The quality of hot water supply service is greatly influenced by the type DHW schemes used in the heating system. A closed DHW circuit has an undoubted advantage.
An example of the effectiveness of transferring the existing open scheme in Yekaterinburg to a closed one can be the Komsomolsky district of the city of Yekaterinburg. About the pilot project to transfer the Komsomolsky microdistrict to closed circuit GVS told the participants of the off-site meeting of the Energy Committee of the SOSPP, held on August 1 at the Academichesky Management Company representative of PTO LLC Sverdlovsk Heat Supply Company Andrey Sudnitsyn:
"Disadvantages" of an open heat supply scheme
- System district heating The city of Yekaterinburg unites 10 sources, a little over 400 kilometers of trunk and 2,500 distribution networks. This system, which uses open hot water supply circuits, has been in operation for almost 60 years. And it must be said that the quality of water at heating sources, both hot and cold, meets the requirements of SanPiN. At a number of some sources, municipal water supply water is used, and at a number of others, water is prepared to feed the heating network, for the needs of hot water supply, and is brought to drinking quality standards.
The problematic issue of the open scheme is non-compliance with temperature parameters during the inter-heating period. The point is that when quality regulation heat release for aging sanitary standards in temperatures, in particular in our conditions, starting from +8°C, the water temperature is maintained constant and here the hot water supply water consumption patterns do not always meet the requirements that are placed on them - lack of circulation, the presence of a significant number of dead-end zones.
Another unpleasant point is that the consumer cannot independently regulate the quality of this service. The operating mode of the hydraulic heating system depends significantly on the time and volume of consumption. During “peak hours” there is an increased water intake, the hydraulics naturally drop, and dispatchers have to take the necessary measures.
We will switch to closed schemes by 2022
In 2010, the long-awaited 190-FZ “On Heat Supply” was released, and in 2011 – 416-FZ “On Water Supply and Sewage”. They finally put an end to the fate of the systems open water supply for the needs of hot water supply with the following instructions: “ From January 1, 2022, the use of centralized open heat supply systems (hot water supply) for hot water supply needs, carried out by selecting coolant for hot water supply needs, is not allowed».
In compliance with the laws, we no longer issue new conditions for connecting consumers through a closed scheme. All connections are approved only according to a closed scheme and our goal is to resolve this issue by 2022. Already now it is necessary to include these points in investment programs, which need to be linked to all links of one chain: water utilities, heat sources, networks, other networks, management companies or homeowners. This is not an easy task. With the current hot water supply system, the hand is not always raised to divert funds for hot water supply to the detriment of the condition of the heating network equipment, the wear and tear of which is quite high. But I think this process will get off the ground.
To practice translation technology existing systems with the organization of hot water supply according to an open scheme to a closed one under the conditions of the existing centralized heat supply system (DHS), it was proposed to develop a pilot project for “closing” the DHW scheme in the local area of the DHS.
The pilot project will be implemented in Komsomolskoye
The pilot project was born within the structures of JSC IES. For its implementation, we chose the Komsomolsky microdistrict. To date, there is no real documentation on which to begin work on the project. Business models for project implementation are being developed.
In the Komsomolsk region, a closed hot water supply scheme was initially designed. In due time everything is there heating points were designed and equipment installed for use in a closed hot water supply system. That is, practically all the infrastructure already existed and in order to begin implementing the project, a thorough analysis of its condition is necessary. Another factor in choosing a microdistrict is proximity to a heat source - the Novo-Sverdlovsk Thermal Power Plant is located nearby.
An important criterion for choosing a microdistrict is the possibility of replication design solutions for typical objects in the city. The fact is that in the Komsomolsky district there is a significant number of technological schemes, which are used at other city facilities. And if we test any solutions here, they will be much easier to replicate and apply in the future. It is also important that the exploitation of the housing stock of the Komsomolsky district is carried out by one management company. Practice shows that when there are many owners, it is much more difficult to do something.
Brief description of the microdistrict
In the Komsomolsky district, 159 buildings have a fairly large load - 90 Gcal/hour. There is a whole range of social facilities here. As for the service technology, in thirteen central heating points the temperature is reduced to the consumer schedule and in 142 individual heating points are located in buildings where the temperature schedule is already brought to the consumer temperature supplied to the heating systems. Next, there is a selection from one or another line of the system for the needs of hot water supply.
