Water Heater & Furnace without a Tenant - OK to shut off?

[David Santore]

I recently purchased a two family and will house hack in it.  I am moved in, but will be doing some work to the rental unit before I will advertise it for tenants.  Currently, the rental unit is empty so I just shut off the furnace and the water heater to conserve oil, and frankly because there's no need for hot water and heat (currently not freezing).  It's been one week of me doing this so far.

My question is: is this OK to do in the short and long term?  Is there any precautions I should be taking, like draining the hot water tank?  The pilot light is still lit and I can turn the furnace back on if I want.

This is my first home - logically it makes sense to shut something off when not in use, but houses have so many nuances and I want to avoid a situation like "well since you shut off the furnace that cooled the insulation which then caused flaking which then clogged your air filter and yada yada your foundation broke and collapsed and there goes your investment."

[Christopher Phillips]

@David Santore

It's fine to just turn it off. Alternatively, you could put the water heater into vacation mode and just shut off the furnace.