What to Do: Tenant and Heating Unit

Question

Hello, BP community!Reaching out for advice on how to handle the following situation: My tenant turned off his heat for the weekend—temperatures are in the low 50s nowadays, as low as high 20s at night—while away on vacation. Before doing so, the heating unit, while old (30 years), was functioning fine and often—he kept the house in the 70s without issue.When he got back, he turned the heat on, and it worked for a couple days before he relayed that there wasn’t any warm air coming through the vents and thought he smelled natural gas.My questions: How would you proceed, if you were in this situation? (I.e., from corresponding with the tenant to having someone evaluate the heating unit, etc.)My main concern isn’t the heating unit but rather the pipes, as we move into frigid season, and any adjacent damage caused by one bursting. (Perhaps that’s a non-concern to more experienced landlords, however!)Any insights are welcome! Thank you!!

Keane Schmidt · Answer

Hi, @Scott M.:

Thank you for the feedback!—It sounds like I’m on the right track: Heat is currently off, a contractor is stopping out this morning to evaluate, and I have conveyed to the tenant that heat must be kept above 55 degrees, at minimum, per lease terms.If any other tips, please feel free to send them my way. Otherwise, thank you for your time!

Scott M. · Answer

If heat isn't coming through and he smells gas you need to get off the internet and deal with this.  If you lease doesn't require heat to be kept on in the winter, you need to change your lease template to include it and that the tenant will be responsible for damages if they don't.  Regardless of in lease or not you need to tell or remind the tenant that heat must be kept on to prevent pipes from freezing.

Scott M. · Answer

If not in your lease and your state allows for an addendum to be added, I would add one since he has a history of turning it off.

Joe Splitrock · Answer

@Keane Schmidt if the temperature is 50 outside during the day and the starting temperature was in the 70's, it is doubtful the temperature even dropped down to 55 inside the property while he was gone for the weekend. A tenant should never turn the heat off, but they can turn the dial down while on vacation. I believe our lease says 60F or 65F during the winter, but 55F is fine.

We also tell tenants if they are gone on vacation in the winter, that they need to have someone check on their property every 3 days. We offer to check on the property for them if they notify us. They can also turn off the water and open the faucets if they are gone for more than a week. This drains most the water out of the pipes.

If the tenant smells natural gas, you must have him turn off the furnace and contact the gas company immediately or an HVAC professional immediately. The gas company will come out for free to do an audit, so that is a good choice if you are not sure of the source of gas. Whenever you smell natural gas, it is not safe to be inside the property. Think of your liability whenever a tenant reports a safety issue.

The cause of gas can be from multiple things. Sometimes a furnace will keep trying to start. Each time it tries, some gas leaks out. This could be as simple as a sensor or ignition related. It could also be a cracked heat exchanger, which requires replacement of the furnace.

A furnace will last 20 years on average. At 30 years, you are most likely looking at replacement in the near future. I have one 40 year old furnace in a property, but that is pretty uncommon. Any old furnace should be cleaned and inspected on a regular basis. Cracked heat exchangers can leak carbon monoxide, which is odorless and deadly. I would also make sure the property has a CO detector installed.

Julie Hartman · Answer

@Keane Schmidt Similar to what @Scott M. said, you need to have a clause in your lease about the HVAC system. Specifically, the heat may not be turned below X temperature in the winter, even if you are not home. I would also invoke the "common sense" clause and tell the tenant that he should be using common sense in these circumstances. Everyone knows not to turn the heat off during the winter. If he does it again, he may be held responsible for frozen pipes. I would also tell him to keep his cabinet doors open when he's not home to allow the warm air to circulate around the piping.

What to Do: Tenant and Heating Unit

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