It won't be without problems and difficulties.
Of course, we have encountered a number of problems. First of all, this is the lack of a legally prescribed mechanism for financing activities. Now we are doing a pilot project exclusively with our own money. And, most likely, the resolution of this issue will probably drag on for 2-3 years.
The difficulty lies in the disunity balance sheet systems. IN in this case three units are involved here: Sverdlovsk Heat Supply Company, municipal enterprise heating networks of MUP "Ekaterinburgenergo" and building owners. From a technical point of view, the most difficult issue will be the placement of water heating equipment in existing buildings. If this is solved in houses with a basement layout, then many buildings basements do not have and how to place this equipment - big question, although, of course, there are technical solutions that will allow you to do this.
It will also be important to solve the problem of changing the balance tap water, and in addition, finishing required quantity water from the water supply directly to the buildings. How will the water supply network cope with it? In the water supply and sewerage scheme, which has practically been developed, I hope everything is taken into account. An important point is that tap water supplied to existing hot water networks inside buildings is highly aerated and, combined with temperature, this will lead to significant corrosive wear in-house systems. It is necessary to solve the issue comprehensively using in-house systems made of corrosion-resistant materials. These can be plastic, metal-plastic, copper and other solutions. However, consumers, unfortunately, are not yet completely ready for this.
In connection with the upcoming change in the hydraulic regime, it is necessary to connect the heating networks. Since the under-return of water circulating in heat supply systems with an open circuit will be quite difficult to return to the amount of water withdrawal return pipe to heat sources. In addition, the coverage areas of heat sources will change, and in-house systems will be reconstructed.
When developing a project to “close” the scheme, it seems most likely to use the existing experience in creating a heat supply system for the Academic District, where today’s advanced solutions are applied. Of course, amendments will be made to the specifics of the Komsomolsky region.
What results will be achieved?
In the course of optimizing the heat supply scheme for the Komsomolsky microdistrict, it is planned to achieve the following results:
Improving the quality of the DHW service provided
Simplification of the payment system for DHW service
The ability of the consumer to manage the service
Organization of 100% accounting of supplied and consumed energy resources
Effective use thermal energy by consumers
Stable hydraulic mode of the heating network
Reducing corrosive wear of heating network pipelines
Large-scale, comprehensive work remains to be done to implement the pilot project. Almost all resource supply organizations of the city, management companies, building owners, and numerous contractors will be involved in this process. On the part of the authorities, it is necessary to clearly coordinate the actions of all participants in the pilot project within the framework of existing authorities.
photo: from the archives of the magazine “Energy and Housing and Communal Services of the Urals”
For space heating, closed and open heat supply systems are used. The latter option additionally provides the consumer hot water. In this case, it is necessary to monitor the constant replenishment of the system.
A closed system uses water only as a coolant. It constantly circulates in a closed cycle, where losses are minimal.
Any system consists of three main parts:
- heat source: boiler room, thermal power plant, etc.;
- heating networks through which coolant is transported;
- heat consumers: air heaters, radiators.
Features of an open system
The advantage of an open system is its cost-effectiveness. Due to the large length of pipelines, the quality of water deteriorates: it becomes cloudy, acquires color, has bad smell. Trying to clean it up makes the method of application expensive.
The heating network pipes can be seen in big cities. They have large diameter and wrapped in thermal insulation. From them, bends are made to separate houses through a thermal substation. Hot water is supplied for use and to the heating radiators from a common source. Its temperature ranges from 50-75°C.
Connection of heat supply to the network is carried out in dependent and independent ways, implementing closed and open heat supply systems. The first is to supply water directly - using pumps and elevator units, where it is brought to the required temperature by mixing with cold water. An independent method is to supply hot water through a heat exchanger. It is more expensive, but the quality of water for the consumer is higher.
Features of a closed system
The heating main is designed as a separate closed loop. The water in it is heated through heat exchangers from the CHP mains. Additional pumps are required here. Temperature It turns out more stable, and the water is better. It remains in the system and is not collected by the consumer. Minimal water losses are restored by automatic replenishment.
