District heating network vonrickenbach.swiss ag.
Cosy, healthy warmth from the district heating network
For almost 30 years, vonrickenbachswiss.ag has been producing thermal energy with waste wood from its solid wood processing. The company’s own district heating network supplies around 300 residential units and various commercial enterprises in Muotathal. We interviewed energy users about their decision to connect to the district heating network and their experiences with it.
von Rickenbach Energy - Respectful use of natural resources
For almost 30 years, vonrickenbach.swiss has been using all the waste wood from solid wood processing to produce thermal energy, which is used to supply 300 residential units and various commercial enterprises in Muotathal with its own district heating network. In small and large stages, the energy division of vonrickenbach.swiss ag has been continuously expanded over the last few years into an independent business division which now contributes significantly to the continued operation of the company.
DISTRICT HEATING AND ITS ADVANTAGES
Heating with district heating is a simple concept. The thermal energy is being conducted from a central location in the form of hot water in well-insulated pipes to the buildings to be heated, there it reaches the living spaces via a heat exchanger.
Since mainly renewable energy sources are used, district heating networks help to reduce heat-related CO2 emissions and are therefore ecological and sustainable. Thanks to the size of the heat generator, pollutant emissions can also be reduced to a minimum.
SAFE AND EFFICIENT
A district heating connection is an uncomplicated and carefree heat supply. The users do not need to worry about fuel deliveries, furnace inspections or maintenance work. The room in the basement where an oil tank may have stood before can now be used as a hobby room, and visits from the chimney sweep are a thing of the past. In addition, the heat supply is always guaranteed, as district heating systems can be operated with various energy sources.
Green energy from your hometown
In 1994, the first stage of today’s vonrickenbachswiss.ag district heating network was created in Muotathal. In the following years, several smaller and larger expansions, and developments of residential units in the village followed. In 2018, an investment was made in a combined heat and power plant, which enabled the further expansion of the district heating network and the ecological production of electricity.
Especially during the cold season, there is nothing better than being in a comfortably warm home with pleasant temperatures and not even having to worry about replenishing heat energy yourself. If given the possibility, many homeowners today decide to connect to a heating network.
This also applies to our two energy users, who shared with us in a personal interview what motivated them to connect to the heating network and what their experiences have been.
B. Schelbert
Convinced energy users
Self-employed entrepreneur and energy user Muothathal
TVR: Mr. Schelbert, what made you decide to connect to the district heating network back then?
BS: Our oil tank was getting on in years and needed to be replaced. I only heard positive things from my sister, who was already connected to the district heating network of vonrickenbach.swiss ag, which led me to also connect our property with four flats and two commercial premises to the heating network in 2007.
TVR: What are your experiences regarding costs compared to other heat sources?
BS: District heating is perhaps a little higher compared to a heat pump. But this also depends on the insulation of the respective building. The connection costs at that time were about CHF 9,000.00, plus the costs of disposing of the old oil heating. So far, we have had almost no maintenance costs. Last year, for the first time in thirteen years, we had to replace the differential pressure regulator of the district heating, which was about CHF 400.- Other costs have been eliminated such as chimney sweeping costs and service work on the oil sump.
TVR: Was sustainability/ecology already an issue for you at that time?
BS: For me it was clear that I no longer wanted oil heating. For one thing, because of the climate-damaging emissions of carbon dioxide gases, but also because of the dependence on the oil suppliers of this world.
TVR: Would you do it all over again today?
BS: Yes absolutely. By removing the oil tank, we have not only gained an additional room, but we now obtain sustainably produced energy from the village, have almost no maintenance costs and are no longer dependent on the oil prices, which can fluctuate greatly. We are very satisfied and have not had any outages so far, except when a new user is connected to the network, we have to manage without district heating for a few hours. However, since this was mostly in summer, it didn’t matter.
S. Betschart
Convinced energy users
Banker and energy user Muothathal
TVR: Mr Betschart, how long have you been connected to our district heating network and what prompted you to take this step? Had you also considered other heating systems?
SB: We have been connected to the heating network since the beginning. We also looked at heating systems with oil, wood, and pellets, but finally decided on the district heating network. The advantages of an uncomplicated and sustainable heat supply convinced us then as now.
TVR: Which of your buildings have you connected to the district heating network?
SB: A detached house with a self-contained flat, a total of 7.5 rooms.
TVR: How do the costs compare with other heat sources?
SB: Slightly higher, though regular maintenance costs, such as chimney sweeping, tank servicing as well as the cost of hot water preparation are omitted, which puts the costs into perspective.
TVR: Would you choose it again? Are there also any disadvantages?
SB: Yes, we are very satisfied, everything works very well and in over 25 years we have not had any significant supply disruptions. In addition, the form of cooperative enables the district heating users to have a say, and the pragmatic logistics and billing of the energy consumption are also convincing.
The disadvantages could be a certain dependence on only one energy supplier and a somewhat limited market.
We thank Mr. Schelbert and Mr. Betschart for their insights and are pleased that they are loyal energy consumers of our in-house district heating network and thereby making an important contribution to sustainable energy production.
Vonrickenbach.swiss ENERGY
The vonrickenbach.swiss ag ENERGY division is now an important pillar of the company. With our current production of thermal energy, approx. 1200 tonnes of Co2 emissions can be reduced every year. Investing in a power plant that produces electricity by means of combined heat and power was a big step for us, but it proved to be the right one. We were even nominated for the Prix Montagne for this project.
Procuring and processing solid wood is our passion. It is therefore important to us that this wonderful raw material is not wasted and is used sustainably down to the last grain of dust. We look forward to continuing to supply our beautiful Muotathal with energy.
Thomas von Rickenbach
Owner and Managing Director
