ᐅ Gas Price Increase Effective January 1, 2022

motorradsilke schrieb:

By now, considering the price developments, I would think about this very carefully again.

Just recently, after shopping, I passed by a very new heat pump (installed about 8 weeks ago; I watched the technician install it) and another one that is about a year old. Despite nearby traffic noise, I could clearly hear the very new heat pump from about 12 paces, roughly 6.5m (21 feet) away; the older one, with no traffic around, was audible from about 10 paces. I don’t fly, rarely eat meat, and seldom drive, but I allow myself to be disturbed by this all-pervading buzzing-humming noise. People’s senses may be developed differently, so some might be more visually affected—for example, by a very ugly tattoo—while for me it’s sounds, and for someone else taste.

Nordlys schrieb:

Solar panel arrays produce the hot water there.

Do you know how this compares in cost to the "German approach" with renewable electricity plus a heat pump? What is the price per heat kWh there in comparison? Preferably the production cost, since retail prices always include a significant political component.
PS: Production costs for renewable electricity with a heat pump are just under 2 cents per heat kWh. Retail price is about 6–8 cents.
PSS: If we then compare these costs to the gas price, we’d even stay on topic! ;-)

The topic was not heat pumps versus gas boilers, but the price surge from Yvonne’s energy supplier. A few extreme voices turned it into a gas-bashing debate, causing some gas boiler owners to start defending themselves. However, gas boilers are a legal and common heating method, and the fact is, our boilers are there, they are not old, and it would be ecologically crazy to scrap them already. Let Nord Stream run first, then the prices will level out again. For now, I’m not worried. And the nice thing, at least about our Junkers boiler, is that it is completely trouble-free, quiet, and extremely easy to operate. Just turn it on and that’s it. That is also valuable. This sustainability craze has something almost neurotic about it; a heater is not judged by whether it somehow saves the climate, but by whether it heats well and efficiently. Its primary job is to provide heat—that is what a heater is for.

Well, the main point was that
A) the price increase so far is not due to environmental protection.
B) when building a new house, you have the option to forego it.
C) existing buildings can be retrofitted.

For many tenants, this is currently quite a burden. For home builders, not so much.

Pinkiponk schrieb:

Just earlier, after shopping, I walked past a very new heat pump (installed about 8 weeks ago, I watched the technician install it) and another one about a year old. Despite traffic noise, I could clearly hear the very new heat pump from about 12 steps away, roughly 6.5m (21 feet); the older one, with no traffic noise, could be heard from about 10 steps away. I don’t fly, rarely eat meat, and seldom drive, but I do allow myself to be disturbed by this all-pervasive humming buzz. People’s senses might be developed differently—some might be more visually sensitive, for example, to a very ugly tattoo, for me it’s sounds, and another person might be more affected by taste.

I’m looking forward to more discussions with my neighbor. Every time we have cold spells and our heat pump runs loudly all the time, and since he’s home in the dark, he always asks, “Is the pump broken?” or “Why is it so loud?” and so on.

In my opinion, these units are just a token gesture for green politics anyway.

Pinkiponk schrieb:

We will move in to the new house in about 12 months.

Us too 😉 in about 3 months.. (and more due to 30 characters)