A closed autonomous system receives energy from the coolant supplied to the water. There, the water is brought to the required parameters. Different temperature conditions are supported for heating systems and hot water supply.
The disadvantage of the system is the complexity of the water treatment process. It is also expensive to deliver water to heating points located far from each other.
Heating network pipes
Currently, domestic ones are in in emergency condition. Due to the high wear and tear of communications, it is cheaper to replace pipes for the heating main with new ones than to engage in constant repairs.
It is impossible to immediately update all old communications in the country. During the construction or major renovation of houses, new pipes are installed to reduce heat loss several times. Pipes for heating mains are made according to special technology, filling the gap between the inside with foam steel pipe and shell.
The temperature of the transported liquid can reach 140°C.
Using polyurethane foam as thermal insulation allows you to retain heat much better than traditional protective materials.
Heat supply of multi-apartment residential buildings
Unlike a dacha or cottage, heat supply apartment building contains complex circuit distribution of pipes and heaters. In addition, the system includes control and security controls.
For residential premises, there are where critical temperature levels and permissible errors are indicated, depending on the season, weather and time of day. If you compare closed and open heat supply systems, the first one better supports the necessary parameters.
Communal heat supply must ensure the maintenance of basic parameters in accordance with GOST 30494-96.
The greatest heat losses occur at stairwells residential buildings.
Heat supply is mostly produced using old technologies. Essentially, heating and cooling systems must be combined into a common package.
The disadvantages of centralized heating of residential buildings lead to the need to create individual systems. This is difficult to do due to problems at the legislative level.
Autonomous heat supply of a residential building
In old-type buildings, the design provides for a centralized system. Individual schemes allow you to select types of heat supply systems in terms of reducing energy costs. Here there is an opportunity to mobile shutdown if there is no need.
Design autonomous systems produced taking into account heating standards. Without this, it is impossible to put the house into operation. Compliance with the standards guarantees comfortable living conditions for the residents of the house.
The source of water heating is usually a gas or electric boiler. It is necessary to choose a method for flushing the system. IN centralized systems applies hydrodynamic method. For autonomous, you can use chemical. In this case, it is necessary to take into account the safety of the influence of reagents on radiators and pipes.
Legal basis for relations in the field of heat supply
The relationship between energy companies and consumers is regulated by the Federal Law on Heat Supply No. 190, which came into force in 2010.
- Chapter 1 introduces the basic concepts and general provisions, defining the sphere legal framework economic relations in heat supply. It also includes the provision of hot water. Approved general principles organizing heat supply, which consists in creating reliable, efficient and developing systems, which is very important for living in the difficult Russian climate.
- Chapters 2 and 3 reflect the broad scope of powers of local authorities, which manage pricing in the field of heat supply, approve the rules of its organization, accounting for heat energy consumption and standards for its losses during transmission. The full power in these matters makes it possible to control heat supply organizations that are classified as monopolists.
- Chapter 4 reflects the relationship between the heat supplier and the consumer based on the contract. All are considered legal aspects connections to heating networks.
- Chapter 5 reflects the rules for preparing for the heating season and repairing heating networks and sources. It describes what to do in case of non-payment under the contract and unauthorized connections to heating networks.
- Chapter 6 defines the conditions for the transition of an organization to the status of self-regulatory in the field of heat supply, the organization of the transfer of rights to own and use a heat supply facility.
Users of thermal energy must know the provisions of the Federal Law on heat supply in order to assert their legal rights.
Drawing up a heat supply diagram
The heat supply scheme is a pre-project document that reflects legal relations, conditions for the functioning and development of the heat supply system for an urban district or settlement. In relation to it, federal law includes certain norms.
- for settlements are approved by executive authorities or local government, depending on the population.
- For the corresponding territory there must be a single heat supply organization.
- The diagram indicates energy sources, indicating their main parameters (load, work schedules, etc.) and range.
- Measures are indicated to develop the heat supply system, conserve excess capacity, and create conditions for its uninterrupted operation.
Heat supply facilities are located within the boundaries of the settlement according to the approved scheme.
