Homeowners have a variety of home heating fuels to choose from. Natural gas is the most popular choice in Centre County, used by 2,698,438 or 51.75% of homes. The 2nd most popular choice for Centre County homeowners is electricity, used by 1,275,546 homes (24.46%). The remaining homes are heated with heating oil (786,449), propane (256,098), wood (122,435), and other fuels (139,486).

Centre County Primary Home Heating Fuel Popularity by Number of Households

Fuel	Centre County Households	% of Households
Natural Gas	2.6M	51.75%
Electricity	1.2M	24.46%
Heating Oil	786,449	15.08%
Propane	256,098	4.91%
Wood	122,435	2.35%
Coal	51,531	0.99%
Other Fuels	50,506	0.97%
No Fuel	33,356	0.64%
Solar	4,093	0.08%

Natural gas (51.75)

Electricity (24.46)

Heating oil (15.08)

Propane (4.91)

Wood (2.35)

Coal (0.99)

Other fuels (0.97)

No fuel (0.64)

Solar (0.08)

#2 Heating Oil (Fuel Oil) Use in Centre County

Heating oil has become less popular in Centre County. In the 2 years since 2020, the number of heating oil homes fell from 811,086 to 786,449, a 3.04% drop.

Centre County Heating Oil Households (2011 - 2022)

Year	Heating Oil Households
2011	1.0M
2012	1.0M
2013	963,754
2014	930,735
2015	899,276
2016	864,952
2017	843,020
2018	828,104
2019	814,213
2020	811,086
2021	790,823
2022	786,449

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Centre County

Between 2020 and today, the number of homes using propane as the primary space heating fuel rose from 232,603 to 256,098.

Between 2020 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel rose from 2,619,736 to 2,698,438.

Electricity use for home heating in Centre County

Electric space heating systems are becoming more popular in Centre County. Since 2020, the number of homes heating with electricity rose from 1,199,935 to 1,275,546, a 6.30% increase.

Solar use for home heating in Centre County

Solar is the most environmentally friendly of all space heating fuels. With an “active” solar heating system, liquid is circulated between solar panels on a home’s roof and a heat energy storage tank in the basement.

Currently, 4,093 homes in Centre County are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 46.07% increase from 2020, when only 2,802 homes had installed active solar heating.