Any advice on splitting utility meters in a duplex?

Question

Hi all! I'm getting ready to make some improvements to my duplex and a big priority is splitting the utility meters (water and electricity) because I want each tenant to be responsible for their own utilities. From a management perspective, that seems much easier. Does anyone have tips or stories they can share on splitting electric or water for a multi-fam? Thanks!

Alecia Loveless · Answer

@Jannet Matthew Make sure to get a few estimates when you do this because I just went through this with a 5 unit that only had 1 meter and our favorite “cheapest” electrician bid the project at $47,000. This also included moving the main electrical panel from a second floor apartment down to the basement of the house but the majority of the cost, $35,000 of it was for the installation and purchase of the 5 new meters and the cost of installing them.

We got 2 new bids and a second estimate from a different electrician we’ve used some came in at $17,000. So we chose him. Then after we chose him he told my contractor that we should look on EBay for the 5 meter panel because one of the major electrical supply companies has taken to putting their stuff brand new on EBay if you know exactly what you’re looking for.

So we were able to get the meters brand new for $3,000 less than the new Electrician was going to charge us lowering our bill to $14,000 plus  the cost of the meters $2400 which was extra from the labor anyway.

So our new bill of $16,400 was less than the second electrician originally bid if at because he recommended the EBay site. (The meters all have their warranties too).

Lucas Miles · Answer

@Jannet Matthew switching utilities over to the tenant can be a great to decrease expenses for a property. I don't have experience splitting water, but have done this with electric before.

Electric - Can be challenging to figure out what circuits go to where in your duplex. One way to do this is to plug in something to every outlet, turn on every light, fan etc in the duplex (both units). Turn off one breaker at a time and look to see what lost power. Once you have all this documented you should know what wire goes to what unit, an electrician can then add a new breaker panel/meter and rewire to split the electric to the 2 units. Have to check with your local laws on any permitting that is required to do this.

Jannet Matthew · Answer

Hi @Alecia Loveless! Thank you for sharing! I'll be sure to get multiple quotes but this gives me a good idea of what this type of project goes for.

Jannet Matthew · Answer

Thanks, @Lucas Miles! This was really insightful!