Purposes of using a heat supply scheme
- definition of a single heat supply organization;
- determining the possibility of connecting objects to heating networks capital construction;
- inclusion of measures for the development of heat supply systems in investment program organization of heat supply.
Conclusion
If we compare closed and open heat supply systems, the implementation of the first is currently promising. allows you to improve the quality of the supplied water to drinking water level.
Although new technologies are resource-saving and reduce air emissions, they require significant investment. At the same time, there is a shortage of qualified specialists due to the lack of special personnel training and low wages.
Implementation methods are found through commercial and budget financing, competitions for investment projects and other events.
Yekaterinburg will become a test site for converting an open hot water supply system to a closed system. The experience of the Ural capital will then be analyzed at the federal level and transferred to other Russian cities. According to preliminary data, the Ural metropolis will require about 10.6 billion rubles to modernize the network.
New DHW mode
Yekaterinburg will become a pilot site for a project of the Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation: the city's heat and hot water supply system will be transferred from an open circuit to a closed one. This was reported by Sverdlovsk Heat Supply Company OJSC (STK, part of Integrated Energy Systems CJSC). According to the “Heat Supply Scheme of Yekaterinburg” (currently under development), capital costs for transferring hot water supply to a new operating mode are estimated at 10.6 billion rubles. However, this amount does not include the costs of rebuilding the water supply network. At the moment, the sources of financing have not been precisely determined - according to the latest data, IES-Holding plans to invest approximately 30% of the declared cost, 70% of financing is planned to be received from the state. The final sources and ratio of funding volumes will be determined by the beginning of 2015. The program is expected to be implemented before 2018. “Based on the experience gained in the Ural capital, a standard federal program will be developed, which will then be broadcast to other Russian cities. Yekaterinburg was chosen because its heat supply system is one of the largest and most complex and is in dire need of modernization due to low production efficiency, large losses within the networks and a lack of reserves for connecting new facilities,” explained STC.
As stated by the Deputy Head of the Yekaterinburg Administration for Housing and Communal Services Alexey Kozhemyako, they are now working in Yekaterinburg different systems heat supply, “the city is one of the most complex in Russia from the point of view of the heat supply system.” “One of the differences between Yekaterinburg is that it is one of the few cities where an open scheme was initially implemented. It is obvious that the city’s heat supply system needs to be modernized, both from the point of view of its current state and from the point of view of the future,” he said.
Return to pipe
As noted by the Institute of Urban Economics Foundation, in Russia open and closed DHW systems work approximately on the same scale. The advantage of a closed circuit is the quality of hot water supplied to consumer taps. In an open scheme hot water often taken from heating sources. “In many Russian cities, hot water is technical and not suitable for consumption, since, being a coolant for heating systems, it undergoes special chemical anti-corrosion treatment,” reports the Institute of Urban Economics. When transferring heat supply to a closed system, the water for circulation in the heating network is not used for the needs of hot water supply and remains in the heat supply system. And through the DHW system, consumers will receive cold water (drinking quality), preheated using a heat exchanger to the required temperature. According to the fund, transferring the system to a closed circuit brings a number of economic benefits: in particular, the cost of chemical preparation of the coolant is reduced, since there is no need to take water from the heating system for supply to the hot water supply.
The translation of the system is required by law. According to Federal Law No. 190, from the beginning of 2013 it is prohibited to connect capital construction projects with an open system. From 2022, take water from the coolant for DHW needs will be completely prohibited. As IES-Holding clarified, after the implementation of the project in Yekaterinburg, each municipality where system conversion is required will develop its own individual program for changing the heat supply scheme.
German calculation
In fact, work on the project will begin only after the end of the heating season in 2014. Currently, an audit is being conducted in Yekaterinburg to assess the volume of work and costs - for this purpose, IES has attracted Sverdlovsk region German energy agency Dena. In May 2013, IES-Holding Development Director Vitaly Anikin and Dena Chairman of the Board Stefan Kohler signed an agreement providing for the development of the heat supply system in Yekaterinburg. “The agreement provides for a technical audit of the city’s heating network infrastructure, collection and systematization of initial data on the city’s utility companies - MUP Ekaterinburgenergo and MUP Vodokanal,” the company explained. Specialists from the German agency, together with Russian energy specialists, will formulate a price and schedule for the project. However, already within the framework of the agreement, representatives of the European company inspected the facilities in the Ural metropolis. Engineers inspected the Akademicheskaya CHPP under construction, the Gurzuf boiler house and the Novo-Sverdlovsk CHPP, and energy facilities of the Sverdlovsk heating networks. The specialists were presented with general and hydraulic diagrams heat sources, pipelines and heating points of the city, as well as information about technical specifications heat supply systems.
