In Switzerland, buildings are responsible for around a third of CO2 emissions. To reduce this carbon footprint, as well as its heating bill, there is a simple solution: replace the radiator valves with “smart valves” to install yourself.
The owners of the Grand Hotel & Kurhaus in Arolla, Valais, recently decided to replace the old valves on their radiators with these so-called smart valves. “There was a great reflection with the owners to think regarding reducing the cost of energy”, explains in the 7:30 p.m. Ambre Georgieff, the director of the hotel.
Ambre Georgieff can choose the temperature of the hotel rooms using an application on her smartphone. [RTS]A total of 300 taps have been changed in the 57 rooms of the resort. The new valves detect the opening of a window and reduce the temperature accordingly. Thanks to a wifi connection, they can also be adjusted and programmed remotely, via an application.
“Soon, I have an arrival [de clients] to room 109. I press [la touche de] this room. I raise the desired temperature, so generally 19 degrees”, illustrates Ambre Georgieff.
The temperature is therefore only pleasant when the room is occupied. Ambre Georgieff hopes to save up to 25% on the fuel oil bill within a few months.
“Quite easy to set up”
These connected radiator valves can be installed in a hotel, but also in an apartment or a second home. With the energy crisis, sales of such devices are exploding. Manufacturers offer do-it-yourself solutions on the internet. For its part, the Confederation also recommends these products.
“For someone who is a tenant or who has an apartment, it’s something quite simple to set up. But it’s the beginning of a solution. That is to say, it’s a beginning of savings, which allows you to optimize your way of heating. To really save, you need a whole system with the heating system and not just with the valves”, explains Fabien Lüthi, the spokesperson for the Federal Office Energy (SFOE).
Technological advances
Valve 2.0 technology is growing. Researchers at the Swiss Federal Laboratory for Materials Testing and Research (Empa) in Dübendorf (ZH) have developed an algorithm that makes these valves smart…even smarter. “Currently, the connected valves available on the market only react according to the temperature measured in the room. While our system looks almost into the future, to anticipate the temperature”, develops Felix Bünning, director and co-founder of the start. -up Viboo. This system regulates the opening of the valve according to the weather forecast, doubling the efficiency.
According to these researchers, if all heating systems in Switzerland were equipped with this technology, Switzerland would quickly reduce its total C02 emissions by around 10%.
Julien Guillaume/friend
