ᐅ Planning the Utility Room (Spacing Between Equipment)

Myrna_Loy schrieb:

Our building services engineer advised us not to plan too tightly because you never know what you might add, upgrade, or replace later. Generally, equipment tends to become smaller, but more components and technical elements are added here and there. If the new buffer tank is then 20cm (8 inches) wider but 10cm (4 inches) narrower, in the worst case you might have to relocate half of the equipment.

For me personally, that wouldn’t be an argument, but rather a very vague prediction about the future. 😀

olop01y schrieb:

For me personally, that wouldn’t be an argument, but rather a very vague prediction about the future. 😀

Well, the man has over 20 years of professional experience in the field. He must have replaced quite a few building services installations. I would at least keep in mind not to plan with just 10cm (4 inches) clearance. Our new electrical cabinet feels as big as a small house. We certainly wouldn’t have expected that ten years ago.

Danwood? 😉

Workspace in front of the electrical panel, water meter, etc. is mandatory. As for the devices themselves, you can check for yourself—for example, the Nibe installer manual shows the required clearances quite well. At a minimum, you need 800 mm (31.5 inches) of clearance in front, and 50 mm (2 inches) on the left and right sides. However, you will need an additional 300 to 400 mm (12 to 16 inches) on either the left or right side for connection equipment, valves, and so on—you can choose either side flexibly.

This means you can place the brine pipes, for example, on the opposite side, and you will likely have enough space for whatever else you need to accommodate.

P.S.: Be sure to coordinate the ventilation plan. If it’s a Danwood system, they have the unfortunate habit of positioning the distributors against the wall. This looks quite poor and also takes up a lot of space.

Harakiri schrieb:

Danwood? 😉

Workspaces in front of electrical distribution boards, water meters, etc., are mandatory. Regarding the devices themselves, you can get a good idea, for example, by checking the installer manual from Nibe where the clearances are well specified. A minimum of 800 mm (31.5 inches) is required in front, and 50 mm (2 inches) on the left and right sides. However, you also need an additional approximately 300 to 400 mm (12 to 16 inches) on either the left or right side for connection equipment, valves, and so on – but you can choose flexibly whether that space is on the left or right.

So you could plan the brine pipes, for instance, on the opposite side, and then you probably have enough space for whatever else you want to install.

P.S.: Make sure to coordinate the ventilation plan. Because, if it’s Danwood: they have the unfortunate habit of placing the distribution boards on the wall. It looks quite poor and takes up a lot of space.

Exactly, Danwood 🙂
Yes, I understand that, of course! Maybe, as you say, the brine unit can actually be placed next to the door, and instead the photovoltaic storage could go under the ventilation unit? As far as I know, the ventilation unit is mounted on the ceiling. And if you always have to access it from underneath, I probably can’t put a washing machine under there either...

I believe Danwood typically plans with the ERS 10-400, which is designed for wall mounting – as shown in your drawing. You need to be careful because the main connections run upward and are quite thick, requiring space. Most likely, you won’t be able to place anything underneath since the unit also has a condensate drain at the bottom.

However, I was only referring to moving the two “circuits” (brine pipes, cold/warm) from the left side of the heat pump (as currently planned) to the right. Placing the entire heat pump next to the door would be unfavorable in my opinion, because the brine pipes should not run longer under your slab than necessary.

We are currently in the shell construction phase, and besides the kitchen, the utility room was really the biggest challenge when it came to planning.

We submitted a very specific furnishing proposal outlining how we envisioned the furniture and the arrangement of technical equipment. Our general contractor (GC) approved our plan because we allowed more space for the technical installations than the required minimum dimensions. We initially asked the GC and their subcontractor for these minimum dimensions, but we didn’t receive them, with the explanation: don’t really plan based on these minimum sizes... So, we researched the size of the equipment ourselves online and designed the layout of the utility room (electrical installations, heat pump, storage tank, water system including softening, etc.) including our preferences for a sink, dryer, washing machine, and drying rack.

We then sent our plan back to the GC and received feedback that "this looks very good," and now construction is underway.

I understand that every tradesperson wants as much space as possible for their work, but as the client, I don’t want to waste space. For me, this is passive equipment—for example, the heat pump is something I use daily, but I don’t need to interact with it actively. Sorry if that makes installation more inconvenient, but I have no square meters to spare, and the quoted prices from the tradespeople include what I consider compensation for any difficult installation work.