Switching to Natural Gas in the Philadelphia Area

About half of all U.S. homes use natural gas (source – eia.gov) for water, cooking, and heating, and our home state of Pennsylvania ranks as the fourth-largest consumer of natural gas in America. However, our office routinely receives questions from homeowners about converting from oil, LP gas, or electric systems to natural gas.

EMCO Tech Heating & Cooling handles the home side of that project — licensed gas piping, permits, Carrier and other major-brand furnaces, boilers, water heaters, and the safety checks that keep the job legal. We work from Willow Grove and Northeast Philadelphia across Montgomery County, Philadelphia, Bucks County, Chester County, and Delaware County.

Call 215-366-1001 or book a conversion walkthrough. We will tell you whether gas is the right move for your house — or whether a heat pump makes more sense — before you spend a dollar with PECO or PGW.

People search “switch to natural gas” for two different jobs, and Google mixes them together. This page is about converting the house: bringing fuel to the meter, running pipe to the appliances, and replacing oil, propane, or electric heat. It is not about shopping a different gas supplier on PAGasSwitch. That is a billing choice after you already have service.

A real conversion usually includes some mix of:

• Confirming a PECO or Philadelphia Gas Works main is close enough to tap.
• Utility service line and meter (the utility’s work).
• Customer-owned piping from the meter into the mechanical room, kitchen, laundry, and outdoor appliances.
• Township or city permits, pressure tests, and inspection.
• New or converted appliances: furnace, boiler, water heater, range, dryer, fireplace, grill.
• Oil tank abandonment or removal if you are leaving heating oil.

Start with the piping if the house is not piped yet: gas line installation, leak detection, and permitted runs in Philadelphia and the suburbs.

Will switching to natural gas actually save money?

In this market, yes — if you are leaving heating oil, propane, or electric-resistance heat and a gas main is already nearby. Natural gas has been the lowest-cost conventional heating fuel in Pennsylvania for years. Heating oil in Montgomery and Bucks Counties has been hovering near the high $4 to $5 per gallon range in recent quotes. A therm of natural gas delivers a similar amount of heat for less money, and you stop paying for tank insurance, sludge service, and emergency deliveries in January.

How to switch to natural gas the right way

Utility websites make this look like a form. On a real street in Willow Grove, Horsham, Fishtown, or Doylestown it is a sequence. Skip a step and the meter never gets set.

1. Call EMCO Tech first. We look at the mechanical room, the meter location, the appliances you want on gas, and whether the house even wants a gas furnace versus a heat pump. You get a path and a budget before you sit on hold with the utility.
2. Check the utility. PECO covers most of Montgomery, Bucks, Chester, and Delaware Counties. Philadelphia Gas Works covers the city. Ask how far the nearest main is, whether they will extend service, what credits apply, and what they need from the contractor before they set a meter.
3. Load and layout. We size the furnace or boiler, map pipe diameter, and decide venting. An oversized “just in case” furnace short-cycles and wastes the efficiency you paid for.
4. Permits and interior piping. Township and city rules differ. We pull the permit, install the customer-owned piping, bond CSST where required, and pressure-test.
5. New gas furnace, boiler, tankless or tank water heater, and any range, dryer, or fireplace connections you want done while the walls are open.
6. Utility meter and commissioning. Leak check, combustion analysis, carbon monoxide test, thermostat setup, and a walkthrough so you know how to shut the gas off.
7. Stay on a service plan. A new gas appliance still needs an annual clean and safety check. That is how conversions stay cheap in year five.

PECO publishes its own conversion tools and rebate forms at peco.com gas conversion. PGW customers start with PGW. We coordinate both.

Everyday appliances that belong on the same gas line

The heating plant is the big saver. The rest of the house is why people stay happy with the project.

• Gas water heaters and tankless units — faster recovery after back-to-back showers. See our gas water heater services and tankless options.
• Ranges and cooktops — if you are already opening the kitchen wall for pipe, run the stove now.
• Clothes dryers — shorter cycles than most electric dryers.
• Fireplaces, fire pits, and grills — outdoor lines need the same permits and burial depth as indoor ones.

Gas water heater services  · Tankless water heaters

Is natural gas being phased out in Pennsylvania?

You will hear the rumor. Some West Coast and Northeast cities have limited gas in new construction. That is not Pennsylvania policy today, and it is not how homes in Montgomery County or Philadelphia are being heated this decade.

Pennsylvania is a major natural-gas producing state. Existing homes can still add service. PECO is still running neighborhood main-extension pilots. There is no statewide ban on gas furnaces, boilers, or gas lines for the houses we service. Anyone promising that gas heat disappears here in five years is selling a different product.

That does not mean gas is the only smart answer. Electricity prices, heat-pump hardware, and hybrid systems are getting better. If your street has no main, if you already need a new air conditioner, or if you want one system that heats and cools, we will put a heat pump or ductless mini-split on the table instead of forcing a long, expensive gas extension. The honest conversion company is the one willing to talk you out of gas.