Propane Residential and Commercial Overview

Propane is a domestic, affordable, sustainable, abundant, and convenient fuel for residential and commercial use. Almost 75 percent of propane sold in 2009 was for residential or commercial uses and accounts for 2.4 percent of household energy consumption in the United States, according to the Energy Department. A breakdown of propane consumption for residential and commercial use is as follows:

Residential Use:

• More than five billion gallons of propane were sold for residential use in 2009.
• Nearly six million households relied on propane for primary home heating in 2009, and over four million households used propane for residential water heating.

Commercial Use:

• More than 1.5 billion gallons of propane were sold for commercial use in 2009.
• The propane industry provided energy to about 875,000 commercial customers and about 200,000 industrial customers in 2009.

Propane has various uses for residential and commercial applications:

Grills:

• About 60 percent of homeowners who grill outdoors use a propane gas grill, which heats faster than a charcoal grill, and releases fewer greenhouse gas and particulate emissions.
• Grilling with propane emits 99 percent less carbon monoxide per unit of energy than grilling with charcoal.

Cooking:

• Propane stoves allow for greater control of heat levels than electric ranges, and their instant flame turnoff capabilities help them cool faster than electric stoves, which can remain dangerously hot for a period of time after they have been turned off.

Space Heating:

• A propane-fueled furnace with an annual fuel utilization efficiency of 78 emits 15 percent less carbon dioxide than a comparable heating oil-fueled furnace.
• In colder climates like the Midwest, high-efficiency propane-fueled furnaces produce half as many carbon dioxide emissions as electric air-source heat pumps.
• Propane-fueled furnaces emit 69 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than electric furnaces and 64 percent fewer than electric baseboards.
• Propane-fueled space heating systems have consistently lower equipment and installation costs compared with heating oil, air-source heat pump, or ground-source heat pump alternatives.
• A propane furnace emits 68 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than a standard electric model.

Water Heating:

• Propane-fueled tankless water heaters reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 50 percent compared with electric tankless models.
• Propane-fueled tankless water heaters can cost up to 50 percent less to operate than standard electric storage models.
• In homes that have moderate hot water use, tankless water heaters can be up to 30 percent more energy efficient than conventional storage water heaters.
• Tankless water heaters last five to 10 years longer than standard storage water heater units.

Fireplaces:

• Propane fireplaces are excellent secondary sources of heat. Traditional wood-burning fireplaces are about 15 percent efficient, while propane fireplaces are up to 91 percent efficient.
• High-efficient direct-vent propane-fueled fireplaces have five to six times the heating capacity of electric fireplaces. They can increase room comfort by providing an efficient secondary heat source.

Clothes Drying:

• Switching from an electric clothes dryer to a propane clothes dryer can prevent more than 600 pounds of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere each year.
• Propane clothes dryers can reduce energy costs by more than 20 percent compared with electric dryers.

Generators:

• Propane-fueled portable generators offer convenient access to power when and where it is needed, especially in remote areas and for backup purposes.
• Reduce evaporative emissions and fuel spillage when refueling compared with gasoline and diesel.
• Emit fewer ozone-forming compounds than gasoline-powered equipment.
• Enable more reliable operation by using propane, which does not degrade over time like gasoline.
• Many standby generator units produce less than 60 decibels of noise.
• A 7 kW standby generator drawing fuel from a 250-gallon propane tank fueling can provide enough electricity to power a home for five days, while a 500 gallon underground tank would provide power for 11 days.
• When coupled with an automatic transfer switch, home standby generators can deliver up to 125 kW of power within seconds after an outage takes place.
• Portable generators offer 10,000 watts or more of dependable power, which is enough to fuel an array of home systems, such as kitchen appliances, air conditioners, computers, and televisions.