Do you have vents for the a/c? Is the heating as efficient as it can be? I had a neighbor who had heat, but she froze in her living room because the heat wasn't sufficient. I would have the heat checked by a heating company to be sure that's the best thing to do.

IMO you need to explore why they kept the baseboard heating when they switched over so gwt a pro to tell you exactly what you have going on and no the inspector is not who I would ask. I have how water baseboard heat and would never go back to forced air.

Electric baseboards are almost always going to be more expensive to run than any central system. However, if you have a heat pump as the primary source and it doesn't have its own backup heat system, I'd check to make sure that's not why they left the baseboards. A heat pump alone will not cut it on the coldest days in DC (been there, lived in Herndon for over ten years with a heat pump until they finally ran natural gas to the neighborhood).

I can't tell you how little respect for home inspectors I have. They're mostly untrained idiots who serve no useful purpose other than to extort some more bargaining points out in the home buying process. THey won't even warrant the results of the conclusions they pull out of their rectums.

See if you can find out which HVAC contractor installed the forced air system in your house. Most times contractors put their contact information on the equipment. If that is not possible then find a reputable HVAC contractor to determine what you have and whether the electric baseboard is redundant.

One of the problems with baseboard or any king of hydronic radiator heat is that if you want to add AC later, you have to air ducts etc. and if you have forced air, you can use them. HOWEVER, you may have both! So if your baseboard still works, you can use it instead of the forced air furnace. It's much quieter and more comfortable (in my opinion!).

You have to know exactly what you have. My home was built in 1970 and had electric baseboard heat. In 2000 the owners added a basement and master suite to the house. At the same time they added central air, gas heat and gas fireplace. When I purchased my home 3 years ago the electric baseboard heat was turned off, but not disconnected. Unlike most real estate transactions, the owners were here every time I came to the home. The owner's were elderly and moving into assisted living. She had Alzheimers and couldn't leave the house, He took me room by room and showed me everything he had done to improve the home over the years. He showed me where the water shut off was and where the instruction manuals were for every appliance. He also showed me video tapes of his beloved wife when she was a backup singer and dancer for the Benny Goodman Band.

He explained that they added the forced air heat and turned the electric heat off, but never got around to removing all the baseboards. They had replaced carpet the year before the addition and figured they would remove the baseboard heaters when they replaced the carpet again, but that never happened. She got sick and he was just trying to keep up with caring for her and the house.

Simply put - it was essentially defunct - he had turned the breaker off, but it was never removed. I am removing the baseboard units as I renovate each room.

Thanks for all of the responses! We have so many things to learn as new homeowners (I just googled a "mini split")!

It sounds like the overwhelming consensus is that we need to get an HVAC professional in to assess. @JAN MOYER, if we remove the covers and refinish the floors but later decide to remove the heaters, will we then have to patch the floors?

Also, it never occurred to me that we could actually get NICE looking covers! If the baseboard heaters are connected and functional I would be very happy with keeping them intact with upgraded covers. Although if they're not connected it seems the logical move is to remove them, correct?

@Jennifer Hogan our experience sounds very similar to yours -- house built in the 70s and later upgraded. We bought from an elderly couple who have been incredibly kind sharing all of the info that we'll need. They're renting back right now and unfortunately with covid we can't walk through with them, but I'll reach out and ask for their HVAC contractor's info. Thanks for the suggestion (and from @mike_home as well)!

There are all KINDS of covers: ) Nor too ugly, huh?

https://baseboardheaters.net/best-decorative-baseboard-heater-covers/

Our subdivision was built in the 1970's with electric baseboard heat. Our house had a separate Space-Pak air conditioning system.

It was very expensive to heat. In winter our friends soon learned to wear sweaters and bring warm slippers when visiting us. When natural gas lines were added to the subdivision in the 1990's, everyone converted to forced air gas, and removed their electric baseboards.

If they work, don't take them out until you've lived there through a few winters and are sure they're not needed to supplement the other heating system. Forget the "HVAC professional"; he hasn't lived there.

-- DC resident

You might get a shock when you look at the price of replacement baseboard covers! Get an HVAC company is to figure out what you have. I find baseboards ugly and inconvenient...... but that's just me.