior temperature and the homeowner’s temperature preferences, giving homeowners a more constant feeling of comfort without having to manually adjust the thermostat.
Even better, smart thermostats optimize for energy performance, maintaining homeowners’ preferred temperatures without using too much energy. And since many smart thermostats connect to the homeowner’s local network, they can view and change the temperature from a smart device app and inspect energy usage activity across a period of time.
Main panel upgrades (MPUs) and SMART electrical panels
Main panel upgrades are often required when electrifying older homes that were built with smaller panels (typically <125 amp). While new solar installations are a key driver for homeowners to make this upgrade, new technology, called SMART electrical panels, is growing in popularity in the electrification and energy efficiency movement.
SMART electrical panels are Wi-Fi-connected systems that can control electrical systems, prevent electrical fires, help homeowners track and control energy usage, and optimize energy storage. When paired with solar batteries, SMART panels help homeowners further reduce energy use and make it easier to adjust energy usage restriction rules.
Insulation
Insulation, including styrofoam panels and fiberglass rolls, help limit heat flow — i.e. it helps keep heat out in the summer, and in in the winter. When a house is properly insulated, homeowners can better achieve their desired temperatures while using less energy, leading to lower utility bills.
LED lighting
LED lighting is becoming an increasingly common lighting technology in the U.S. It lasts up to 25 times longer than incandescent lighting, and also uses 90% less energy, making LED lighting the go-to solution for cutting costs and emissions.
💡 Did you know?
By 2035, the majority of U.S. lighting installations will use LED technology, and energy savings could top 569 terawatt hours annually.
Now that we’ve looked inside the home, let’s expand our view to the policies that affect whole home electrification projects.