Konek
2012-11-02 23:23:15
- #1
Good evening dear building experts,
before I explain my problem, a brief note on my living situation:
Since October 2010, I have been living in a condominium (building year of the house: 1967) with three rooms and 74m² of living space. Besides me, there are four other condominium owners who do not live in the house themselves – all other four units are rented out. By purchasing the apartment, I am bound to the decisions of the owner community – more on that later.
After the apartment was renovated (own work), I felt quite comfortable, until, unfortunately, we don’t live in the subtropics, the bitterly cold winter came. Besides a very high utility bill for 2011, I was cold, not that I am soft, but unfortunately the rooms, especially those facing the north side, did not get warmer than 14°C (the heating was running at full blast and was boiling hot)... Last year, I was so professionally occupied that I was rarely at home, in summer it didn’t matter anyway, and I also had little time to deal with the topic "How do I get a cozy warm home".
Information about the location of the apartment and the condition of the building:
- first floor, on one side the building is adjacent to another house, so relatively good insulation, on the other side the hallway
- the building is not thermally insulated
- above my apartment is an uninsulated attic (uninhabited but shared area for laundry and storage of furniture, etc.), I am separated by a reinforced concrete ceiling (estimated thermal conductivity between 2.1 and 2.3 W/m*K)
- windows from the late eighties, seals are worn out, hinges are bad, will be replaced next Friday
Before a smart aleck asks what made me move into such an apartment, I can only say: It is nice and cost (relatively) little money (I see it as a good investment).
Enough said, now specifically about my problem:
The biggest "heat problem" I see next is the attic (windows will be replaced next week). It extends over my entire living area (measured area: 80m²). The main task is, of course, that it insulates well and keeps the heat in my apartment, but also that the attic remains walkable and furthermore continues to bear heavy furniture. So I quickly discarded the idea of polystyrene insulation (do you agree with me there?)... I would like to insulate myself, thinking of Styrodur 3035 CS (correct insulation? what thickness should I use??? – – -> what do the experts say? Can I calculate the optimal thickness for myself? If yes, how?) and over it USB boards (22mm, nice and strong, can hold a lot!). Roughly, I calculated 3150€ material costs (for 120mm polystyrene + 22mm USB boards for 80m²) – surely it can be cheaper. Well, if it helps (in living comfort and of course also in heating costs), I am happy to invest. Now I found something that piqued my curiosity:
Source: Deutsches Institut für Bautechnik:
"1. According to § 10 paragraph 3 sentence 1 of the Energy Saving Ordinance 2009, the owner of a residential or non-residential building that is heated according to its intended use for at least four months annually and to indoor temperatures of at least 19 degrees Celsius is only obliged to insulate an accessible top floor ceiling of heated rooms if the ceiling has so far been uninsulated. Alternatively, instead of the previously uninsulated top floor ceiling, the owner can insulate the previously uninsulated roof "accordingly" (§ 10 paragraph 3 sentence 2 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009). According to § 10 paragraph 4 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009, paragraph 3 is to be applied analogously after December 31, 2011, to walkable, previously uninsulated top floor ceilings of heated rooms. The word "accordingly" in paragraph 3 sentence 2 means that for the alternative roof insulation the same requirement for the maximum heat transfer coefficient applies as for the floor ceiling insulation. This is also reasonable because in both cases an initial insulation is required. The heat transfer coefficient of the floor ceiling or roof must not exceed 0.24 watt/(m²*K).
2. Both facts of § 10 paragraphs 3 and 4 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009 assume that no insulation is present so far, neither on the floor ceiling nor on the roof. However, the regulation does not explicitly address the case that the upper floor ceiling is previously uninsulated while the roof already has insulation, which does not comply with the maximum heat transfer coefficient of 0.24 watt/(m²*K). In the case of insufficiently insulated roof, the question arises whether the retrofit obligation of § 10 paragraph 3 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009 – and in case of a walkable top floor ceiling also § 10 paragraph 4 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009 – applies."
Further points follow...
Could the costs incurred for insulating the ceiling be distributed to the other owners? They would have nothing from the action in the end, but are co-owners of the house (!). I fear that if I propose this at the next owners' meeting, everyone will agree but no one wants to open their wallet – in return, if I have to participate in insulation work in the basement, I also have nothing from it...
How could I best proceed here? What am I entitled to?
I am very curious about your answers...
