What Drives Household Space Heating Demand?

Space heating is the most energy-intensive application in a typical household. Space heating provides the bedrock demand that most propane marketers rely on to keep their doors open. However, residential space heating demand is influenced by numerous structural characteristics that impact overall fuel consumption. These characteristics include the size of the dwelling, the amount of space in the dwelling that is heated, whether the home is standalone or physically connected to another residential or commercial structure, and year of construction, among others. Residential housing characteristics vary widely across the country.

Fast Facts:

• 62% of American households are single-family detached homes
  • Indiana has the highest percentage of single-family detached homes at 77%
• 21% of American homes were built after the year 2000
  • Utah has the highest percentage of homes built after 2000 at 37%
• The average home in the U.S. is 1,818 square feet
  • Utah has the largest average home size of any state at 2,158 square feet
• The average amount of space in a U.S. home that is heated is 1,614 square feet
  • Utah has the largest average amount of household space that is heated at 2,086 square feet

For additional information and materials on residential propane applications, visit the For My Home section on PERC’s website. For more information, contact NPGA’s Director of State Affairs, Jacob Peterson.