Cold batteries in the apartment - what to do and who to call?

Residents of multi-storey buildings are looking forward to the beginning of the heating season: finally, the apartment will become warm, and there will be no need to use electric heaters. However, this situation often arises: the heat has already been turned on, but for some reason the batteries remain cold. What to do?

Expert opinion

Anton Tsugunov

Construction expert. Entrepreneur. 17 years of experience. More than 100 completed objects.

You should find out the reasons why the coolant is not circulating through your battery. Based on the information received, determine an algorithm of actions and find out where to turn. Let's find out!

Established temperature standards for apartments

The legislation of the Russian Federation provides for the supply of heat to apartments and houses with clearly established temperature standards. This is regulated by the following provisions:

GOST R 51617-2000 - in a residential area the minimum value is + 18°C, the maximum is + 25°C (for the basement, landing, etc., the standards are different);
SanPiN 2.1.2.2645-10 - recommended thermometer readings at + 20–22°C;
Rules for the provision of utility services to owners and users of premises in apartment buildings and residential buildings, Appendix 1, paragraph 15, which was approved by Government Decree No. 354 of 05/06/2011 - standards for specific rooms are outlined.

A mandatory requirement is an uninterrupted supply of coolant. But there are acceptable standards for the duration of a heat supply interruption:

24 hours within 30 calendar days;
16 hours at a time, but provided that the room temperature is not lower than + 12°C;
8 hours, if the thermometer readings do not fall below + 10–12°C;
4 hours, when the room temperature is + 8–10°C.

We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the heat transfer standards for heating radiators - a comparison table for cast iron, bimetallic, aluminum and steel batteries

How should a recorded violation affect payment for the service?

If the radiators are barely warm, where should you go to avoid paying for almost no heating?

If there is a confirmed violation of the heat supply norm, the companies providing this service are obliged to recalculate the fee for it downwards.

To do this, you should send an application to the organization, attaching a copy of the report with the results of temperature measurements taken in the room.

It is lawful to refuse compensation for costs for unprovided services only in the event of force majeure reasons for violation of the terms of the contract (natural disasters).

Causes of heating interruptions

The first thing to do is to determine the exact reason for the heating shutdown. Housing office employees or heat suppliers are required to do this. What could be the factors:

Airiness . Occurs when air was not released from the pipes and radiators when heating was started.
Impurities in water. This could be rust, plaque, sludge, etc. Most often found in houses with an old communication system, when water pipes have not been changed for more than 10 years.
Heat supply failure. Occurs when boiler houses do not control pressure. It becomes too low for the coolant to circulate quickly through the system.
Accident or water leak. A breakthrough can occur both in the pipeline and directly in the apartment.

You can try to independently determine whether the problem is local or house-wide:

In the apartment. The common riser will be warm, and the heating radiators in the rooms will be cold.
Throughout the house. There will be no heating in all pipes and in all neighbors.

What should I do if the top of the battery is hot and the bottom is cold? We determine the cause and eliminate it.

Emergency situation

By emergency we mean a case where the battery leaks. Again, if there is a tap that turns off the battery, turn it off and drain it; if not, you cannot do without calling a plumber.

The battery does not heat up

Cold water in the radiator, although the heating has been turned on a long time ago? This means there is an air lock somewhere in the system. In theory, your radiators should be equipped with a Mayevsky tap. If your battery is installed correctly (the angle in which the valve is installed should be slightly higher), then when you open the valve to bleed off excess air, only air will come out; as soon as the water starts flowing (don’t forget to immediately replace the jar), it means that the air has escaped and there is no more plug. If the radiator is installed completely horizontally, you may have to drain more water.

Who is responsible for cold radiators in the apartment and who should solve the problem?

A company managing apartment buildings or one-story buildings is obliged to provide the population with coolant and maintain communications in working order. This is what the Rules and Standards for the Technical Operation of Housing Facilities say (Section 2).

The energy company is responsible for the temperature of the coolant, the utility service is responsible for the condition of the main pipelines, and the housing maintenance office is responsible for the supply of heat to houses. Based on the above, residents should seek help from the Housing Office.

The procedure for contacting housing and communal services to solve the problem

If the radiators in the apartment remain cold longer than the time established by law, residents need to independently measure the temperature of the radiators and air in the room. This is done using special devices or a regular thermometer / thermometer.