Already at the end of June 2013, a series of meetings were held in Moscow at the central office of the IES and the Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation, where the reporting materials were reviewed. “The IES made a number of comments and suggestions regarding the materials provided. To the next meeting working group The Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation, approximately at the beginning of September 2013, plans to eliminate the comments to the agreement and sign new agreements for the implementation of the next stages of the project,” emphasized IES-Holding.
Hot time
It should be noted that in preparation for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Yekaterinburg, a number of more infrastructure projects are planned (their total cost, according to estimates by the Sverdlovsk government, is 124 billion rubles). According to the stated plans of the Russian Ministry of Sports, by 2018 it is planned to remove a number of objects from Repin Street, where the stadium is located. This list includes: the Ural Research Institute for Maternal and Infant Protection (NII OMM), the Ural State Medical Academy, pre-trial detention center-1 and correctional colony No. 2. In addition, it is planned to move the clinic of the Federal State Institution “354 District Military Clinical Hospital” from Verkh-Isetsky Boulevard (located next to the stadium). Before the start of the games, the city's transport infrastructure must be reconstructed and water pipelines modernized. “In Yekaterinburg, a 220 kV Nadezhda substation will be built at a cost of 3.2 billion rubles, more than 300 million rubles will be spent on the construction of line entries,” said the director for investments and maintaining the condition of assets of the branch of JSC FGC UES - Magistralnye Electricity of the net Ural Valery Kurzhumov.
According to Investcafe analyst Ekaterina Shishko, coordination of the IES-Holding project with other infrastructure programs may complicate the situation. “It will also take some time to coordinate the project with residents, since the cost of equipment installed in houses will most likely be financed by the population,” she notes. In connection with the modernization of the system, it is possible that tariffs for housing and communal services will increase, since an increase in the cost of hot water supply may be required to reduce the payback period of the project. “However, the system itself promises many benefits and advantages for the city residents themselves. Also, the new system will, over time, reduce costs for hot water supply and heating, which will have a positive effect on the growth of tariffs, and in the long term, growth will either slow down or tend to zero,” the expert predicts. Mrs. Shishko notes that the next cities where the experience of transferring an open hot water system to a closed scheme will be duplicated could be Murmansk, Zelenograd and Nizhny Novgorod. Also, the transfer of the system will be planned in Samara and St. Petersburg, predicts Sergei Kovzharov, asset manager of the financial company Aforex. “A number of projects are planned in Yekaterinburg that are directly related to preparations for the World Cup, so their implementation will be strictly controlled by the federal authorities. For this reason, we do not expect that the deadlines for transferring the heat supply system will be seriously delayed,” he is confident.
The problem is not publicized
Residents Rostov region There is less and less time left to transfer your apartment buildings to new system hot water supply as required federal legislation. Considering the scale of the problem and the amount of costs that the authorities obliged the citizens to bear, the time frame is very tight.
Thus, by 2022, almost 6 thousand high-rise buildings in the Rostov region should switch to a new hot water supply system. By the end of 2017, the number of houses that managed to do this will be 4.8%. That is, over the five years the federal law has been in effect, the region has managed to fulfill its requirements by 5%. The remaining 95% still has five years left.
At the same time, this problem is practically not raised at the official level, and the residents of high-rise buildings themselves, for the most part, are not at all aware that they need to change something in the water supply system. And at your own expense too...
Open and closed hot water systems
Heating and hot water supply systems in apartment buildings They are divided into open and closed, depending on the method of heating the water. In an open system, water is supplied already heated and is used not only for supply to taps, but also for heat supply, that is, the same water circulates in the radiators. A closed hot water supply system has the following operating principle: cold water from the water supply enters water heating devices or heating points installed in the house, where it is heated.
