How To Manage Your Heater in Germany
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ส.ค. 2024
- In this video, we chat about the different heating systems in Germany and how they work. Watch the full video to see how you can avoid those pesky mold spots.😉
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⏰ Timestamps:
00:00 - Introduction
01:34 - What do we mean by unofficial heating period?
03:56 - What are the official temperatures your apartment should have?
05:42 - What are the different heating types in Germany?
06:24 - How to operate the heating systems?
06:32 - Radiators
09:51 - Bleeding the radiator
11:19 - Underfloor heating
12:38 - How to avoid mold in German apartments?
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Being an older German guy I am not even part of the focus group, but you never stop surprising me with extremely well researched and holistic content that always makes me see some things from a different angle and in parts learn from it. You guys are amazing, thanks so much for you valuable work. I want to give you both a remote hug and ❤from another smoothler
I've been living in Germany for a year now, and till today im still struggling to understand all this! Hahaha! thank you ladies so so much for this excellent video! ❤
We are super happy that we were able to give you some clarity 😉
As someone who's new to Germany, I'm really glad I've taken care all of those things naturally in the past 6 months. Thanks a lot for sharing such detailed information about this topic!!!
We are so glad our content is helping you settle into life in Germany more smoothly!
Great video as always! Since I moved to Germany I've been keeping up with most of your videos and gotta say that the timing for this one couldn't be better! Thanks for all the effort you put into your content and for helping us settle more smootly 😁
I couldn't thank you enough for your content! Soo helpful, precise, and detailed, yet simple to comprehend. You both are pure gold and bring so much value to our expat life! Thank you ❤
11 months ago I was in Egypt planning to travel to Germany and thank to both of you I can have smooth move here in Germany and knowing many things without any culture shock.
This is probably the most detailed video about heating, lüften and mold prevention. Thanks so much 😊❤
Thank you so much to both of you for the great information. It's a tremendous help for me in understanding how to stay warm and prevent mold in my apartment.
I am having Mold issues in my apartment due to my first winter in Germany. This video is super helpful thanks for the detailed explanation.
What a great video! There is always something new that can be learned through your videos ♥
I just arrived to Germany a week ago and was puzzled by the radiator and how it should work 😂I even kept on playing with it and testing until it worked eventually but it took me a while, I wish I would have seen this video sooner I would have saved myself time and energy 😂
When I came to Germany, I was clueless about how to do this. It took me a lot of reading, researching to figure out how to efficiently heat and ventilate the appartment.
This is really cool of you to make this video, would benefit a lot of people coming new to Germany.
So happy to hear! Thanks for your great feedback! 😊
Thanks for the good video ... Basically it all depends on the difference between the indoor and outdoor temperature and humidity. If the outdoor humidity is more than the indoor humidity, opening your windows would allow this moist air to enter your home, raising the humidity level and creating a more favorable environment for mold and mildew growth.
Using a dehumidifier is a more effective way to lower the humidity in your home. Often people focus only on heating but not on humidity. Heater and Humidifiers have to be used properly together to maintain optimal temperature and humidity during winter.
Thanks for sharing!
Great video! I have a number of German friends who have tried to explain why Lüften is a great thing, but they never really go into detail. They usually just say "it's healthy for you!", so I continue to think that they're crazy lol. This actually makes a lot more sense!
Perfect timing! Great content as always, thanks a lot Jen and Yvonne ❤
Thanks Shiva 😊
I live in Germany almost dor a decade now. There are some things that I never really got to learn and this is one of those things. Thank you for the video
Thank you very much for a detailed yet easy to understand video.
C'est toujours a plaisir a ecoute a votre videos. Merci.
We rented a new apartment that has floor heating and the ventilation system. The insulation is also great, we turned the heating on the last week of November. The best part is that we don’t need to lüften unless we are cooking for a long period.
some more basic points: If you really have to weekly (!) bleed the radiator you have to inform the landlord, since the pressure in the water-circulation will drop over time and needs to be refilled. A WRONG (!) assumption is that humidity is the only indicator to (not) ventilate! Cold temperature has a much lower capacity for vapor (i.e. why fridges are very dry places - please fill them to avoid "vapor-invasions" and save energy). So: even if it rains outside -> continue to regularly ventilate / lüften, lüften, lüften :)
Thanks for sharing your insights!
