Catonsville, MD · Member since 2016 · 41 posts · 12 votes
I am considering buying a property that was built as a two unit but is not zoned as such in baltimore CITY. I want to split the electrical. Is there any way for me to get a second meter there? Or perhaps wire two separate electrical panels to the same meter? Does anyone have experience doing this sort of thing?
No. It sounds like you are in an area that is zoned single family, and per NEC 230.2 you can only have one electrical service (i.e. meter) to your house. If you want 2 separate services/meters, usually the only legit way is to have it zoned multifamily so the city and utility companies formally recognize it as a duplex.
You may be able to install a sub panel. Check to make sure your current service has enough amperage to support whatever loads you plan on adding. Sub panels are pretty common for additions, garages, etc. Even with a sub panel, you're still only going to get one bill from the utility company.
You may want to treat the second unit as an ADU instead of a true duplex. That will make your life a lot easier from a utilities and zoning perspective. Rezoning and separating all the utilities will be extremely costly and time consuming.
The NEC doesn't care about zoning. A multiunit building can only have one service drop, that doesn't mean that it can't have more than one meter.
The city or utility might have their own spin on things, but it isn't coming from the electrical code.
Contractor · AZ · Member since 2022 · 215 posts · 185 votes
4y
No. It sounds like you are in an area that is zoned single family, and per NEC 230.2 you can only have one electrical service (i.e. meter) to your house. If you want 2 separate services/meters, usually the only legit way is to have it zoned multifamily so the city and utility companies formally recognize it as a duplex.
You may be able to install a sub panel. Check to make sure your current service has enough amperage to support whatever loads you plan on adding. Sub panels are pretty common for additions, garages, etc. Even with a sub panel, you're still only going to get one bill from the utility company.
You may want to treat the second unit as an ADU instead of a true duplex. That will make your life a lot easier from a utilities and zoning perspective. Rezoning and separating all the utilities will be extremely costly and time consuming.
No. It sounds like you are in an area that is zoned single family, and per NEC 230.2 you can only have one electrical service (i.e. meter) to your house. If you want 2 separate services/meters, usually the only legit way is to have it zoned multifamily so the city and utility companies formally recognize it as a duplex.
You may be able to install a sub panel. Check to make sure your current service has enough amperage to support whatever loads you plan on adding. Sub panels are pretty common for additions, garages, etc. Even with a sub panel, you're still only going to get one bill from the utility company.
You may want to treat the second unit as an ADU instead of a true duplex. That will make your life a lot easier from a utilities and zoning perspective. Rezoning and separating all the utilities will be extremely costly and time consuming.
The NEC doesn't care about zoning. A multiunit building can only have one service drop, that doesn't mean that it can't have more than one meter.
The city or utility might have their own spin on things, but it isn't coming from the electrical code.
Rental Property Investor · Concord, GA · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
4y
It's the meter that measures the electrical usage. Adding just panels will not accomplish anything. To divide the electrical, you need to have two meters and then each unit's wiring needs to be separated out. It's a pretty major job in most cases. It would be worth doing if the electrical needs upgrading anyway. So it would likely be one wire set coming from the pole to the weatherhead. Then that feeds two meters which are associated with their respective load centers. The type of building construction also plays into the degree of difficulty. Of course this work would need to be permitted and checking with the city is where you should begin.
The NEC doesn't care about zoning. A multiunit building can only have one service drop, that doesn't mean that it can't have more than one meter.
The city or utility might have their own spin on things, but it isn't coming from the electrical code.
Good point. I stand corrected. I've seen that before, but only on commercial buildings, which isn't really in my wheelhouse. Do you know if duplexes and triplexes are like that too?
What's throwing me off is that a lot of the older duplexes, triplexes, and quadplexes in my area have one service per meter. So a single building might have 4 service masts coming out of the roof. I assumed the only reason it was allowed had something to do with zoning, but maybe they were just grandfathered in. I'd be interested if someone has an answer to this.
I am considering buying a property that was built as a two unit but is not zoned as such in baltimore CITY. I want to split the electrical. Is there any way for me to get a second meter there? Or perhaps wire two separate electrical panels to the same meter? Does anyone have experience doing this sort of thing?
Its not ideal but I would just bill back utilities split between the two units. I live in Canton and have a SFH that functions as a duplex and I went through this whole thought process when purchasing but at the end of the day it wasnt worth the cost/headache to do two meters. It can be very expensive
Property Manager · Baltimore, MD · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
4y
You'll likely need a zoning variance from the city and that's hit-or-miss on whether it'll be granted or not. Even if it is granted its likely not worth the expense unless you're doing a major renovation anyway.
As many others have pointed out, either include electric in your rent or split it between the two units.
You'll likely need a zoning variance from the city and that's hit-or-miss on whether it'll be granted or not. Even if it is granted its likely not worth the expense unless you're doing a major renovation anyway.
As many others have pointed out, either include electric in your rent or split it between the two units.
I'm doing a pretty substantial reno to the lower unit, and i'm really hoping to get it rezoned so that I can get a use n occupancy permit, and have recourse for failed rent payments etc. I had one electrician tell me I could split the electrical during the reno, setting up two separate panels, and send them both to the same meter. and that down the line if i succeed in getting it rezoned, I can add another meter pretty easily
I am considering buying a property that was built as a two unit but is not zoned as such in baltimore CITY. I want to split the electrical. Is there any way for me to get a second meter there? Or perhaps wire two separate electrical panels to the same meter? Does anyone have experience doing this sort of thing?
Its not ideal but I would just bill back utilities split between the two units. I live in Canton and have a SFH that functions as a duplex and I went through this whole thought process when purchasing but at the end of the day it wasnt worth the cost/headache to do two meters. It can be very expensive
How are you dealing with obtaining a use and occupancy permit? My main concern with not getting it rezoned is that if I don't have it officially set up as a multifam, i won't have any recourse for failed rent payments. I may have a faulty understanding of that whole situation though