An open water supply scheme excludes water heaters, as a result of which it costs much less than closed system hot water supply.
Why do we need to know this?
Somehow it turned out that not everyone is aware that federal legislation has already banned the use of open hot water supply systems in apartment buildings for several years. With new buildings everything is simple. Since 2008-2009, they have been built only using closed systems. However, older houses that have been supplied with hot water from some kind of thermal power plant all their lives should also switch to closed systems by 2022. And at your own expense. There are no government programs with budget funding, subsidies, etc., provided here. The responsibility for implementing legislation rests on the shoulders of citizens.
It is not yet clear what will happen to houses that will not switch to closed systems by 2022. But it's unlikely to be anything good.
Why did the authorities make this decision?
Actually in transition apartment buildings There is only one drawback from open to closed hot water supply systems - it costs money.
The main advantage of a closed system is water, or rather its quality, explained the website of the former deputy head of the Rostov administration for housing and communal services, Vladimir Artsybashev. The fact is that the water that residents of more or less old houses receive through an open system is not intended for drinking.
- This process water, says Artsybashev. — Water is driven from the Don without purification, for example, to CHPP-2. There are their own wastewater treatment plants, but they are on a completely different level than at Vodokanal. It is brought to the technical level, then it is driven through the heating system, that is, through radiators, and, catching metals, dregs and other similar things, the water finally flows into the taps.
Hence the rusty or completely brown color of hot water, which Rostovites from all areas complain about every year. Yes, it is assumed that no one uses hot water for drinking, but only to bathe, do laundry or wash dishes, for example. However, it is quite obvious that this water somehow ends up in our body: someone poured it into a kettle to make it boil faster; someone was taking a bath or shower.
A closed system in this sense looks much more pleasant. Cold water, which has already passed through the treatment facilities of water utilities (which, although they are creaking, are being modernized), enters the apartment building, where it is heated. And it is not driven through the heating system. As a result, drinking water flows from both taps - hot and cold.
Since the water needs to be heated, does that mean you have to pay more for heat?
Vice versa. No one can say how much heat is spent heating water in open systems. They count according to the standards. For example, in winter, hot water should be supplied to taps at a temperature of 70 degrees. To do this, it must be heated to 80 degrees at the thermal power plant. By default, it is assumed that the initial water temperature before supply to the CHP plant is 4 degrees.
“It’s for this difference of 76 degrees,” Artsybashev explains, “that’s what we pay for.” What if the water initially arrived at a higher temperature? How to calculate all this? This is where the theory begins, and everyone - resource specialists, management companies - considers it in their favor. It is not good. In closed systems, the metering devices clearly show at what temperature the water entered heating and at what temperature it came out. The amount of heat spent on this is immediately clear.
According to him, for ordinary residents, paying for heat energy when using a closed hot water supply system is always a saving.
— I had a house under management, which I switched to a closed system of both hot water supply and heating. As a result, I achieved savings of 50% on heat costs,” assures Artsybashev, who headed a management company before starting his career as an official.
In addition, according to Deputy Minister of Housing and Communal Services of the Rostov Region Valery Bylkov, the introduction of closed hot water supply schemes can significantly reduce water consumption. Resource savings, he estimates, are 25%.
What's the catch?
Again, in the costs of refurbishment that residents will bear. As a result, the Rostov Housing and Communal Services Department admits that, at first, tariffs for the population may, on the contrary, increase.
— The cost of equipment installed in homes will most likely be financed by the population. In connection with the modernization of the system, it is possible to increase tariffs for housing and communal services, since an increase in the cost of hot water supply may be required to reduce the payback period of the project, the department explained to the site.
However, over time, reductions in heating and hot water costs will begin to “have a positive impact on tariff growth, and in the long term, growth will either slow down or tend to zero.”
The transition to closed hot water supply systems is included in the regional overhaul program. But, as you know, it is designed until 2049. Let us remind you that everyone needs to switch to closed systems by 2022. The legislation, of course, does not prohibit speeding up this process, but in this case, “the source of financing the work may be additional contributions and (or) credit (borrowed) funds,” says Valery Bylkov.
