Powerful Neighborhoods
A powerful shift to sustainable, energy efficient communities
Join Powerful Neighborhoods and get modern, all electric appliances at little or no cost
- Increase energy efficiency of your home or business
- Improve comfort
- Find more ways to save
Join the Powerful Neighborhood’s program from PG&E. If you qualify, you’ll receive a full set of modern, electric appliances including heat pump heating and cooling systems, water heaters, dryers, induction stoves and more.
We’ll cover all the costs for qualified homes, and 80% for qualified businesses.
That’s good news for your neighborhood, great news for your planet.
What will it cost?
Single-Family or Small Multifamily (2-4 units): Free!
All costs are covered by the Powerful Neighborhoods program.
Business Owners: Know Your Costs Upfront
Get a detailed project plan outlining any costs before you commit. PG&E will cover 80% of the project costs.
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
Complete the online home energy assessment from our partner, Maiven Energy. A project plan will be generated in real time
Who can participate?
What other details do I need to know?
Upgrade to Electric and Save!
New electric appliances make
your home more comfortable,
energy-efficient, and eco-friendly
Comprehensive Upgrades:
New appliances, heating and
cooling systems, water heaters,
induction stoves, and more.
Community Benefits:
When more homes go all-electric,
PG&E can shut down old gas lines
and avoid building new ones,
passing the savings on to you.
Save up to 20% on energy bills
by switching from gas to electric
heating and cooling with a
heat pump.
Join a Powerful Neighborhood and
imagine the savings.
Limited Availability: This program
is only available in certain areas.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Powerful Neighborhoods Program
What is Powerful Neighborhoods?
Powerful Neighborhoods is a new program to help homes and businesses switch from gas (or other fuels) to electric appliances. It’s paid for by
ratepayer, state, and local funds as well as supported by PG&E. If you qualify, residents and business owners in eligible neighborhoods can get
new, modern, energy-efficient electric appliances at little or no cost.
Who can join the program?
Homes and businesses in select neighborhoods can join. Submit an interest form to see if you qualify.
How do I join if I own or rent a home?
- To get started, fill out our interest form online to check your eligibility.
- Next, you’ll answer some questions about your home through an online home energy survey, from our partner Maiven Energy.
- After you take the survey, you’ll get a simple plan to show what improvements your home can get, like an induction stove, heat pump (for heating and cooling), water heater, insulation, duct sealing, and electrical panel upgrades.
- All home upgrades for residential customers are free.
- Some or all of your neighbors will need to join our program before installation occurs because everyone must agree to their equipment upgrades before work can start. After you review and approve your project plan, all other eligible homes and buildings in your area must do the same before any work can begin.
- Renters: Your landlord will need to sign off on the project first, but we can help you talk to them—just email us at [email protected]. You can also fill out the interest form and home energy survey to help show your landlord the benefits.
Why does everyone in my neighborhood need to commit first?
When everyone joins at once, we can do everyone’s upgrades faster and bring as much as possible into your neighborhood at once. This also helps make it possible to close down the gas line, so those cost savings can be passed on to you.
What home upgrades can I get?
It depends on your home or building’s needs, but the program offers:
- Heat pumps (for heating and cooling)
- Clothes dryers
- Water heating
- Induction stoves
- Insulation and weatherization
- Electrical panel upgrades
Can I keep my gas stove, water heater, or furnace?
No, you must switch all gas appliances to electric ones
Is the program really free? What’s the catch?
There’s no catch! Switching gas customers in your neighborhood to all-electric helps PG&E shut down parts of the gas system that drive up costs for you. They use some of these savings to pay for your new appliances.
Who installs the new equipment?
We work with trusted installers with proven high customer satisfaction rates to install your equipment. They’ll check that everything works properly and explain how to use your new appliances. We’ll make sure all the work is done right.
These installers also work with other programs including the PG&E Energy Savings Assistance (ESA) Program.
Program inspectors will inspect the installer’s work to ensure that everything has been installed correctly and operates as intended.
Do I get to choose my new appliances?
The installer will choose high-quality appliances that follow our program rules. All new equipment will meet the program’s high efficiency standards. You can ask questions about these choices with your installer and discuss other options.
What if I get new appliances and they break?
All appliances come with a one-year guarantee (a one-year warranty on labor and materials). If something breaks, your installer will fix it for free of charge within that time.