You are doing an awesome job. I have been living in Germany for almost 3 years, and I did not know about bleeding the radiator and other details you mentioned. That is why I sometimes found the radiator not working. Thanks a lot for sharing such valuable information. I have been following you and consuming your content and products. So far, I have not found such a great channel to learn about Germany as a foreigner.
Thank you so much for your wonderful feedback! 😊
Great video. You both covered many important areas.😊❤
thanks for getting into minute details and for taking into such off beat topics, that vloggers normally ignore
Thank you for recognizing and valuing that! 😇
I've seen a couple of your videos, and i truly love how you've covered a lot of topics concerning life in Germany. Your videos are truly insightful. I've personally been wanting to go to Germany so badly, that's why i was hoping if you could do some video covering some of the most common immigration programs available in Germany for all foreigners or even student programs or Ausbildung that foreigners can take part in.
We don't cover immigration programs, but have extensive content on how to find a job in Germany, which is one way to migrate to Germany: th-cam.com/play/PLnp3hGZLHcOWdFqddbduUQMC_y_CbP2QV.html&si=nBCrdG_8SmOCCjWJ
Very useful information, thank you 👌🏻
Super useful video but I can't confess that I've remembered all the tips at once :) I will definitely ask my neighbors how they cope with humidity. Greetings from Mannheim! :)
Jajaja wooow 4 años en alemania y apenas estoy aprendiendo estas cosas jajaja gracias! Son las mejores 😁😂
Awesome video! Very informative as always! 😁
Who wants to live in 28degrees!!??
Hmm.. me?(looking left and right for fellow tropical expats)
Ok, 28 maybe a tad bit higher, but 23-25 is what I want to be "cozy".
Simply thank you!
Much needed video .. well explained
Subscribed!
Thank you for your infos.
Nice video 👍🏻 Actually I was waiting for this video.
I had one of these very warm appartments, too. Even if the radiators put to minimum value the hot water still flowed through the tubes up to the radiator and back again (not through it). This way the appartment still was heated to a good part. Some day it reached 27°C ! I like warmth but that would have been too much even in summer. Then I closed the heating main valve (often near the energy meter) and had it closed for over a year until it really got cold. But control you heating bill. If there is very low consumption they might assume an error and just estimate values ! In my case they set up values much too high and even did some very strange and false calculations which didn't make sense. I got it corrected in the end.
Bleeding your radiator should be a very rare event. If it's often needed the system has leaks.
Thank you so much for your vids
Very informative…I come from Belize..we have no clue about radiators..bought the keys from Amazon 😊..thanks!
I finally understand the difference between Germany and the US in regards to ventilation. Gracias 🙏 Greetings from Berchtesgaden.
Glad the video helped!🙂
Thanks guys, maybe you could have also included a section regarding heating bills and how much does it cost, that'd have been really useful
We have another video on that topic coming soon 😉
On this matter I’m paying by apartment mts but we honestly use less then average proof by our electricity and gas bills; but still paying the same on that one.
Hi, thank you for explaining how to prevent mold from growing. I needed something like this content last year. Can you make a video on how to remove or take care of mold that has already have grown in walls?
It depends a bit on the extent of the mold. There are sprays available to remove mold (Schimmelentferner). But most important is to find the source for the mold so it doesn't grow more or come back.
Excellent video. Did you guys change the camera for this video? The video quality feels amazing!
Hey, nice video! As a second part it would be nice to have tips to control the heating bill. I mean thing like optimim temperature, is it best to open hesting when on the house or keep it on? If there is a warm week, turn it on or off? How to check if heater and pipes are clean (and thus efficient), how often should they be professionally cleaned?
Thanks for a great and very useful video! You guys have been really helpful in my move to Germany. Even though I speak decent German, it just helps a lot to have someone explain stuff from an outside perspective.
Regarding the "lüften", I might have to go on a little rant about German building codes, I'm sorry in advance 😅
I'm baffled that it is not yet standard in Germany (and much of central Europe, it seems) to have ventilation built into the house. In Scandinavia every house (at least since the 70s or so) has some kind of ventilation built in, either an active system with fans or passive ventilation that make use of the rising heated air indoors to pull in fresh new air through vents from outside. I love Germany, but some things really make me think "wtf" 😅 Instead of making sure buildings are built to avoid mold and bad air inside, you have to manually ventilate your house through the windows several times a day regardless of the weather... I understand that this might be an issue in really old houses (which Germany has a lot of to be fair, and which also add to the charm of the country), but the fact that even brand new buildings can be built without ventilation is so weird to me.
