# Gas furnace to heat pump in Memphis

> Retiring a gas furnace for an all-electric heat pump in Memphis: when it pays on MLGW rates, when dual fuel is the better call, and what the job involves.

URL: https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/gas-furnace-to-heat-pump/

Service

Going all-electric means retiring the furnace and capping its gas line. We show you when that pays and when keeping gas is smarter.

(901) 657-2200

Last Updated: November 12, 2026

1 visit

before a written estimate with load numbers, model numbers and price

95° / 20°

Shelby County design temperatures we size for

In writing

start-up readings for charge, airflow and backup heat

## Going all-electric in a gas house

Retiring a gas furnace for a heat pump is a bigger decision than replacing an AC, and on Memphis gas rates it is not always the cheaper one. [Bluffline Memphis Heat Pumps](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/) converts gas houses to heat pumps across Memphis and Shelby County.

We start with the honest numbers, then look at your furnace.

### Gas is cheap here

On MLGW’s rates, gas in a 95 percent furnace costs about $6.30 per million BTU of delivered heat. A heat pump costs about $10.20 on a mild day and $14.30 on a cold one. So the case for all-electric rarely rests on the heating bill.

## When all-electric makes sense

Most all-electric conversions here happen because something else forces the choice. The usual reasons:

- **The furnace fails its safety check.** A cracked heat exchanger or a failing flue means replacing the furnace anyway.
- **The AC is due at the same time.** Both halves need replacing, and one heat pump replaces two machines.
- **The furnace is in a bad spot.** A garage or a cramped closet where combustion air and venting are hard to get right.
- **You don’t want combustion in the house.** Some owners simply want gas heating out.

When none of those apply, we price [dual fuel](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/dual-fuel-heat-pump/) alongside, because a sound furnace and a heat pump together cost less to run on MLGW gas.

## When to keep the gas

If the furnace is less than about ten years old, passes its safety check and its blower can carry a heat pump, keeping it is usually the better money. A heat pump replaces the AC and carries mild days, and gas carries the cold ones.

The [gas furnace or heat pump guide](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/heat-pump-vs-gas-furnace-memphis/) works through the numbers for a typical Memphis house, and the [switchover guide](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/dual-fuel-switchover-temperature/) shows where gas should take over.

### Gas prices move

MLGW’s purchased gas adjustment changes every month. In February 2026 it pushed gas to roughly $12.20 per million BTU, close to the heat pump’s mild-day cost. MLGW has also proposed raising its monthly gas service charge over the next few years. Nobody can promise where gas goes next, which is one reason some owners prefer one fuel.

## The furnace check comes first

On the first visit we inspect the furnace’s heat exchanger, flue and blower and take a combustion reading. That check decides which options are on the estimate.

### What the check can show

- **A sound furnace:** both options are priced, and dual fuel usually wins on running cost.
- **A furnace with years left but a weak blower:** dual fuel may need a new furnace, which narrows the price gap with all-electric.
- **A failing heat exchanger or flue:** the furnace has to go, and the choice is a new furnace with a heat pump or all-electric.

## What the conversion involves

An all-electric conversion changes more than a heat pump replacement. Most take two or three days.

1. Pull the mechanical permit for your town.
2. Recover the AC’s refrigerant and remove the AC and the furnace.
3. Shut off and cap the furnace’s gas branch and seal the flue opening.
4. Set a matched air handler with backup strips where the furnace stood.
5. Add a circuit for the air handler where the panel allows.
6. Set the heat pump on a raised pad and braze, pressure-test and evacuate the line set below 500 microns.
7. Charge by weight, set the strip lockout and test heating, cooling, defrost and the strips.
8. Leave the readings in writing and schedule the inspection.

### The electrical side

A gas furnace needs a small 120-volt circuit. An air handler with strips needs a 240-volt circuit sized for the strips. Many Memphis panels have room for one more double-pole breaker; some older ones don’t. The [panel guide](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/electrical-panel-for-heat-pump/) explains the checks, and any electrical change appears on the estimate as its own line.

## Backup heat without gas

Without a furnace, the heat pump carries the house with strips as backup. At Shelby County’s 20-degree design temperature a correctly sized heat pump needs only a modest strip kit, usually 5 to 10 kW, which also warms the air during defrost.

### Ice storms and outages

A gas furnace stops in a power outage too, because its blower, igniter and controls need power. So all-electric does not add outage risk for heat, but a generator plan changes: strips need far more power than a furnace blower. The [ice storm guide](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/heat-pump-ice-storm-power-outage/) covers what to plan for.

## What it costs

Bluffline’s typical range for a whole-home ducted heat pump system is $8,000 to $16,000. Your written estimate after the visit sets the price.

Furnace removal, capping the gas branch and sealing the flue are usually inside that range. A new circuit or panel work is listed separately.

### Rebates

TVA EnergyRight pays $500 for a qualifying heat pump at 15 SEER2 and $800 at 17 SEER2, installed by a participating contractor in TVA’s Quality Contractor Network. MLGW-specific terms for replacing gas heat aren’t published, so we confirm eligibility per address. The [cost page](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/heat-pump-installation-cost/) covers every range, and the [Memphis buying guide](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/memphis-heat-pump-buying-guide/) puts the whole decision in order.

## Other gas appliances

Capping the furnace branch doesn’t touch the rest of the gas in the house. A water heater, range or dryer keeps its own line.

If the furnace was the last gas appliance, MLGW can tell you how to close the gas account and remove the meter.