How is Powerful Neighborhoods engaging with my community?
Powerful Neighborhoods is working closely with local partners, including the City of Oakland, to bring upgrades to your neighborhood. Discover how the City of Oakland and Powerful Neighborhoods are working together to support healthy homes and build climate resilience in this letter.
Electrification
What does it mean to electrify?
Electrification means replacing gas-power equipment with electric ones. Sometimes we replace other fossil fuels, too, like coal, oil, or propane. In order to electrify everything at your home or business, we’ll replace any machine that currently burns fossil fuels — your furnace, water heater, kitchen stove, clothes dryer, and gas fireplaces. In some cases, we will upgrade your electrical panels.
Why should I switch to electric?
Electric appliances can save energy, help lower your bills, and keep our planet healthy by reducing carbon emissions.
Cooking
What is an induction stove?
- An induction stove uses magnets to directly heat your pots. This makes cooking faster and safer, and your kitchen stays cooler.
- The cooktop surface doesn’t get very hot, so there’s less chance of getting burned, and there’s no open flame.
- They heat super-fast and can be accurately controlled—so not only are induction stoves better for the environment than gas stoves, but they work better, too.
Why should I switch to an electric induction stove?
- Induction stoves are up to 90% energy efficient, while electric resistant stoves are 75% and gas stoves are 40% energy efficient. That means with induction, almost none of the cooking heat gets wasted.
- Gas or electric stovetops transfer heat into your pots and pans. While some of that heat goes into your food, the rest goes into your kitchen. Induction burners create heat directly in the pot or pan. That means it can keep your kitchen cooler and safer.
Do I need special pans for an induction stove?
- Yes, but many, if not all of your pots and pans already work! If a magnet sticks to your pot, it works on an induction stove. Cast iron pans usually work great. Plus we’ll provide you with new pots and pans!
- The good news is you probably have pans that work because most new cookware is induction-ready.
Heat pumps (heating and cooling)
What are heat pumps?
- A heat pump heats your home in winter and cools it in summer. It moves warm air around, using less energy than regular heaters or air conditioners.
- It’s a single electric appliance that replaces both your traditional air conditioner and home heating system (like a furnace or boiler).
- In cooling mode, a heat pump acts like an air conditioner, moving the heat from inside your home to the outside. In heating mode, heat pumps go into reverse-mode and pump heat from the air outside your home to the inside.
Why should I switch to a heat pump?
- Heat pumps use less energy and save money on your energy bill. They keep your home comfortable year-round.
- Heat pumps can reduce your heating electricity use by about 50% compared electric resistance heating such as furnaces.
- PG&E’s residential customers can save up to about 20% by switching from gas to a highly efficient electric heat pump technology for space and water heating.
- Heat pumps can reduce your heating electricity use by about 50% compared to electric resistance heating such as furnaces.
Water heating
What are heat pump water heaters?
- It’s a water heater that heats water using heat from the air around it (even when it’s cold out). It uses much less energy than regular water heaters.
- They are similar to heat pumps for space heating, except they produce hot water instead of hot air. In other words, they use electricity to pull heat from the surrounding air and move it into a hot water tank.
Why should I switch to heat pump water heater?
Heat pump water heaters use about 70% less energy than standard water heaters, saving you money on your energy bill. They are 3 to 4 times more efficient than standard water heaters and work everywhere!
Clothes dryers
What are heat pump clothes dryers?
It’s a dryer that concentrates warm air from outside the dryer to dry your clothes gently. It saves energy by reusing and dehumidifying warm air.
Why should I switch to a heat pump clothes dryer?
These dryers save about 28% more energy than regular dryers and are more gentle on clothes.
Weatherization
What is weatherization and what does it have to do with switching to electric appliances?
Weatherization reduces the amount of energy needed to heat and cool your home. It can involve sealing and insulating your home to save energy and keep you more comfortable. You can save an average of 15% on heating and cooling costs.
Electric panel upgrades
What are electric panels and what does it have to do with switching to electric appliances?
Your home gets its electricity from powerlines (and the electric grid) through your electrical panel. It’s sometimes called a breaker box, load center, or distribution center, but it’s a box in your home that controls your electricity. Older homes may need an upgrade when switching to electric appliances. We’ll help you figure that out.
QUESTIONS?
Contact us at 341-223-8333 or [email protected]
