I'm in the middle of enclosing our basement. We've got a two story, plus basement, home in the mountains of North Carolina.

We're at a pretty high altitude, and summers peak in the low 70⁰s. We're extremely comfortable in every season, except for the winter. We're relying on baseboard heaters, which do okay, but, are insanely expensive to run.

I've got the ceiling (of the basement) open, and am considering HVAC options, and seem to think that a simple electric furnace is the way to go. I should be able to easily run ductwork to heat the basement, and floor above it, which is where our bedrooms are.

Is an electric furnace the way to go? How expensive are they to run?

I build 1-2 homes a year up here, and typically put in a few minisplit units. But when building, I've got the walls open for wiring and concealment of the line sets. But now I'm working on existing, and I'd rather not go through retrofitting.

Any advice from the pros would be greatly appreciated, thanks so much.

Question from user PlainOldWallace at hvacadvice at reddit.com.

Answer:

An electric furnace will be no cheaper than baseboard heaters to run.

Answer from user DrDeke at hvacadvice at reddit.com.

just how bad are electric furnaces