Next steps if it turns out that the temperature is less than expected:

Writing an application. The application is drawn up in 2 copies - one is sent to the housing office (it is better to submit it in person), the second remains with the sender. The duplicate must be marked with delivery of the original to the service company. The application indicates the date and signature of the submitter (if this is a collective document, then all participants in the procedure). The body of the appeal must contain a description of the reason for the application with accurate indicators of the room temperature.
Consideration of the case. The management organization studies the submitted documents and sends a caretaker technician or engineer to the house/apartment.
Measurements. A specialist comes to the site of the problem and measures the coolant and air in the room. Additionally checks the condition of heating radiators and water supply.
Formation of the act. Carried out when non-compliance with standards is detected.

If it is not possible to submit the application yourself, you need to make a call, but be sure to write down the information about the operator who accepted the application.

Requirements for a surveyor:

a commission is created with a representative of housing and communal services;
the measurement is carried out only by a certified device (tenants have the right to request a certificate);
the temperature is determined in each room of the apartment;
it is forbidden to carry out work during the daytime, when the rays of the sun penetrate into the room (they heat the air);
installation height of the device relative to the floor - 10 cm, 110 cm and 170 cm;
the measurement is carried out in the central part of the room;
distance from external walls - at least 50 cm.

Registration of the act

The arrival specialist is required to measure the temperature and record the readings on the report form. What should it contain:

Apartment address (clearly and accurately);
Information about the owner of the premises;
Characteristics of the home - number of floors, type of insulation (if any), number of rooms;
Features of the heating system - type of radiators (material, number of sections), wiring diagram;
Temperature on the walls, in the center of the room, on the floor surface, on the radiator (zones with supply and return);
Reasons for the absence or reduction of heating.

The act is signed by all participants in the process. The document is drawn up in 2 copies. You can view a sample act by following the link.

There are situations when unscrupulous housing office employees refuse to draw up a measurement report. Resident actions:

Call your neighbors as witnesses.
Draw up the document yourself (in any form possible).
Then call the organization and call an engineer.

Three way valve

To balance the circulation of water flow in the heating system, a three-way valve is usually installed at the junction of the radiator and the bypass. Such a faucet may have the following provisions for adjusting water movement:

only via bypass;
only through the radiator;
through the radiator and through the bypass;
everything is blocked.

If the local heat transfer in such a radiator has decreased, then the three-way valve should be slightly turned in opposite directions. The scale accumulation will be destroyed and normal operation of the radiator and bypass will be restored.

If there is a leak from under the rod, remove the top nut and replace the waterproofing gasket.

Over time, the three-way valve “sticks” while in one position, and the accumulation of scale blocks the water circulation. In this case, it is advisable to replace the damaged three-way valve, since restoration will not be able to extend its service life.

What to do if the batteries are cold and the housing office does nothing?

Cold batteries in an apartment in an apartment building? Why do radiators heat poorly?

Based on the law, after drawing up a report, the housing maintenance office is obliged to respond and fix the problem within 7–10 days. If this does not happen, residents have the right to file a complaint with higher authorities.

This can be done by means of a registered letter, a document sent with a notification, or, best of all, by delivering it yourself.

General conditions for writing an application

An important condition is that the complaint must be written in 2 copies. Employees accepting the document are required to put a stamp, signature, date and assign an incoming number. The country's legislation does not provide for a uniform template for statements of this kind, so it is written arbitrarily.

What should be included in a complaint against the housing office and its annexes:

the essence of the claim is clearly defined;
evidence of poor-quality heat supply - your copy of the application, a drawn up act, etc.;
reason for lack of heating;
response from housing and communal services in writing indicating the reason for inaction;
photocopies of heating receipts - it is important that payments are made on time;
information about the owner - address, personal data, phone number, etc.;
name, contacts and address of the housing office;
the timing of the problem.

Appeal to Rospotrebnadzor and FAS

The organization specializes in protecting consumer rights (for goods and services). The consideration of the claim by the government agency is carried out on the basis of the Law of the Russian Federation No. 2300-1 of 02/07/1992.

Rospotrebnadzor employees consider citizen complaints within no more than 5 days. Then they take measures to influence the housing office.

The application may require an unscheduled inspection of the body against which the complaint is being made. In this case, the review process takes 10 days (no more).

The Federal Antimonopoly Service exercises effective influence not only on management bodies (like Rospotrebnadzor), but also on heat supply suppliers. No special samples are required for the application. The period for considering a problem in practice is about 15 days.

Local or district authorities

Most often this is the city administration, mayor's office, regional or district authority. They are also obliged to consider the claim and influence the speed and quality of troubleshooting

Involvement in administrative liability is carried out on the basis of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, Art. 7.23, which indicates a violation of compliance with standards for providing the population with public utilities. The method has a significant drawback - in rare cases, authorities deal with such minor problems.