Exactly! I really don't get why German apartments don't usually have ventilation systems, even the very simple one. I'm from Poland, I lived in Sweden as well, and in both countries the construction law requires it. Airing the apartment is pretty obvious to me, but still - this is the first time in my life I have to air the bathroom after each shower🤷♀
Thank you so much. So informative as always. Could you please explain in a different video about these digital measurement equipment attached on radiators? Or shortly guide us here?
Thanks
It tracks your heat consumption and sends it to the company that your landlord hired to maintain the radiators etc.
Gut heizen und gut lüften. Heat well and ventilate well.
behind the scenes are hilarious :D
🤣
Thanks!
Thank you! 🙏
Would you be interested in covering regulations around external modifications of flats? What I mean is, I have cats, so I plan to at least install a net around the balcony (if I get a flat with one), and ideally McGyver something that works like a blind out but is made of net or even rabitz mesh on all of the windows.
Hi, thanks for this amazing video. One doubt. Should we keep the temperature between 2-3 in all rooms including bathrooms?
you save my life!!!
I just moved to Switzerland and my rental contact explicitly stipulates that I should not turn off the heating at any point and that I should let air in by opening the windows widely on a daily basis several times. My radiators are not heating so I guess it's time to bleed the air out of them. Thanks for this great and informative video!
Should there be heat on the radiator pipes during the summer? We set them to the snowflake but the copper pipes are still very hot.
I love Jen's shirt and Yvones sweater. Now back to the video 👀
😅
"If you've never used a heater before" lmao that's me 😅
Everytime Jen talks about an issue she faced in Guatamala my heart skips a beat coz in my head I'm like " Aaaah! I understand this pain/frustration all too well"
Especially with air pollution. I think breathing the air back home took year off my life.
Well, this wasn't meant to sound like a joke, I'm sure. Both of your clothes are looking good! 😉
Great video as always, thanks a lot! I didn't realise the numbers on the thermostat corresponded to specific temperatures, thanks for explaining 🙂
I wanted to make a small comment about the Fahrenheit temperatures. You said in the video that one line on a thermostat corresponds to 1 degree Celsius or 33.8 degrees Fahrenheit, but I think it is not what you meant. 1 degree Celsius is actually equal to 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit, so rotating the thermostat by one line would increase the temperature by 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit. The confusion about 33.8 degrees comes from the fact that the freezing point (i.e. 0 degrees Celsius) corresponds to 32 degrees Fahrenheit (it is a weird scale). So 1 degree Celsius is equal to 33.8 F in the sense of an absolute temperature of 1 degree Celsius above zero (i.e. 32 degrees Fahrenheit + a change by one degree Celsius = 32 F + 1.8 F = 33.8 F). In the Celsius world, a change of temperature by 1 degree and an absolute temperature of 1 degree are the same because we start counting at zero, but on the Fahrenheit scale those are different things 🙂
Thanks for pointing that out!
My thermostats have a mind of their own: the flat is at 21C during the day even if they're set at below 2.
Thank you! This is my first proper winter in Germany, and I have been immensely confused regarding the heating protocol/rules here. Your video clarifies everything pretty well :D I have another question though. When doing Luften, should we turn down/off the heater or still maintain it at the set temp? It feels a bit wasteful to continue heating
Thanks! Yes, you can turn them down to save on energy. We don't turn them down for a 5 minute lüften though, as too much on and off is also not efficient.
Not all houses have central heating. There are a lot of houses from around the 70s with „Nachtspeicheröfen“ or decentral electric heaters.
Thanks for the amazing video! I have a question, do you turn off the heating when going on vacation? Or do you leave it on? My concern is mostly because of mold and freezing pipes
When we go on let's say a 2 week vacation, we turn them off and leave them on the snowflake so that the pipes won't freeze.
In Philadelphia, PA they cannot cut off electric or gas from Nov 15 to March 15.
We live in a new house which is almost leak tight. We also have hygrometers in every room. Our limit of the humidity is 60%. If the value is higher you have to ventilate. If it's rainy outside or summer, you of course have no chance to get the humidity down. Our house is well insulated so if the room temperature is 20°C the temperatures of the outer walls is also 20°C. In older houses the temperature may also be 20°C, but the walls can be cooler. When the wall temperatures are lower than 13°C, you have a good chance to grow mold.(we lived in an older house years ago where the room temperatures were ok, but some areas of an outer walls only had 10°C. Guess what was growing there. No chance)
If you are in a room with many people (office or class rooms) the CO2 concentration will rise, because people exhale CO2. In normal air you already have 400ppm. Above 1500ppm you get tired and sleepy. So, that is also a good reason to vent.
