by Doug Piper, Electrify Ashland Now
The shift away from fossil fuel heating in Ashland isn’t a future ambition — it’s already well underway. Local permit and incentive data tell a clear story of a community that has embraced heat pumps, supported by a growing incentive program and a decisive shift in how homeowners replace aging heating systems.
Heat Pumps Are Already the Norm
In Ashland, heat pumps aren’t an emerging alternative to gas furnaces — they’re the dominant choice. Since 2018, Ashland residents have installed 1,933 heat pumps compared to just 734 gas furnaces, a ratio of nearly 3 to 1. Year in and year out, heat pump installations have outpaced furnace installations by a wide margin, averaging 242 heat pumps per year versus 92 furnaces.
This pattern reflects national trends. Across the United States, heat pump sales have surpassed gas furnace sales in recent years as homeowners increasingly recognize that heat pumps provide both heating and cooling more efficiently than conventional systems. Ashland is solidly part of that wave — and if anything, ahead of it.
Incentives Are Accelerating the Transition
Ashland’s Energy Efficiency Program has steadily expanded its support for residents making the switch from gas to electric heat pumps, and 2025 marked a major inflection point. After hovering around 70 incentives per year from 2022 through 2024, the program issued 116 incentives in 2025 — a 63% jump and an all-time high.
The program covers three types of conversions: gas-to-ductless heat pumps, gas-to-ducted heat pumps, and gas-to-heat pump water heaters. All three categories grew in 2025, reflecting increased incentive amounts that took effect that year. With stronger financial support now in place (as advocated and promoted by the Ashland Climate Collaborative) this program is well-positioned to fuel continued growth in conversions in the years ahead.
When a Furnace Dies, More Homeowners Are Choosing Heat Pumps
Perhaps the most telling sign of the energy transition is what happens at the moment of replacement — when an aging furnace breaks down and a homeowner has to decide what comes next. For years, that decision most often meant a like-for-like furnace replacement. No longer.
In 2018, gas furnace replacements outnumbered gas-to-heat-pump conversions (36 vs. 28). By 2025, that relationship had fully reversed: 97 gas-to-heat-pump conversions compared to just 79 furnace replacements. For the first time, more Ashland residents chose to break the gas habit entirely rather than extend it.
This is a significant milestone. Furnace replacement is the single biggest opportunity to lock in decades of continued fossil fuel use — or to exit it permanently. The fact that heat pump conversions now outnumber furnace replacements means Ashland is steadily shrinking its gas heating footprint, one equipment decision at a time.
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Data sources: City of Ashland mechanical permit data; Ashland Energy Efficiency Program incentive tracking.
Editor’s Note: The assumptions in this article are best estimates available from the data sources listed above. We eagerly await reporting from Avista to determine if Ashland as a whole has increased or decreased its usage of natural gas for heating homes, water, and other appliances. We will report on this data when it is available.