Am I really paying $90 to cook dinner twice a week?

May 23, 2008 4:34 PM

Paying for gas to light the boiler pilot lights in a NYC apartment?

So, we've been having a lot of issues with Con Ed. They've been reading our gas usage at 44 therms a month. That's a lot for just a gas stove, even they say that. Their explanation is that the gas meter for the boiler and furnace pilots are not separate from our meter (there are only two meters in the basement, and two apartments) and that we're paying for gas every time the boiler is used. The landlord says "Oh no no no, we have oil heat, you're not paying anything." This is the third month in a row with this level of gas usage. What do we do now? Go to the broker we got the apartment through? In New York City, have a lease that says that we don't pay for heat or water.

posted by blueskiesinside to law & government (8 comments total)

Hm. Is it worth it to pay a repair guy to come out and figure out which pipes go where? If he confirms that Con Ed's story doesn't work and can't explain where the extra gas is going, then maybe tell Con Ed that you're concerned there's a gas leak?
posted by winston at 5:05 PM on May 23, 2008

When you say boiler, do you mean the hot water heater?
posted by gjc at 6:26 PM on May 23, 2008

gjc: yes, the hot water heater.
winston: The ConEd guys have looked at the meters and have compared our usage to the other apartment's and checked for leaks. The phone support people and the meter reader both agreed on the problem. And, the landlord won't give us access to the meters.
posted by blueskiesinside at 7:54 PM on May 23, 2008

Are there two heaters, one for each unit? Or just one for both units?

If there are two, chances are good that you are just paying for heating your water. If there's one, chances are good that you are paying for both units' hot water.

When they say that you do pay for gas, but not heat or water, I interpret that to mean you DO pay for the gas to heat the hot water.
posted by gjc at 8:25 AM on May 24, 2008

Oh no no no, we have oil heat, you're not paying anything.

I would expect that the water heater IS heated by gas.

Boiler: Heats water which circulates through radiators or is turned into steam for radiators.
Furnace: Heats air that circulates through ducts.
Water heater: Heats water for occupant use.

Is the other tenant getting a gas bill?

I thought that if a utility was not metered separately for units, then the landlord had to have the utility account and build avg cost into the rent.
posted by desuetude at 11:35 AM on May 24, 2008

The other tenant has a separate gas meter and bill that reflects significantly less usage than ours does. I think I need to call Con Ed and ask them about this *again*.
posted by blueskiesinside at 1:16 PM on May 24, 2008

In my experience (my family's in NYC real estate) most NYC buildings' boilers burn #2 oil.

How about blowing out your oven's pilot light on 1 June and using a stove-lighter for the month? Then if you have any gas charges above those incurred while actually cooking you know there's something else going on.
posted by nicwolff at 1:28 PM on May 24, 2008

Re: nicwolff
Or just shut off gas to your stove and eat those two meals a week out. There should be a valve on the gas line that goes into your stove.

Maybe you can cancel the gas and use the $90 a month to eat out. Get a toaster oven, microwave and a hot water kettel if you need to heat up left overs.

Wait, are you just looking for an excuse to eat out for every meal?
posted by bdc34 at 12:29 PM on May 27, 2008