Thanks for sharing!
Hey, danke euch für den sehr informativen Video 😊
Ich hätte mal eine Frage, und zwar: wenn man stoß lüftet, müsste man die Heizung runter drehen? Oder soll sie auf z. B. 3 bleiben.?
Da gehen die Meinungen auseinander. Um Energie zu sparen, kannst du die Heizung runterdrehen. Wir machen es nicht für 5 Minuten, das ist uns zu viel hin und her. 😉
dehumidifier is great for a house
Thanks for the video. Do we need to clean the radiators every now and then to improve the heating?
Not sure what you mean by cleaning per se. We simply wipe the top of dust and bleed them as we describe in the video.
@simplegermany: Excellent video, gives me exactly the tips I needed. I have a question- I live in an apartment that is only few years old, has a floor heating system. I will be going out of Germany for a month, how should I ensure that no mould is formed during this time. Should I keep half windows open in the bedrooms? Or is there any other way, please suggest.
When we go on vacation we turn the heaters down to the snowflake and keep all windows closed. We ventilate well before we leave.
@@simplegermany : thank you so much for the quick reply and of course for the suggestion. I watch all your videos and also read the blogs on the website. You definitely make living my life in Germany a lot more “smoothly”. Cheers🙌
What do I do if I am not home for 3 months during winter? What is the best solution
I ran to try the bleeding process, let's see if it gets warmer 😅
Oh damn!! The dial kinda thing in my office is underground heating? LOL. Had no idea.
I played around with it to see if the lights dim or not. It did not obviously. I assumed it was broken. Apparently not :D
Glad we could answer that for you 😅
@@simplegermany Indeed. Thank you.
Would be super funny if I turned it all the way to 5 and saw people sweat :P
how different is the heating for underfloor heating! ! I have the numbers till 6 instead of 5..what temperatures do the numbers signify in this cass??
nice
😂 Titanic Scene for Humidity 👌
When you know everything about the heating that you have said, but i have a very old Bodenheizung and there is only one big valve for control outside the flat and this system could not heat up my working room more than 17 degrees :)
And that system eats gas like a Titanic
Very good video but you should do the second part.
I have mold now, what can I do to fix my walls?
If you do this I will get you five new at the very least
It depends a bit on the extent of the mold. There are sprays available to remove mold (Schimmelentferner). But most important is to find the source for the mold so it doesn't grow more or come back.
My point is coming off because of those spray :(
This was very informative, does this mean I never put my radiators on 0 during winter ; meaning all the radiators are at all times switched on above 0? Always thought my heating bill would sky rocket if I don't put them to 0 when am not using it (or in the room).
As we mention in the video, you should set them to the snowflake icon on the thermostat. As far as we know the snowflake icon has very low consumption. Putting your thermostat at 0 has a risk of the pipes freezing and then bursting. If that’s the case, you would be responsible for paying for those damages.
20 degrees is too cold for just sitting at home. 22-3 is much better
I am already subscribed. Big Fan ❤
really surprised that you guys provide such a great content but still have only 50 k subscribers..that is exactly what is called:Schade
Thanks so much for the kind comment. Help us spread the word so we can reach our 50K goal for our channel! 😉
One point, what is the best way keeping good Humidity and Temperature if we are on month long vacation in Winter?
We would ventilate properly before leaving so that the humidity is on a good level and turn radiators down to the snowflake. Since no one is in the flat, humidity shouldn't rise that much while you are gone.
Do you have any videos about people wanting to come to Germany on a job seeker visa?
I couldn't make out the humidity percentages. What are the humidity percentage ranges we are supposed to keep to prevent mold?
40-60% are recommended
4:21 i never understood the logic why Heaters cool off during the most cold period in 24 hours 😂
Because you are covered in a blanket and don’t really need it to be so warm, at least that’s what makes sense to us 😅
Does it help if you have a dehumidifier? I have one but only for my sleeping room.
We don’t have first hand experience, but guess they could help if you are really struggling with humidity and ventilating is not enough. We would not use them instead of ventilating.
