Getting off gas, one appliance at a time
Almost nobody goes all electric in one go. It happens one appliance at a time, usually when something breaks, over about five years. Doing it in a sensible order is what stops you paying for the same electrician twice.
The short answer
There are usually three gas appliances: hot water, heating and the cooktop. Swap them as they die, in that order. Hot water and heating are where the money is. The cooktop is the one people are most attached to. Do not disconnect the gas meter until the last one is gone. When you do, know that removing the connection is a real job with a real cost, not a phone call. Tell every electrician what is coming next, so the switchboard gets done once.
The saving nobody mentions
The daily gas supply charge is on your bill whether you use gas or not. Getting to zero appliances is what removes it, not using less.
Order
Hot water, then heating, then cooking, then the meter. Money first, sentiment last.
Say this once
Tell the first electrician the whole plan. A switchboard done with headroom costs a little more now and saves a second visit later.
Why the order matters
The last appliance is the expensive one.
Gas bills have two parts. There is what you use, and there is a daily charge for being connected at all. That daily charge does not care whether you burned anything this month. So a home that has swapped its hot water and its heating, but kept a gas cooktop, still pays most of a gas bill for one appliance.
That is the trap in going slowly, and it is the reason the cooktop being last matters. It is the cheapest gas appliance to run and the most expensive one to keep, because it holds the whole connection open behind it.
The other reason the order matters is the electrician. A heat pump, an induction cooktop, a reverse cycle system and a car charger all connect at the same switchboard. If nobody knows the full plan, each one gets sized for the job in front of them and somebody pays for a second visit. Say the whole plan out loud on the first job, even the parts that are years away.
Check your own bill
Find the supply charge line on your gas bill and multiply it by 365. That is what you are paying each year to keep the connection, before you burn anything. For a lot of households it is the largest single number on the page.
The order
Hot water, heating, cooking, meter.
Hot water
Usually the biggest gas user in the house and the easiest to plan while the old one still works. A heat pump uses about a third of the power of a plain electric tank. It also has the most government help behind it, almost everywhere.
Why it comes here
Biggest gas load, easiest swap, largest available help. First for a reason.
Who does it
A plumber who has fitted heat pumps, usually with an electrician for the circuit.
Up to $1,960
VictoriaTwo Victorian programs stacked, for owner occupiers swapping a gas unit for a heat pump and choosing a locally made product. Other states run their own, on their own terms.
Heating
The second big one, and the one where the size of the unit is decided by how leaky your house is. Get your ceiling insulation and draught sealing looked at first. A smaller unit costs less to buy and less to run.
Why it comes here
Second biggest gas load, and the one where doing insulation first saves real money.
Who does it
A split system or ducted reverse cycle installer, with an electrician.
$5,530
VictoriaThe Victorian discount for replacing a ducted gas heater with a 22.4 kW reverse cycle system. It is the largest single job incentive we have verified anywhere in the country.
Cooking
Induction is fast, controllable and much easier to clean, and it is the swap people worry about most and regret least. The two real considerations are that it needs its own decent circuit, and that some older cookware will not work on it. A magnet on the base is the test.
Why it comes here
Small gas user, but it is the appliance holding your connection open. That is what makes it worth doing.
Who does it
An electrician for the circuit, and often a benchtop trade if the cutout has to change.
Disconnect the gas
Only once the last appliance is gone. There are two versions: a simple disconnection, and a full abolishment where the service pipe is dug up and capped at the main. Which one you need depends on your network and on whether anybody might reconnect it later.
Why it comes here
This is what stops the daily supply charge. Until it is done you are still paying to be connected.
Who does it
Your gas distributor, arranged through a licensed plumber. There is a fee and it is a real job.
The Victorian deadline
One state already has a date, and it is close.
From 1 March 2027, a gas hot water system in an existing Victorian home cannot be replaced with another gas unit when it fails. For owner occupiers that covers hot water. For rental properties it covers heaters as well.
Separately, from 1 January 2027, all new Victorian homes and most new non industrial commercial buildings have to be all electric from the start.
Both of those are law rather than a forecast, and both apply in Victoria only. If you live elsewhere they are still worth knowing. They show where the country is heading. They are also why the Victorian help is the largest we have checked. Nobody is going to pay you to install something a rule is about to stop.
Where this comes fromenergy.vic.gov.au, checked 6 October 2026energy.vic.gov.au, checked 6 October 2026
What disconnection involves
It is a dig, not a phone call.
People assume that once the last gas appliance goes, you ring the retailer and the bill stops. It does not work that way. The retailer sells you the gas. The physical connection belongs to the distributor, and removing it is a job somebody does with tools.
There are two levels. A disconnection turns the supply off and usually removes the meter, and can often be reversed later. An abolishment removes the service pipe back to the main in the street and caps it, and is permanent. Some networks and some situations require the second one.
Both have a fee, and abolishment is the larger of the two because it involves digging, sometimes in a footpath, and reinstating whatever was there. Ask for the price in writing before you commit, and ask which of the two your network requires.
One thing to check before you start. If you have gas hot water, a gas heater and a gas cooktop, there may be more than one pipe run inside the house. A plumber capping the last appliance should tell you what is left in the walls, so the abolishment quote covers the actual job.
What we couldn’t confirm
The all electric numbers we would not print.
This is the topic with the most enthusiastic arithmetic attached to it. Here is what we could not verify.
“Going all electric saves $1,000 a year”
It depends on what you replaced, your rates, your climate and whether you have solar. The supply charge saving is real and specific to your bill, which is why we tell you to work that one out yourself.
A fixed abolishment fee
It is set by your gas distributor, and there are several across the country with different prices and different rules about what counts as abolishment.
“Up to $5,000” for whole home electrification
This traces back to a trial that has closed. The figure is still repeated in sales material and there is no current scheme paying it.
Quick answers
The questions people ask next.
Do I have to do it all at once?
No, and almost nobody does. The point of the order is that each swap makes sense on its own, usually when the old appliance fails. Just know that the saving on the supply charge only arrives at the end.
Will my power bill go up?
Yes, because you are moving load onto it. The question is whether the total of both bills goes down, and that depends on what you replaced and with what. A heat pump replacing gas hot water is usually a clear win.
Is induction really better than gas?
It boils faster, it responds as quickly, and the bench around it stays cool. The two genuine downsides are that it needs a proper circuit and that some old pans will not work. Try one at a friend’s house before you decide.
What if I want to keep gas for cooking?
That is a fair choice, and it is an expensive one, because the connection charge stays. Work out the yearly supply charge and decide with that number in front of you.
Can I reconnect later if I change my mind?
After a disconnection, usually yes, for a fee. After a full abolishment, it means a new connection, which is much more expensive. Ask which one you are getting.
Does this affect my house value?
We are not going to guess at that, because it depends on the market you are in. What we can say is that the rules are moving in one direction, and Victoria has already put dates on it.
What to do this week
Two numbers and one conversation.
Tonight
Find the daily supply charge on your gas bill and multiply it by 365. Write the number down where you will see it.
This week
List your gas appliances and how old each one is. That list is the order you will actually do this in, whatever we recommend.
On the next job
Tell the electrician the whole plan, including the parts years away. It is the cheapest sentence in this guide.
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