In Ukraine, the loss of heat in networks and residential homes are the highest in Europe. After the price increase communal amounts in the payment shocked the Ukrainians: over a year in Kiev, the cost per Gcal of heat rose from 657,24 to 1416,96 hryvnia. This year “cosmic” bills pointed to a number of problems in the heating system. Residents independently increase the heated area (to carry the battery to the balcony, attach the attic), install heat meters for apartments and does not make the testimony of metering devices. As a result, the Ukrainians have to pay for their neighbors. “Today” figured out how Ukrainians are “stealing” each other’s heat and what to do.
Heating at the expense of neighbors
Record-high bills this year have received residents of the Metropolitan street Cyril, according to “Kyivenergo”. So, for heating an apartment with an area of 88 squares had to pay eight thousand hryvnia. Found the cause of the “cosmic” bills: it turned out that in the basement of residential blocks of flats is a private clinic. According to the technical documentation, the “zero” floor – technical room and heated it shouldn’t. However, the clinic held a heating, which is actually paid by the tenants. In addition, the house was built the attic, which also increased the area to be heated. “It turned out that the actual heated area of the house is 50% larger than those declared in the technical documentation” – explain in the company.
The house was built the attic. Photo: “Kyivenergo”
House meter considers all the heat that consumed the house. After this amount divided by the number of heated area and is distributed between owners of apartments. The more flat the more you will have to pay for heating. When bills counted with the new heated space, the owners of “space bills” counted for the warmth of more than three thousand, instead of eight. For the “extra” heat will have to pay a private clinic and the owners built attic.
To determine that the neighbors are “stealing” heat, you can use the energy audit. The thermal imager shows who increased the size of his apartment by the balcony. Such “solutions” violate the energy balance of the house. As a result, adjacent the riser flats can be cold. To remedy the situation will have to install balancing valves on the pipes in the basement. Even if the radiators are not migrated to the balcony, the heated area increases, and for the “extra” squares will have to pay all the neighbors.
According to the Housing code prohibits:
- combine loggias and balconies with other spaces by sorting out the external walls (whether load-bearing or not);
- to carry on the loggia and balconies radiators;
- combine apartments vertically with full or even partial dismantling of the floors;
- in the repair process to remove acoustic insulating base floors;
- to dismantle the vents and ducts;
- to dig a cellar, build an extension to the apartments, located on the first floors of high-rise buildings;
By the way, this is not the only way you can hurt the neighbors. The most common mistake – a patchwork insulation of individual apartments. Moisture accumulates in the joints – would have mold, the walls are unevenly heated and cooled – cracks appear.
Patchwork insulation. Photo: Danil Pavlov
The owners of the apartment, which is thus insulated may be more comfortable – the room is really “warmer”. However, the result of comfort – cracks on the walls and the slow destruction of the house. The same applies to the insulation of only one wall of the house.
The pitfalls of apartment heat meters
In Kiev set the counter to warm only in apartments with a horizontal system of supplying heat such houses in the capital, about 50 thousand. Most of the buildings built during the Soviet era and have a vertical system of supplying heat – to set the meter only on the whole house.
In homes where half of the tenants put counters in every apartment, there is a serious problem. As explained in the “Kyivenergo”, the heat in this case is calculated by the algorithm: from the readings of the meter shall be deducted the total of the readings of room counters. If the apartment does not submit the statement of his counter to pay for it the neighbors.
The attached balcony can increase the amount of the payment. Photo: “Kyivenergo”
“As evidenced by the first half of the heating season, not all the owners of individual meters of heating in time to transmit their readings to the power company. So their neighbors without meters pay more for heat. After all the balance that accumulates because of the lack of indications of individual counters, distributed among the consumers who do not have individual meters,” – noted in “Kievenergo”. Amounts in the payment in such homes can achieve nine thousand hryvnia.
“As evidenced by the first half of the heating season, not all the owners of individual meters of heating in time to transmit their readings to the power company. So their neighbors without meters pay more for heat”, – explained in the company.
The potential savings are huge
Ukrainians can save billions by reducing its energy consumption, experts believe. In neighboring Poland, the heat loss is three times lower, on average, in Europe spend several times lower energy. “In 25 years of independence of Northern neighbor, we paid more than 100 billion dollars for gas, this is another GDP”, – said the Deputy head of the parliamentary Committee on fuel and energy complex Oleksandr Dombrovsky.
According to Deputy Prime Minister Gennady Zubko, the loss of gas for heating houses in Ukraine – 9 billion cubic meters per year, another 2.4 billion “disappear” in the heating system. Thus in 2017 the cubic metre of imported gas costs about 245$.
“Ukraine is the most energy intensive part of Europe. Here wasting the most resources, the loss is much greater than in countries with similar climate. Investments in energy efficiency can be called the investment a “no regrets” – says the Deputy head of the Directorate General for neighbourhood policy and enlargement Katerina Mathernova.
READ ALSO: How and why in Ukraine is carried out an energy audit
In an average year Ukraine spends $ 32 billion cubic meters of gas, and produces about 20 billion (the rest have to be purchased abroad). If you hold a large-scale modernization of the residential sector and to increase gas production, the natural gas can not be imported. Says Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, it would have strengthened the national currency to the level of 18.5 hryvnia to the dollar. “I saw a dimension that shows, if we had extracted gas to Ukraine, but didn’t buy it for hard currency, the dollar would be today, with all the problems that we have would not be worth more than 18.5 hryvnia,” — said Groisman in an interview with “UKRINFORM”.
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