By the way, according to data provided by the Ministry of Housing and Public Utilities, in 2017 in the Rostov region, under the overhaul program, 153 houses are planned to be converted to a closed hot water supply system. The share of apartment buildings transferred to a closed scheme will be 4.8% by the end of 2017 of the total number of high-rise buildings, which, in accordance with the regional overhaul program, still have to do this. There are 5916 of them in total. For Rostov this is a slightly less serious problem. Of the 3,494 apartment buildings in the city, 1,210 already have a closed hot water supply system. However, it is quite obvious that contributions for major repairs alone, which people have already more or less come to terms with, will not be enough either in the region or in its capital.
What amounts are we talking about?
“The cost of switching a house to a closed hot water supply system depends on the construction volume of the apartment building, the number of people living in it, and ranges from 600 thousand rubles to 1 million rubles,” says Valery Bylkov.
Vladimir Artsybashev agrees with this assessment. We are talking about installing a heat exchanger and a new communal meter. This one is very complicated technological process you can't name it.
In general for the Rostov region necessary costs are estimated by the Ministry of Housing and Public Utilities at more than 13 billion rubles. This only concerns the “reconstruction of individual heating points of consumers.”
“Due to the large-scale volume of work and its significant cost, the government of the Rostov region has prepared an appeal to the Ministry of Construction of the Russian Federation with a proposal: to postpone the transition to a closed hot water supply system and increase the share of co-financing of this work from the Fund for Assistance to Housing and Communal Services Reform,” the ministry adds.
Only a fifth of the costs
However, as they say in the Rostov housing and communal services department, “reconstruction of individual heating points” is a small part of the problem.
“Cost calculations associated with the complex of works on converting the heat supply system from an open circuit show that installing an ITP is only a fifth of the costs for the entire complex of measures,” the department claims.
The problem is in existing water supply networks, which are not designed for such an increase in supply. cold water. After all, the same pipe will now supply water to both hot and cold water supplies.
— There is enough cleaning capacity. But the networks were initially designed for a smaller volume. While we are transferring individual houses to a closed system, this is not felt. And if the whole city starts working like this, then there will be a problem here,” says Artsybashev.
According to the Ministry of Housing and Communal Services of the Rostov Region, for a full transition to closed hot water supply systems, an increase in bandwidth distributing intra-city water supply networks by 75%. According to specialists from the Rostov Housing and Communal Services Department, this will require complete relocation distributing and significant relocation of main water supply networks, as well as the construction of cold water storage tanks.
On a regional scale, the ministry is still calculating the total cost of this work. On the one hand, these are already investment costs for the water utilities themselves, on the other hand, where will they get the money for this, if not from the population?
Associated costs and disappearing savings
The Rostov Housing and Communal Services Department points out a whole bunch of smaller problems that the transition to closed hot water supply systems entails.
Firstly, new equipment for heating water in apartment buildings, of course, will be installed in basements. You can't find another place. But what to do with houses that do not have basements? Technical solutions to this problem exist, but again they are costly.
Secondly, tap water is highly aerated, and when it is heated, corrosive wear of hot water supply networks inside buildings will significantly accelerate.
— It is necessary to solve the issue comprehensively using in-house systems made of corrosion-resistant materials. These can be plastic, metal-plastic, copper and other solutions. However, consumers, unfortunately, are not yet completely ready for this, the department says.
As a result, the department comes to very disappointing conclusions:
— Contrary to popular belief that closed hot water supply systems can provide great economic effect, it should be said that the only savings item that can be formally quantified here is the savings on the preparation of make-up water (an active link can be found in an understandable, but lengthy explanation for parentheses), which is offset by the costs of protecting the hot water supply pipelines inside the building. And the costs of operating individual heating points, each of which, in addition to pumping and control equipment, will also have heat exchangers, will increase quite significantly.
What's the result?
Houses that have not switched to a closed hot water supply system by 2022 are unlikely to be left without this resource in principle. The federal authorities will never agree to this and may well extend the deadline for the execution of their order. However, there is no doubt that they are serious and citizens will sooner or later have to bear these costs. The scale of the problem in monetary terms for all parties involved - from ordinary residents to management companies, water utilities and budgets of all levels - will be calculated in the next year or two.
