Principles of energy-saving gas use: recipes and solutions from Kyivoblgaz

✅ Check the heating system. It is necessary to check the system for tightness. If there is "leakage," it will lead to additional losses. Once a year, it is essential to carry out technical maintenance of heating devices: cleaning and adjustment.

✅ Install a gas meter. Then you will pay only for the actually consumed cubes of gas. Also, a modem helps to save gas consumption — a device that helps to read and transmit meter readings automatically — you don't have to do it yourself.

❗️Don't cheat! There are still customers who try to "save money" by interfering with the meter's operation: they forge seals or try to decrease the readings of the gas meter. Kyivovblgaz notes that the facts of such interference are easily established, and those willing to save in such a dishonest way will have to pay considerable fines.

✅ If you have installed an outdated gas boiler, pay attention to the fact that it has low efficiency. Your boiler will consume an excessive amount of gas, and the house will still be cold. It is better to replace it with a more modern boiler. Such boilers have twice the efficiency, up to 112%. This will allow economical use of gas — usually, a new boiler pays for itself in two heating periods.

By the way, gas equipment can be changed at any time of the year. Equipment replacement works take several days, so you will have to compromise your comfort for a while. But the idea that equipment cannot be changed in winter is a myth.

5 rules for choosing an economical boiler

When choosing a boiler, it is necessary to consider the gas system's power consumption and technical characteristics. But there are nuances. Here are five basic rules for choosing a gas boiler.

1. The power of the boiler should meet your needs. How to calculate it yourself? There is an approximate formula: 1 kW per 10 m². Another 15-20% is added to this capacity. This is necessary for stable operation in severe frosts.
2. If you want a modern boiler, take a condensing one. Modern condensing boilers can save up to 30% of gas per season due to high efficiency. They use excess thermal energy to heat water at the boiler inlet. Therefore, the payback period of condensing equipment will be shorter than that of a traditional boiler.

And although the cost of a modern boiler is higher than that of a traditional one, they have smaller dimensions and work efficiently at light loads. For example, for heating in warm weather.

3. Heat exchanger material — how to choose? Heat exchangers of gas boilers are made of various materials: copper, steel, and even cast iron.

Copper heat exchangers — do not corrode, require less fuel for heating. But they are more expensive. Usually, imported boilers are equipped with them.

Steel heat exchangers are the most common. They are very durable but have a number of disadvantages. The first is corrosion, which can appear both internally and externally. The second is the large mass of the heat exchanger itself. Therefore, more fuel is needed to warm it up. In addition, manufacturers increase the thickness of heat exchanger walls and internal cavities, affecting energy efficiency.

4. When choosing a boiler, consider the age of your heating system. Heating systems with cast iron radiators and steel pipes with a diameter of 50 mm are often installed in private houses. With such systems, the most modern two-circuit boiler will quickly fail. Limescale forms in such pipes, which leads to clogging of the boiler. In such cases, boilers of domestic production should be installed. They are not so capricious and have a steel heat exchanger and combustion chamber.
5. 5. The fifth simple but fundamental rule when choosing a boiler — do not take boilers "with the mileage." Often, "to save money," people buy used boilers. You can save on the cost of the boiler but not on gas. Such devices have worked for 10 years and have already lost 20-30% of their power. Therefore, savings will turn against you. In addition, sometimes Ukraine does not even have spare parts for repairing such gas appliances.

You can buy new certified boilers in the nearest 104.ua Client Area. This is high-quality and modern equipment that has passed all the necessary checks.

A personal manager will help you choose the necessary equipment in terms of capacity and price, which will help save gas.

✅ By the way, in current conditions, you can save electricity by heating water not with a boiler but with a gas column. This will not only help the energy system of Ukraine in difficult times, but it will also be more profitable for your budget.

✅ Most often, heat is lost due to a poorly designed (insulated) roof. It is easy to notice: the snow on the roof melts in a poorly insulated house. If there is no snow, take a closer look at the air above the roof in frosty weather. The heat that comes out will turn into steam and distort the background. Therefore, it is better to insulate the roof.

✅ Check the ventilation. If it is old and faulty, it will take away heat from the room. And also — it will be dangerous to everyone in the room.

✅ Check windows for tightness. A small draft can lower the temperature in the room by several degrees. So, if you have drafts, seal the gaps with cotton wool or foam and plan to replace the windows with metal-plastic ones.

• Check the tightness of the door
• Check the insulation of ceilings, walls, and floors

✅ Radiators need to be cleaned, as plaque (scaling) inside the pipes can cause less efficient heating. Even in one heating season, the radiator's efficiency can decrease by 10%! In no case do not try to do it yourself, contact specialists.

✅ Install screens on radiators. In addition to being a great modern interior solution, they can accumulate and release heat.

✅ Put the heating regulator on the radiator. There are manual regulators or more progressive ones that are controlled remotely from a smartphone.

Check smoke and ventilation ducts. In the case of faulty chimneys and ventilation ducts (referred to as "CVD"), harmful combustion products accumulate indoors instead of being discharged outside. Therefore, the CVD system must always be intact and functional. To do this, it should be periodically inspected and, if necessary, cleaned and repaired.

❓ Who can check the chimney and ventilation duct in my house?

This is done either by the owners of the apartment themselves or by the balance keepers — in apartment buildings. You can find a list of companies that have the authority to carry out such work in the Kyiv region here.

❓ How often should chimneys and ventilation ducts be checked?

• Chimneys of heating furnaces, capacious gas water heaters, and heating boilers that work seasonally are checked once a year before the start of the heating season.
• If such devices work all year round, an inspection is required twice a year (in spring and autumn).
• Chimneys of heating and cooking stoves — at least twice a year: before the beginning and after the end of the heating season.

❓An interesting fact — if a gas boiler is not serviced regularly, its efficiency can decrease by 40%.

For new equipment, the frequency of maintenance in the first 5 years of operation is essential. If the requirements established by the manufacturing plant are followed, the equipment is serviced once a year — the efficiency loss is minimal.

Each customer wants his gas equipment to work without interruption, with minimal loss of the efficiency factor set by the manufacturer. To do this, it is enough to sign a service contract with a personal manager at 104.ua Client space. Kyivoblgaz provides maintenance services for gas networks and equipment.

✅ When cooking on a gas stove, ensure that the pans' volume and size correspond to the diameter of the burner. The flame should not go beyond the pot or pan; this will help to use blue fuel sparingly.

❗️ "Kyivovblgaz" also emphasized that many people's habit of heating the premises with a gas oven and stove, turning all the valves to the maximum, is extremely dangerous.