Residential Energy Consumption Survey Reports Home Heating Equipment Choices Diverse, Vary by Climate and Region

Data from the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) 2015 Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS) show the majority of American households use one of three types of equipment as their main source of heat during the winter: natural gas furnaces, electric furnaces, or electric heat pumps. The range of equipment and fuels, however, varies across and within U.S. climate regions, as identified by the U.S. Department of Energy. The use of secondary heating sources, such as portable electric heaters and fireplaces, further contributes to the diverse ways households consume fuel to stay warm in the winter.

Broad ranges in winter temperatures and the capabilities of different technologies mean that certain heating choices are better suited to various climates. Overall, 47% of households rely on natural gas as their main heating fuel, compared with 36% that depend on electricity. Natural gas furnaces are the most common main space heating equipment used in every climate region except the hot-humid region of the Southeast, where heating needs are lower and electric furnaces are more prevalent. In the mixed-dry/hot-dry climate region in the southwestern U.S., 15% of homes do not use heating equipment at all, compared to the national average of 4%.

Electric heat pumps are well-suited to the relatively mild winters in hot-humid areas and some mixed-humid areas. Of the 12.1 million households that use electric heat pumps, 9.3 million are in these two regions, which cover much of the Southeast. The high cost of electric heating in colder climates has often limited the use of heat pumps and other electric equipment in those areas. However, advances in heat pump technology, including cold-climate heat pumps, have enabled more efficient electric space heating in areas with lower winter temperatures. In 2015, 1.3 million households in the cold-very cold climate region had electric heat pumps, or about 3% of the regional total.

Other fuels, such as distillate fuel oil and kerosene, are more commonly used for space heating in the cold-very cold region, but the use of these fuels continues to decline. In the 2015 RECS survey, 5.9 million homes in the U.S. reported using fuel oil or kerosene as their main heating fuel, a 20% decrease from the results of the 2009 RECS survey.

Nationwide, 37% of U.S. households supplement their main equipment with a secondary source of heat. Nearly half of these households use portable electric heaters, the most common secondary heating choice in every climate region. Fireplaces using natural gas or wood are the next most popular choices. Some households use furnaces or heat pumps as their backup heating source, equipment types that are more commonly used as the main source of heat. When considering both main and secondary heating equipment and fuels, U.S. households choose a diverse set of heating scenarios. Among the 5687 households that were surveyed in the 2015 RECS, EIA observed more than 150 combinations of heating equipment and fuels.