Regards
Konek
before I explain my problem, a brief note on my living situation:
Since October 2010, I have been living in a condominium (building year of the house: 1967) with three rooms and 74m² of living space. Besides me, there are four other condominium owners who do not live in the house themselves – all other four units are rented out. By purchasing the apartment, I am bound to the decisions of the owner community – more on that later.
After the apartment was renovated (own work), I felt quite comfortable, until, unfortunately, we don’t live in the subtropics, the bitterly cold winter came. Besides a very high utility bill for 2011, I was cold, not that I am soft, but unfortunately the rooms, especially those facing the north side, did not get warmer than 14°C (the heating was running at full blast and was boiling hot)... Last year, I was so professionally occupied that I was rarely at home, in summer it didn’t matter anyway, and I also had little time to deal with the topic "How do I get a cozy warm home".
Information about the location of the apartment and the condition of the building:
- first floor, on one side the building is adjacent to another house, so relatively good insulation, on the other side the hallway
- the building is not thermally insulated
- above my apartment is an uninsulated attic (uninhabited but shared area for laundry and storage of furniture, etc.), I am separated by a reinforced concrete ceiling (estimated thermal conductivity between 2.1 and 2.3 W/m*K)
- windows from the late eighties, seals are worn out, hinges are bad, will be replaced next Friday
Before a smart aleck asks what made me move into such an apartment, I can only say: It is nice and cost (relatively) little money (I see it as a good investment).
Enough said, now specifically about my problem:
The biggest "heat problem" I see next is the attic (windows will be replaced next week). It extends over my entire living area (measured area: 80m²). The main task is, of course, that it insulates well and keeps the heat in my apartment, but also that the attic remains walkable and furthermore continues to bear heavy furniture. So I quickly discarded the idea of polystyrene insulation (do you agree with me there?)... I would like to insulate myself, thinking of Styrodur 3035 CS (correct insulation? what thickness should I use??? – – -> what do the experts say? Can I calculate the optimal thickness for myself? If yes, how?) and over it USB boards (22mm, nice and strong, can hold a lot!). Roughly, I calculated 3150€ material costs (for 120mm polystyrene + 22mm USB boards for 80m²) – surely it can be cheaper. Well, if it helps (in living comfort and of course also in heating costs), I am happy to invest. Now I found something that piqued my curiosity:
Source: Deutsches Institut für Bautechnik:
"1. According to § 10 paragraph 3 sentence 1 of the Energy Saving Ordinance 2009, the owner of a residential or non-residential building that is heated according to its intended use for at least four months annually and to indoor temperatures of at least 19 degrees Celsius is only obliged to insulate an accessible top floor ceiling of heated rooms if the ceiling has so far been uninsulated. Alternatively, instead of the previously uninsulated top floor ceiling, the owner can insulate the previously uninsulated roof "accordingly" (§ 10 paragraph 3 sentence 2 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009). According to § 10 paragraph 4 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009, paragraph 3 is to be applied analogously after December 31, 2011, to walkable, previously uninsulated top floor ceilings of heated rooms. The word "accordingly" in paragraph 3 sentence 2 means that for the alternative roof insulation the same requirement for the maximum heat transfer coefficient applies as for the floor ceiling insulation. This is also reasonable because in both cases an initial insulation is required. The heat transfer coefficient of the floor ceiling or roof must not exceed 0.24 watt/(m²*K).
2. Both facts of § 10 paragraphs 3 and 4 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009 assume that no insulation is present so far, neither on the floor ceiling nor on the roof. However, the regulation does not explicitly address the case that the upper floor ceiling is previously uninsulated while the roof already has insulation, which does not comply with the maximum heat transfer coefficient of 0.24 watt/(m²*K). In the case of insufficiently insulated roof, the question arises whether the retrofit obligation of § 10 paragraph 3 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009 – and in case of a walkable top floor ceiling also § 10 paragraph 4 Energy Saving Ordinance 2009 – applies."
Further points follow...
Could the costs incurred for insulating the ceiling be distributed to the other owners? They would have nothing from the action in the end, but are co-owners of the house (!). I fear that if I propose this at the next owners' meeting, everyone will agree but no one wants to open their wallet – in return, if I have to participate in insulation work in the basement, I also have nothing from it...
How could I best proceed here? What am I entitled to?
I am very curious about your answers...
Regards
Konek