| An investor I know had purchased a two family | | | | baseboards and thermostats. |
| home a few years ago. It was a detached, | | | | After doing this conversion to separate electric |
| ranch-style home with an oil fired boiler with one | | | | heaters in each apartment, he had since gotten |
| zone of heat for each apartment. At the time, he | | | | new tenants for each apartment and is now back |
| told me that he was breaking-even with his | | | | in the black. Each tenant now pays their own |
| expenses. Not too long later, he said the rising oil | | | | heating expense and the landlord is only supplying |
| prices were causing a loss and the rents he was | | | | hot water from the boiler. He has cut his heating |
| collecting was not covering the expenses. | | | | builds out completely. |
| He decided to convert the two zones of heat to | | | | He had told me that he is considering to replace |
| electric baseboard heaters in each apartment. This | | | | the boiler that still exists for the hot |
| is the way he did it: He had called his oil company | | | | water(landlord pays for the oil for the domestic |
| to come drain out his existing baseboards of all | | | | hot water) with two independent electric hot |
| the water and cap-off each zone of heat at the | | | | water heaters for each apartment. This way, the |
| boiler. He then removed the baseboards from | | | | the tenants are responsible for all utilities. The |
| each apartment with a hacksaw. The next step | | | | electric heater route also is hassle free - no more |
| was to buy electric baseboards and two new | | | | tune ups for the boiler. The landlord said it was |
| thermostats. You need special electric heater | | | | the best decision he ever made and that it was |
| thermostats to replace the existing thermostats. | | | | worth the small investment to do the conversion. |
| He had an electrician install the new electric | | | | |