| Author | Message | ||
     Midnightrider |
First of all, my thanks to everyone for their good advice on my many Way Off Topic posts as I try to buy a house here in Maryland. We made a purchase offer, there was a bit of haggling, they accepted our final offer of 5K more than our initial offer (the seller came down from $625K to $500K over the last 9 months) We had the inspection yesterday - inspector found some minor things that need to be corrected by the seller - all stuff I could do but probably less than $2k if he has a professional contractor do it. EXCEPT. The house has a fuel oil furnace. New unit installed 3 years ago. The problem is that back when the house was built (1973) they buried the fuel oil tank. EPA (I'm told) now prohibits this and they estimated safe lifespan for a buried tank is 25 years. So we want it removed and relocated. Estimate is about $4K provided it was not leaking. $2500 to remove the old one, $1500 to install a new one. There is gas as the street but it has not been run into the house yet. Estimate to hook up gas is $1500. Our initial input to the seller was fix the stuff the inspector found, and pay for removing the old tank and putting in a new one. We also feel that the seller and the real estate agent (the seller's) probably new this was a problem and the agent lives in and specializes in selling homes in this 1970s development No reply from the seller yet. One of the things we wanted to do was put in a gas burning fireplace. So, since the cost for installing a new fuel oil tank is about the cost for bringing in gas, we would prefer to do that IF the cost for converting the furnace from oil to gas was not crazy. I realize that if probably depends a lot on the furnace model, but some internet sources I've checked say its often an easy and cheap conversion while others say a total replacement is needed. So what do you think? Any experience converting from oil to gas? Thanks If this works out, party at my house in Maryland for BadWebbers Thanks Don | ||
| Jaydub |
the conversion from oil to gas is easy - the big issue is getting rid of that tank - pretty sure you need someone certified to remove it, then have an inspection by the EPA or State + like you said you don't know if it ever leaked (i watched Mike Rowe on dirty jobs remove on in NJ) if it leaks it will cost more... If it was me, I'd make my current offer contingent on the tank being removed, and maybe the owner will meet you in the middle for the oil to gas conversion | ||
| Just_ziptab |
We removed two leaking 500 gallon gas tanks on the farm. The top of the tank was maybe 18 inches down. Dug down to expose it and turned the garden hose on, into the hole and floated it out. Easy as pie and cost was practically nothing. If you've got the cherries for a 500K house, what's a few more for a new furnace? My gas run cost me 50% of the $3,600.00 install, including an extension of the gas main in the street...........pissed me off enuf that I shut the gas off and heat totally with a wood burning boiler. Still waiting for them to come around and see if I have somehow looped past the gas meter. (Message edited by just_ziptab on February 23, 2008) | ||
| Midnightrider |
Thanks for the advice. Unfortunately, this isn't on the farm and Maryland knows where all the residential tanks are. Removal by certified contractors is required. Our biggest concern is protecting ourselves from potential financial disaster when we go to resell some day. Wasn't trying to brag or anything about the cost of the house - just give a reference and scale to the costs involved. When my wife and I moved down here 2 years ago, mostly to get away from NY winters, we effectively doubled our salaries. About 75% of the difference is eaten up with the cost of housing. This house, in our old NY neighborhood, might go for $175,000 in a great neighborhood. The house we currently rent in Bethesda might go $150K in upstate NY. Market price is $875K. Anything within 30 minutes commuting distance of Metro DC (where we work), that is under $400K is virtually a slum | ||
| Iamike |
I'd check on the appliance manufacturer if there is any efficiency lost by switching. We have done propane to gas before and that just entails either putting a smaller jet or drilling it out for which type of gas used. Fuel oil may be different. In this day of expensive fuel the efficiency lost may be costly. I am guessing that natural gas is cheaper than oil though. If the house isn't real tight the highest efficiency furnace is a good deal. When I switched from a 20 yr.-old conventional furnace to a Pulse, I didn't gain that much as expected. Part of that was that our house was pretty well insulated. | ||
| Oddalloy |
If that tank's a "leaker", it could be way more than $4k. Could be into mid-5-figures. They just keep digging and digging and hauling away contaminated soil until they find clean soil. If it's your house at that point, you'll have to pay to have all that contaminated soil hauled-off and disposed of in an environmentally approved manner. Translation=Big Bucks. You might consider making the sale contingent on removal of the tank, with you sharing some of the costs up to some fixed maximum, but only if the tank is found to NOT be a "leaker". If it's a leaker, you get to walk. Does the house have city water or it's own well? EPA Regs on cleanup may be stricter in areas where wells are still used, there's nearby wetland habitat, or sensitive aquifer. Just my two cents. Hope it works out for you. | ||
| Just_ziptab |
The first leaking tank we removed at the farm was about 20 feet from the well. You could see, smell and taste the gas(leaded)in the water. This was in the late 60's and Dad is 89 years old now. We did nothing for "clean up" other than not drink the water till dilution cured the pollution. I think digging up the area is mostly an economic hustle in minor leakage cases. Five figures is a rape. The dirt is still "dirty" no mater where they dispose of it. Oh well, gotta play by the regs/rules nowadays. | ||
| Midnightrider |
Yep, that's the plan. We'd like the buyer to pay the whole tab as the right thing to do, but that's probably unrealistic. Our fallback offer is buyer removes the old tank and pays for any cleanup needed. On our part, we are willing to pay for a new tank and its connections out of pocket and have that work done before the old tank is removed. Once the old tank is removed and the site is certified "clean" we'll sign on the dotted line. That way the worst that can happen is we are out the estimated $1500 for the new tank and we can walk. I figure if the buyer is so confident the in-place tank is good, he shouldn't worry about his potential liability for cleanup. Let's see who blinks first. Unfortunately we are under a bit of a time crunch here - I want to get everything done and the family moved and settled before I go back to the sandbox in May. If this all goes through, we can consider the new gas line and furnace conversion when I get back. | ||
| Xbduck |
If your headed out in May, your best bet is the way you are going. Things can move very slowly with your dig and removal phase. As far as the conversion, you didn't say if you were heating forced hot air or hot water baseboard or steam. If they installed a new furnace 3 years ago they should have had the tank looked at at that time. If they were having heating issues they wouldn't have put money into a new furnace if the old tank was causing the problems (contamination of fuel and ever increasing usage). Good luck Oh, and THANK YOU! |
