Real Estate Agent · NY · Member since 2019 · 14 posts · 7 votes
I am going to put an offer in on a multifamily in my area but the only problem I came across is that both units are heated with oil. There is a gas meter available but I am not sure how costly it would be to convert the oil to gas or electric for each unit. Does anyone have experience doing this and how much it usually costs. This would be my first time doing this conversion so I am not that familiar. I would greatly appreciate any advice!
There are ways to convert the existing oil burning furnace to burn gas, but depending on the age of the furnace, it might be better just to completely replace the furnace. Since it sounds like the is already gas service there, it should just be the cost of popping a new furnace in place of the old one.
One thought however would be electric baseboard. Although they are not as efficient as a gas forced air furnace, they are typically FAR cheaper to repair, replace, service, etc. Furnaces have expensive repairs, need to be serviced regularly, have filtered that need changing, etc. Baseboard has none of that! The only thing to think about is to make sure you have enough space in your breaker for them. I would talk with a local electrician to get a quote on that as well as a local HVAC contractor to get a quote on installing a conversion kit vs replacing the furnace.
There are ways to convert the existing oil burning furnace to burn gas, but depending on the age of the furnace, it might be better just to completely replace the furnace. Since it sounds like the is already gas service there, it should just be the cost of popping a new furnace in place of the old one.
One thought however would be electric baseboard. Although they are not as efficient as a gas forced air furnace, they are typically FAR cheaper to repair, replace, service, etc. Furnaces have expensive repairs, need to be serviced regularly, have filtered that need changing, etc. Baseboard has none of that! The only thing to think about is to make sure you have enough space in your breaker for them. I would talk with a local electrician to get a quote on that as well as a local HVAC contractor to get a quote on installing a conversion kit vs replacing the furnace.
@Kristina Mullings - curious if you ended up converting? I'm in a similar situation myself. I've read a lot of people saying don't switch to electric due to inefficiency compared to oil and gas, but it's also seems inefficient for me to cover the heat/oil bill for 2 units.
I didn’t end up buying this but last month the oil boiler went out and we had to convert. It costs me $10,000 to do the entire replacement with included the oil boiler removal, oil tank removal, all permits, gas lines ran to the house and the new furnace. I went through the utility company and they had the best price and it wasn’t a headache. I would definitely recommend switching to gas and just having them put all utilities in their name.
@Mark J. so this was on a single family, but for 2 units I believe they will use two separate furnaces so it will be a couple thousand more for the second furnace. There usually about $2k. Also the utility companies give rebates when you convert to gas. I am getting a $1,000 rebate so if you do it I would definitely find out how much your utility company gives back!
@Kristina Mullings- thanks! I'm going to speak to HVAC contractors about options. The oil is about 2K a year so would be fairly significant saving for me.