Application to the prosecutor's office

Most often used if complaints to other authorities have not brought a positive result. A complaint filed with the prosecutor’s office is considered a significant basis for the proceedings, since the government agency is the supervisory authority for compliance with Russian legislation.

To submit an application, follow the same steps as described above, but you can additionally use the State Services website. Review time is 30–60 days.

The complaint must be filed on the basis of Federal Law No. 59 of May 2, 2006. The sample is here.

Statement of claim to court

This is an extreme measure of influence on inactive organizations. Just like the proceedings at the prosecutor's office, it is considered a highly effective method. The maximum period for consideration is 60 days. The statement of claim must correspond to the sample.

Peculiarities:

the court may request a number of other documents;
sometimes the state duty is collected from the plaintiff, but mainly from the defendant;
It is better to hire a lawyer, since the building management authorities have a lawyer on staff who can turn the situation against the applicant.

Complaint to the housing inspection

What to do if there are cold radiators in the apartment?

This is a supervisory agency responsible for the provision of public services and their quality by management companies. It is the housing inspection that controls the work of the Management Company, Housing Office, and Housing and Communal Services.

You can also request an unscheduled inspection here. It is regulated by Federal Law No. 294 of December 26, 2008. The processing time for a claim is a maximum of 30 days.

mass media

If the housing office does not respond in any way to the application and does not eliminate the problem of lack of heating, after filing a complaint with a higher authority, the residents of the apartment building unite and involve the media in the process. It is recommended to contact various print publications and television.

This is a real and effective method to achieve justice, since the dissemination of information attracts enormous attention to the problem of even higher authorities.

Government officials, in turn, begin to realize the scale of the new problem due to their own inaction, which usually results in the dismissal of major officials. This is the main reason for speeding up work and improving the quality of service on their part.

Circulation pump and coolant

It is not recommended to install a circulation pump near the last battery. This, of course, will allow this battery to warm up, but the heating of all the others will decrease significantly. In addition, when the hot water supply (DHW) is turned on, such a pump will still work.

If all elements of the heating system are in working order, you should pay attention to the coolant in the heating system . Typically, the coolant has a higher viscosity than water. Of course, there are certain reasons for using coolant in a heating system: for example, when installing in a country house. When using coolant with antifreeze, the system will not suffer from freezing.

It is recommended to change the coolant to distilled water, which will reduce the load on the circulation pump and the durability of the system as a whole.

How to properly submit an application to the authorities?

There is no standard for writing a complaint, but different management companies have their own forms and samples. The main thing is that the application meets the following requirements:

the upper right corner is intended for entering data, that is, to whom the document is being sent (name of organization), full name and residential address of the applicant, contact information is required (email address, phone number);
in the central part the word - Statement;
Below is a detailed description of the problem indicating the air temperature and the duration of the absence of heating (for greater efficiency, you can operate with articles from the current legislation);
the final part is a requirement - a request to send a specialist to check and measure the temperature;
At the very bottom there is a signature and date.

Experts recommend writing all statements and complaints collectively (if the problem concerns more than one apartment), since public appeals are usually considered out of turn.

If the temperature of the heating radiators in an apartment or house does not meet the standards, the supplier is obliged to recalculate in favor of the consumer, and the service organization is obliged to correct the violation. In the absence of reactions from utility companies, residents are able to protect their rights by filing complaints to various authorities.

The heating battery (radiator) in the apartment does not heat. What to do?

How to find out which management company services a house

You can find the phone number of the management company on your utility receipt or on information signs at the entrance. Also clarify information about the service provider using the GIS Housing and Public Utilities service. To do this you need:

Go on the website.
In electronic services, click the “Find on map” tab.
Enter your home address.
The page will contain information about the method of managing an apartment building.
After choosing a management company, you can clarify information about the organization, operating hours, address and telephone number.

Heating problems can also be solved through the emergency dispatch service in the region of residence.

One comment

Hello! Supply to the radiator - boiling water! from the radiator - cold, I don’t understand. A plumber came and cleaned the battery, the top became hotter, the bottom was warmer, but at the end it was barely warm. It was installed three years ago, is the faucet really broken inside? which is below One more point! We have a 4-story house, on the second floor the water flows from top to bottom, on the first floor there is an office below us. The plumber said that they screwed in what kind of pump, tell me, can this pump affect our heating? Or maybe they soldered some kind of faucet and closed it - and our water does not flow from the radiator down to them?

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