Article 29 of the Law “On Heat Supply”, from January 1, 2022, introduces a direct ban on the use of centralized open heat supply systems. This decision was caused solely by the need to comply with sanitary and epidemiological requirements for hot water.
In accordance with the Law “On Water Supply and Sanitation,” the heads of municipal administrations and heat supply organizations are temporarily relieved of responsibility for the quality of hot water in the open systems they inherited from past times, but only if there is an action plan and an annual public report on its implementation.
The budget and funds paid by residents for major renovation, since simple energy service contracts for most buildings do not pay for themselves. The goal of this project is to ensure the transition to a closed heat supply scheme with minimal costs funds of the population and budget. Its step-by-step execution includes the following.
- Synchronization of the development of a heat supply scheme, a water supply scheme, an energy saving program and an action plan for transferring to a closed scheme.
Synchronization makes it possible to minimize the associated costs of increasing the diameters of networks and pump power, to ensure the complexity of work with unloading technical specifications for the modernization of a specific building, as well as calculate changes in costs and income of all operating organizations.
The plan for transferring to a closed scheme, in accordance with the law, is included in the heat supply scheme. It defines the necessary changes in all elements of the heat supply system, as well as a list of central heating points that are economically feasible to maintain (if any).
- Isolation of hot water supply units as part of individual heating points. To switch to a closed scheme, only DHW units are needed. The effects of their installation on consumers:
- reduction of payments for hot water when the cost of the coolant is higher than the cost of tap water;
- tariff reduction for thermal energy when disconnected from a central heating substation (where there is a central heating substation and a similar tariff solution is applied);
- improving the quality of hot water (in most cases);
- maintaining hot water temperature;
- reduction in specific heat content with excessive circulation or reduction of drains in the absence of circulation;
- increasing the reliability and reducing the cost of instrument metering.
Effects for the heat supply organization:
- elimination of losses when the coolant tariff is lower than real costs (which is observed everywhere);
- the possibility of receiving additional income from the operation of ITP;
- improvement of modes in heating networks with the possibility of connecting new consumers;
- improving the quality of the coolant with reducing internal corrosion of equipment;
- elimination of most of the existing central heating stations and hot water pipelines from them.
In terms of transferring to a closed scheme, all effects must be assessed, issues of ownership of ITP must be resolved, an economic and legal model of co-financing from various sources must be developed, with such a time distribution of work stages that allows it to fit into the maximum growth index of citizens’ payments and maintain a justified IRR heat supply organizations.Photo 1. The DHW preparation module is located under the stairs. Photo 2. Due to cramped conditions in the basement, the heat exchanger is placed under the ceiling. 
- Solutions for heating units.
The heat supply scheme must determine the need to switch to independent scheme connecting consumer heating systems. The necessity of such a solution may only be required in certain areas and is determined solely by reliability problems (high or insufficient pressure in return pipeline, variable or unsatisfactory hydraulic conditions in networks, danger of water hammer). In other zones, pump mixing (with a 150/70 schedule in combination with a hydraulic elevator) and skip control can be used.
In open heat supply systems, overheating is widespread (especially when temperature chart in the network 95/70), accordingly, consumers receive significant savings when introducing heating control at the entrance to buildings. If installing a unit with a heating boiler pays off by reducing thermal energy consumption, then in apartment buildings you can use residents’ funds (payment for major repairs, energy services). If there is no payback, either do not install the blocks, or choose a less expensive solution.
Technical solutions.
The technical solutions for ITP that are widespread today have been developed for newly built houses, in which it is immediately planned required premises. Placing heating points in the basements of existing buildings is often associated with solving the problem of flooding or lack of suitable premises. The best solution is the use of standard flat blocks, placed, if necessary, even on the ceiling. This became possible with the use of intensified small-sized shell-and-tube water heaters. When creating an ITP at the expense of a heat supply organization, to solve the problem of ownership of equipment, it is possible to place the ITP in a flat cabinet placed on the wall of the building.
IN technical projects When installing ITP, the issues of regulating the circulation of hot water must be resolved, otherwise, in some settlements, payments for hot water even increase after modernization.The problem of scale with high hardness of tap water is solved by using the above-mentioned heat exchangers, which provide scale-free operation due to the self-cleaning effect.