By now, you’re probably familiar with all the benefits associated with natural gas home heating. If you aren’t, check out our earlier blog post on the pros of converting to natural gas. Now, not only does natural gas benefit you and your family directly—it boosts the local economy of towns and cities across Pennsylvania.
How Natural Gas Benefits You
To recap, natural gas offers the following:
Increased comfort – Natural gas furnaces produce heat that is between 25 and 35 degrees warmer than heat produced by oil or propane furnaces. Also, in comparison to these other heating sources, natural gas furnaces are far better at evenly distributing heat throughout a space. Does it bother you that some parts of your home are colder than others? Converting to natural gas can improve overall heat distribution in your home.
Increased savings – There’s a simple reason many Pennsylvanians are looking to enlist the services of a reliable natural gas company: the price of oil is skyrocketing. Residents throughout Harrisburg, Lancaster, Reading, and the entire Keystone State are beginning to recognize the significant costs attached with heating their home with oil. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports that the average household using oil can expect to pay about $2,500 to heat their homes this heating season. It doesn’t get much better for Pennsylvania homes that rely on propane as a heating source—the average cost of heating a home with propane this heating season is $2,384. Homes that use natural gas heating, on the other hand, can expect to pay about $1,024 this season, according to the EIA—significantly less than the cost of oil or propane.
Incredible Convenience – As a Pennsylvanian, you’re familiar with just how many powerful, violent storms the Keystone State gets slammed with each and every year, which can disrupt fuel supply. With natural gas, you’ll never run out of fuel because it is delivered directly to your home via reliable underground pipelines.
If you have any further questions about the benefits of natural gas, just give us a call or contact us online.
How Natural Gas Benefits the Pennsylvania Economy
All these direct and immediate benefits offered by natural gas are great, but did you know that natural gas can boost Pennsylvania’s economy as well? The surge in natural gas production from shale is transforming the American energy market, positioning natural gas as a potential job-creation machine. This can help drive urgently needed economic growth in Pennsylvania and throughout the country.
In 2008, 622,000 Americans were directly employed by the natural gas industry. Natural gas helps drive the economy, with development contributing $385 billion to the U.S. economy in 2008, according to IHS Global Insight. But the boost in jobs didn’t end in 2008.
According to a recent Washington Times op-ed piece published on Jan. 23, 2013, “over the last five years, northern Pennsylvanians have enjoyed a robust economic recovery with high-paying jobs in manufacturing, and the support of businesses such as mom and pop restaurants and shops throughout the area.” The article states that a “natural gas-powered economic boom” has swept across Pennsylvania.
This gas boom has brought companies and workers into parts of Pennsylvania that lie atop the Marcellus Shale Formation, a rich source of natural gas. The state’s hotel and restaurant industries (among others) have benefitted because of this.
Natural gas even helps Pennsylvania’s environment—it emits 45 percent less carbon dioxide than any other widely available fuel source, and combats smog and acid raid.
Make UGI EnergyLink Your Natural Gas Company in Pennsylvania
UGI EnergyLink has supplied and delivered natural gas locally and globally for over 126 years. Over 30,000 residential and commercial customers in over nine states depend on us as their natural gas company of choice.
As a result of natural gas deregulation in Pennsylvania, we’re able to offer customers a pricing choice between fixed and variable rates, as well as several other options.
Natural gas benefits you, the Pennsylvania economy, and even Pennsylvania’s environment. If you already have natural gas lines installed in your home, transitioning to our service is easy—just fill out a simple enrollment form. All you have to do is provide some basic information and you’ve got us (and our flexible pricing options) on your side.