### Ducts sized for gas heat

Gas furnaces push hotter air than a heat pump, so some ducts that were fine for a furnace are tight for a heat pump, which needs about 400 cubic feet of air per minute per ton.

We take a static pressure reading on the visit. If the return is small or the trunk leaks, [heat pump ductwork](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/heat-pump-ductwork/) explains the fix, and it goes on the estimate as its own line.

### Combustion air and the old closet

With the furnace gone, the closet no longer needs combustion air openings. We leave existing openings alone unless you ask, since a water heater in the same space may still rely on them.

## What's included

- Load calculation for heating and cooling
- Furnace and flue check on the first visit
- New heat pump and matched air handler with backup strips
- Furnace removed, gas branch capped, flue opening sealed
- New circuit for the air handler where needed
- Raised pad and electrical disconnect
- Heat pump thermostat with an outdoor sensor
- Start-up readings in writing

## All-electric or keep the gas

|  | All-electric heat pump | Dual fuel |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Furnace | Removed, gas capped | Kept or replaced |
| Heat on the coldest nights | Heat pump plus strips | Gas furnace |
| Combustion appliance in the house | None for heating | Furnace stays |
| Fits when | Furnace failing, AC due, no gas wanted | Furnace sound, AC failed |

## Retiring a gas furnace in Raleigh

A 1985 split-level in Raleigh has a 25-year-old gas furnace in the garage that fails its safety check with a cracked flue connector, and a 3-ton AC on its last summer. Both halves need replacing at once.

Where

Raleigh, Memphis

The house

1985 split-level, about 2,000 sq ft, furnace and air handler in the garage

Price

$13,800

Time on site

3 days

1. Price both paths The estimate shows a new 95 percent furnace with a heat pump beside an all-electric heat pump with 8 kW strips. The owners choose all-electric so nothing burns in the garage.
2. Cap the gas, keep the water heater The furnace branch is capped and the flue opening sealed. The water heater stays on gas, on its own line.
3. A circuit for the strips A licensed electrician adds a 40 amp circuit using the panel's last two spaces on the same day.
4. Set and start The air handler goes on a raised stand where the furnace was. We start the heat pump, test the strips and leave the readings.

## Related resources

- [Decision Guide**Is a heat pump or a gas furnace cheaper to run in Memphis?** The per-BTU math on MLGW's rates, the months it flips, and what it means for keeping, adding to or retiring a furnace.](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/heat-pump-vs-gas-furnace-memphis/)
- [Learn**What switchover temperature should a dual fuel heat pump use in Memphis?** The two numbers behind the setting, what MLGW's rates say about them, and how to pick a point you can live with.](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/dual-fuel-switchover-temperature/)
- [Learn**Do you need an electrical panel upgrade for a heat pump?** Most heat pump jobs reuse the existing circuits. Here is when they don't, what a load calculation checks, and how smaller strips avoid an upgrade.](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/electrical-panel-for-heat-pump/)
- [Learn**What happens to a heat pump in an ice storm or a power outage?** Ice on the unit, power out for a day, and what to do before, during and after. Plus how gas, strips and generators compare.](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/heat-pump-ice-storm-power-outage/)
- [Decision Guide**How do you buy the right heat pump for a Memphis house?** The whole decision in the order you meet it, from the system you have now to the readings you should get at start-up.](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/guide/memphis-heat-pump-buying-guide/)

## How a job runs

### Call or send the form

Tell us what heats and cools the house now and what's going wrong.

### One visit

We look at the equipment, ducts, panel and the spot outside and run the load numbers.

### Written estimate

Load figures, matched model numbers, scope and price on one page.

### Install and start-up

Permit pulled, system set, line set tested, and the start-up readings handed to you.

## Gas furnace to heat pump: questions

### Is it cheaper to heat with gas or a heat pump on MLGW?

On MLGW's current rates gas usually costs less per BTU, about $6.30 per million BTU in a 95 percent furnace against $10.20 to $14.30 for a heat pump. All-electric is chosen for other reasons, such as a failing furnace or one system instead of two.

### What happens to the gas line when the furnace comes out?

The furnace branch is shut off and capped where it leaves the main line, and the flue opening is sealed. Other gas appliances such as a water heater or range stay connected on their own branches.

### Can I go all-electric if my water heater is gas?

Yes. Only the furnace branch is capped. The water heater keeps its gas line, and you can change it to electric later as a separate decision.

### Do I need a bigger electrical panel to drop gas heat?

Sometimes. The air handler's backup strips need a new circuit that a gas furnace never needed. Many panels have the space; some don't. We check on the visit and list any change separately.

### Is a heat pump enough heat for a Memphis winter without gas?

Yes, when it is sized for Shelby County's 20-degree design temperature and has backup strips for the coldest hours and defrost. Cold-climate equipment is not needed at that temperature.

## Related services

- [Service**Dual fuel heat pumps** A heat pump in place of your AC, on top of the gas furnace you keep, with the handoff set for MLGW rates.](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/dual-fuel-heat-pump/)
- [Service**Heat pump replacement** Your heat pump is near the end and you want the next one to last. We size it from the house and match both halves.](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/heat-pump-replacement/)
- [Service**Air handlers** The indoor half decides airflow, drainage and backup heat. We replace it with a matched unit and keep a sound outdoor unit.](https://blufflinememphisheatpumps.com/heat-pump-air-handler-replacement/)

## Get an estimate for gas furnace to heat pump

Tell us what heats and cools the house now, what's going wrong and roughly where the house is. Photos of the outdoor unit and its nameplate help.

(901) 657-2200