How helpfull are the Dehumidifiers? 😊
We don’t have first hand experience, but guess they could help if you are really struggling with humidity and ventilating is not enough. We would not use them instead of ventilating.
When we go out for work, should we keep the radiator and floor heater ON maintaining the minimum 1/2 ? Also when its heavy snow falling, should we keep windows open everyday for min 5 mins?
Yes, you should keep your heaters on while you leave for work. We only turn our heaters down when we leave on vacation, let's say for 2 weeks or so. Well, if its snowing or raining in a way that everything gets wet inside if you open the windows that is not such a good idea. Open them, once it stops to give the air a chance to exchange.
@@simplegermany 7:29
The radiator thermostat has a snowflake symbol and then numbers 1, 2, 3 (20°C), 4 and 5. The underfloor heating thermostat has a snowflake symbol and then numbers 2, 3, a dot, 5, and 6. Does this mean the dot on the underfloor heating equals 3 on the radiator thermostat? What temperature does number 6 on the underfloor heater represent? (Just wondering why their numbering systems are different 🤔)
Should underfloor heaters be started at winter's beginning and maintained at a constant temperature (e.g., 20°C) throughout the season without turning them off until you need them? Or should the settings be adjusted, like using level 4 when home and level 2 when away, as mentioned in the above comment?
How does this impact heating costs?
What about when you are going on a vacation/away for two or more weeks ?
We turn our heaters on the snowflake in that case.
Love you
Hey Guys, i have question. Wanted to know at what mode do we need to keep the radiator when we are leaving the house in winters for like 8-10 hours for office?
That is completely normal and you leave it at the same level as you would wish to have it when you are home.
Hey guys, I follow many informative videos of yours and they are great.
If I may suggest, keeping the videos a bit shorter helps the viewer relish the info quickly and reduces your effort as well :)
There are timestamps😉
Where we should keep the knob when ventilating say for 5-10 min?
If it’s for 5 minutes we leave it as it is. If it’s for longer, we put it in the snowflake ❄️
@@simplegermany Thankyou, there has been a lot of confusion on this.
Hej From Denmark 🇩🇰
I have a question. I heard that it will cost more if you turn on and off your radiators than to keep them on at 2-3 number for most of the day or whole winter.
What do you think about that?
Yes, it’s most economical to find the right setting for you and leave it there. If we leave home for more than a week though, we turn the heaters down during our absence.
@@simplegermany Thank you for reply :)
In my Cologne Apartment - Heater is not working from 11 PM to 5 AM, Is this the norm in Germany.
Yeah, like we say, it is common for the heaters to lower itself during the night, it's called Nachtabsenkung.
What if the landlord still not fixing the heater? The apartment only has an electric heater.
As far as we know, only providing electrical heaters is allowed, as long as it is stated in the rental contract. So it highly depends on what the contract refers to in terms of heating. You should reach the min. required temperatures though also with the electrical heater. This is just our opinion, we are not legal advisors here 😊
What does the moon in the radiator mean?
It stands for the night temperature if you want to set it manually. Usually it goes down to 14 degrees.
👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽
School House Rock has a song, that says, "Three Is The Perfect Number". Search, they have a video. lol
Hey! Are the radiators here electric or gas??
Mostly gas.
❤
My landlord switches off the heating from 23 to 6 h. Is this normal?
Yes, like we say in the video, it is normal for the heaters to turn down during the night. It is called Nachtabsenkung.
@@simplegermanyThanks for your response. However, is it expected to keep the temperature at 18C after switching off for 7 hours?
I had the heater off from march 2023 till november 2023. opened the other months just periodically during the day and closed at night. Guess what . I still have to pay 300 euros to statdwerke for the yearly use. Am I being taken advantage of or wtf?
No you are not. It’s completely normal to not heat in the summer. And in wintertime heaters automatically turn down during the night. So it sounds like you heated very normally just with more effort of turning the heaters on and off (which makes them less efficient)
Easy. Put it on 2 and never touch it again 😂
And here I was thinking I'm the only one. 😅
God bless this comment! 2am and I don't have the time to figure out the temperature 😂
Take these recommendations seriously guys... Otherwise your landrod makes you pay 750 Euro for a fixing operation, like in my case... 😂❤🎉
Next video: heating your apartment if you only have a "Berliner Ofen". Huhhuhuhuhuhhu