Individual heating meters for collective heating: how to achieve energy savings?
In the current context of environmental awareness and rising energy costs, it is imperative for occupants of apartments with collective heating to explore effective means to reduce their consumption. Heating often constitutes the main item of energy expenditures, while also being one of the most polluting. Thus, optimizing this sector can not only ease household budgets but also contribute to greater sustainability. In this article, we will examine how the installation of individual heating meters, the individualization of heating costs, and other practical tips can play a crucial role in achieving energy savings.
Caring for your apartment: acting for the environment
Being eco-responsible when living in an apartment does not exclusively involve reducing heating consumption. Although heating is a key issue, other aspects of daily life can also have a significant impact on energy use. When you need to replace household appliances such as washing machines, dryers, or dishwashers, it is wise to choose models with good energy efficiency ratings. Although these appliances may seem expensive to purchase, prioritizing more energy-efficient products can lead to substantial savings in the long run.
Regarding heating, what are the best solutions to heat better and at lower cost?
Assessing the importance of energy renovation
To ensure a more ecological and energy-efficient home, it is crucial to consider three main areas:
Insulation: A poorly insulated home results in heat loss and additional costs. Improving insulation contributes not only to the comfort of occupants but also helps reduce energy consumption. A well-insulated home means significant savings in the long term.
The heating system: Choosing the right energy source, investing in a suitable boiler, and ensuring that radiators are properly maintained are essential aspects for optimizing heating.
Ventilation: For healthy indoor air, proper ventilation is fundamental. Indeed, less humid air is easier and cheaper to heat.
Each of these solutions is interconnected. An efficient heating system can only harness its capabilities if insulation and ventilation are also adequate. However, it is important to note that energy renovation may require a considerable investment and some time before producing tangible results.
Immediate savings on collective heating
If you wish to start reducing your heating costs today, several accessible solutions are available.
Measuring and controlling your temperature
Equipping your home with a temperature probe can prove very useful. By setting heating goals, for example by adhering to the government recommendation of a temperature of 19°C, occupants can see a notable reduction in their consumption.
Daily habits
The CLER network, dedicated to the energy transition, has put together a guide containing 100 simple actions to incorporate into daily life. Most of these actions concern water and heating savings, and can be easily implemented for a positive impact.
Individualization of heating costs
To ensure that each resident of a building pays only for their own energy consumption, the individualization of heating costs (IHC) must be implemented. This involves collecting individual readings for each radiator, rather than basing charges on the apartment's floor area. This approach, which constitutes a flagship measure in the context of the energy sobriety plan, encourages each occupant to reduce their energy consumption while directly benefiting from the savings made on their bill.
Implementing the individualization of costs
With the assistance of a professional such as ista, installing devices for the individualization of heating costs is a quick task. In just 15 minutes per household, this installation is often amortized within the first year, as it has been observed that households that adopt IHC see their heating bills decrease by about 15%. The first step to applying this method is to discuss it during the homeowners' association meeting, adding the topic to the agenda so that the measure can be voted on by the co-owners.
Make your home an eco-friendlier space, even in shared ownership. Thanks to the individualization of heating costs, you can assess your energy consumption and adopt eco-responsible actions to reduce your expenses and your ecological footprint.
Individual heating meters: compliance
Since 2019, every building with collective heating is required to install individual meters to measure the actual heating consumption of each apartment. Among the various types of collective heating systems, there are gas, electric, oil, wood boilers, or access to an urban heating network. But what are the advantages? Here is a table of benefits:
Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|
Fair billing based on actual consumption. | Installation costs are often high. |
Energy savings thanks to more controlled consumption. | Complex management over the long term. |
Optimization of shared maintenance costs . | Fixed heating periods may disadvantage some occupants. |
Understanding how an individual meter works
When a building is equipped with a central heating system or connected to a heating network, each apartment must be fitted with individual meters. These allow for tracking the amount of heat delivered, ensuring a fairer distribution of costs. However, specific situations may make the installation of these meters impossible, such as technical constraints or excessive costs compared to the savings achieved.
The legal obligations surrounding heating meters
The law of August 17, 2015 cemented the obligation to install devices measuring heating consumption, allowing for a fair distribution of charges. Three exceptions exist:
Hotels and hostels.
Installation technically impossible.
Installation costs deemed excessive.
Implementation timelines
Distinct implementation deadlines have been established, favoring less energy-consuming buildings, with deadlines of March 31 and December 31, 2017, and December 31, 2019, for buildings with heating consumption below 120 kWh/m².
Sanctions for non-compliance
When obligations are not met, sanctions can be imposed on the property management, which is responsible for compliance. An annual fine of 1,500 euros can be imposed if individual meters are not installed.
Individualization of heating costs: how to proceed?
To implement the individualization of heating costs, two main methods exist:
Electronic distributor: installed on each radiator, it measures the temperature difference and allows for evaluating individual consumption.
Thermal meter: placed at the entrance of each apartment, it ensures remote measurement, although its installation is trickier in vertical networks.
Costs related to individualization
Prices vary depending on the adopted system. For example:
Distributors cost around 6 euros each, with an annual fee of about 8 euros for maintenance, totaling about 44 euros a year for a unit with 6 radiators.
Individual meters involve similar costs, with an estimated cost of about 50 euros per year.
Financial aids for individualization
Financial aids are offered to facilitate the acquisition of these systems:
CITE: Tax credit for energy transition allowing a deduction of 30% of installation costs.
Reduced VAT at 5.5% on eligible materials.
Energy savings certificates (ESC) offered by energy suppliers for certain projects.
A new billing mode in shared ownership
The implementation of individual meters allows for a new approach to managing billing for occupants. By law, meter readings must be done remotely, to protect the privacy of residents.
Distribution of heating costs
Costs are distributed among co-owners as follows:
70% of costs related to individual consumption, measured by meters or distributors.
30% corresponding to common expenses, distributed according to each co-owner's share.
Sustainability and adaptation of the system
Implemented with individual meters, billing ensures that each co-owner pays only for their own consumption. This creates a true challenge for managing energy consumption, with savings of up to 20% compared to traditional billing methods.
FAQ on individual heating meters
How does an individual collective heating meter work?
An individual heating meter activates when the temperature of the radiator exceeds that of the room, generally above 23°C.
How is collective heating billed?
The bill is based on the measured heating consumption in each apartment, whether by thermal energy meter or cost distributors.
Are individual meters mandatory?
Yes, every building with collective heating or a cooling system must be equipped with individual meters, except in certain cases of technical impossibility.
How are heating payments managed for a tenant?
Collective heating costs are included in rental charges, while the landlord covers maintenance and installation costs.
How to switch from collective heating to individual heating?
The change requires unanimous approval from the homeowners' association meeting.