ᐅ Help: Identifying the Causes of High Electricity and Water Bills
Created on: 19 Jun 2018 01:34
S
Serina85
Hello everyone!
You have already helped me a lot before, so I’m giving it another try:
We visited a maisonette apartment for purchase: built in 1993, 4 rooms, 145 sqm (1560 sq ft), ground floor with only stairs from the private entrance to the apartment, bathroom and guest WC on the first floor, attic converted into 2 rooms. Gas-fired individual heating system from 2010 and water-based underfloor heating; hot water supplied by a condensing boiler.
The previous tenant, with 3 people living there, had the following consumption: gas 34,500 kWh (34,500 kWh) with a monthly payment of 220 €, electricity 5,500 kWh (5,500 kWh) with a monthly payment of 130 €. I find the electricity particularly high.
The roof is not insulated, wooden windows according to the building year, energy certificate for the entire building rates it as class E (162 kWh/m²/year) but actual consumption is 240 kWh/m²/year.
What puzzles me are the electricity costs. Could these be reduced by installing a new boiler? Insulating the apartment is difficult since it’s a condominium. We would have to pay for and get approval for interior insulation ourselves. I’ve heard this might not be good due to moisture issues? Would replacing the windows help? I am an absolute beginner in this. This apartment is beautiful, but with monthly building fees of 200 €, plus electricity and heating costs of 550 € only for utilities. Or is this normal for a living area of this size?
You have already helped me a lot before, so I’m giving it another try:
We visited a maisonette apartment for purchase: built in 1993, 4 rooms, 145 sqm (1560 sq ft), ground floor with only stairs from the private entrance to the apartment, bathroom and guest WC on the first floor, attic converted into 2 rooms. Gas-fired individual heating system from 2010 and water-based underfloor heating; hot water supplied by a condensing boiler.
The previous tenant, with 3 people living there, had the following consumption: gas 34,500 kWh (34,500 kWh) with a monthly payment of 220 €, electricity 5,500 kWh (5,500 kWh) with a monthly payment of 130 €. I find the electricity particularly high.
The roof is not insulated, wooden windows according to the building year, energy certificate for the entire building rates it as class E (162 kWh/m²/year) but actual consumption is 240 kWh/m²/year.
What puzzles me are the electricity costs. Could these be reduced by installing a new boiler? Insulating the apartment is difficult since it’s a condominium. We would have to pay for and get approval for interior insulation ourselves. I’ve heard this might not be good due to moisture issues? Would replacing the windows help? I am an absolute beginner in this. This apartment is beautiful, but with monthly building fees of 200 €, plus electricity and heating costs of 550 € only for utilities. Or is this normal for a living area of this size?
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Deliverer19 Jun 2018 09:18Serina85 schrieb:
... and only we would have full surface heating under the roof. I’m not overreaching by saying this is the reason.
In winter, you are basically heating the gas up to the roof.
And the electricity consumption is due to cheap monoblock air conditioning units, because there’s apparently no way to mount an outdoor unit of a proper air conditioning system on the attractive exterior wall.
The latter should definitely be approved by the homeowners’ association before installation when living under the roof. I would doubt whether the roof of a house built in 1994 would be replaced any time soon...
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HilfeHilfe19 Jun 2018 09:42Serina85 schrieb:
Thank you very much! Oh man, it looks like the apartment won’t be an option after all. There are three owners involved, and only we would have the full attic space. The wooden windows would need to be replaced, and they have a special style (half-timbered house style 🙂, is that the right term?). The homeowners’ association would have to agree, and we would definitely have to cover all the costs. As far as I understand, the roof, door, and windows are common property. Is that correct?3 owners, 2 against 3 when it comes to insulating your apartment. So I would reject it. We’re also talking about high costs that the association would have to bear.
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