Plan the management of heating, water and ancillary costs

This article describes the installation planning. For on-site implementation and equipment configuration on the Climkit platform, refer to the links at the end of the article.

1. Heating, water and ancillary costs management - typical installation

The Climkit Heating and Ancillary Costs Management solution allows heating costs to be allocated among building occupants in proportion to their individual thermal energy consumption, in accordance with the requirements of the Individual Energy and Water Billing of the Swiss Confederation (DIFEE).

To do this, Climkit reads the following meters:

• One thermal energy meter (heating) per apartment
• One hot water meter per apartment
• One thermal energy meter at the boiler output to measure total consumption and deduce the common areas' share
• One thermal energy meter at the water heater inlet to measure the energy required for hot water production

To fairly allocate water supply and treatment costs, a cold water meter is installed in each apartment as well as for the common areas (laundry room, watering, etc.).

Standard connection diagram

Here is the diagram defining the location of heating, hot water, and cold water meters in a standard residential building.

Complete thermal metering (recommended by DIFEE)

To correctly allocate heating costs for apartments, common areas, as well as energy costs related to domestic hot water production, the following installation is required:

• A main meter at the heat pump (HP) output
• A meter for domestic hot water production installed on the water heater connection
• A heating meter per apartment

This is the correct diagram as recommended by DIFEE.

This way:

• Apartment heating costs are allocated to each occupant in proportion to the consumption measured by their individual heating meter.
• Domestic hot water production costs are measured by the meter installed on the water heater connection, and then distributed among occupants based on their hot water consumption measured by their individual hot water meter.
• Common area heating costs are determined by calculating the difference between the main meter and the sum of the other meters, then distributed among occupants in proportion to their apartment surface area.

Partial thermal metering

When certain meters are omitted, estimates become necessary. For example, with only one meter per apartment, not all consumption is directly measured.

Consequences for allocation:

• Common area heating costs must be estimated.
• Domestic hot water production costs must be estimated.

If the main meter at the boiler output is omitted, it is strongly recommended to install at least one meter dedicated to domestic hot water production.

In the absence of this meter, the standard estimate is to allocate 25% of total costs to domestic hot water production.

Connection of electricity meters

When heating is provided by an electrically powered heat pump (HP), it is recommended to install an electricity meter dedicated to the heat pump and a meter for common areas. This distinction allows for proper allocation of energy costs related to heating and those related to common area consumption.

Communication via M-Bus

The meters are connected via M-Bus and then connected to the Climkit Gateway via an M-Bus/RS485 converter.

M-Bus (Meter-Bus) is a European communication standard specifically designed for remote reading of energy and water meters. This protocol allows connecting multiple meters (up to 250) on the same two-wire bus, in line or star topology, considerably simplifying wiring. The cable used must be shielded U72 type.

Variant with Weblog 250

When an M-Bus master unit such as Weblog 250 is already planned, it can be connected to the 4G router via Ethernet to program an automatic daily transfer of meter readings in CSV format via FTP to the Climkit platform. This variant eliminates the need to install an M-Bus/RS485 converter. The Weblog unit is usually provided by the heating or sanitary installer.

Heating meter

Thermal meters are installed directly on the closed heating circuit pipe. They measure the flow rate as well as the inlet and outlet temperatures of the circuit, which they then convert into energy (kWh).

The meters are generally supplied and installed by a heating installer.

It is strongly recommended to place the underfloor heating manifold and the heating meter in an access panel located at the entrance of the apartment, rather than at the back of a cabinet.

This configuration greatly facilitates access to the meter for maintenance.

Hot water and cold water meter

Water meters are installed directly on the pipe and measure the flow volume (m³) circulating through it.

Domestic hot water (DHW) and cold water meters are the same devices, differing only by the flow they measure.

Climkit offer

The standard Climkit offer includes the elements necessary for system operation: hardware equipment (except meters), software features, as well as commissioning services.

All hardware is supplied preconfigured to simplify installation and ensure proper communication with the meters.

• Equipment:
  • LAN router or 4G Router
  • Climkit Gateway
  • M-Bus / RS485 converter
• Software features:
  • Reading and recording of heating and water meters
• Commissioning services:
  • Integration of meters into the platform based on commissioning protocols established by the heating and sanitary installer
  • Technical coordination and verification of meter readings
  • Administrative setup

All products are ordered directly from Climkit.

In most cases, the installation can be carried out by the installer without an on-site intervention by a Climkit technician.

Telephone support is available if needed during commissioning.

Details of equipment supplied by Climkit

4G Router

An internet connection is essential for system operation. If no connection is available, Climkit can provide it via a 4G Router equipped with an active multi-operator SIM card.

Using the Climkit TRB140 4G router offers several advantages:

• Simplified installation: the router is easily installed inside the electrical panel, directly on the DIN rail
• Complete delivery: supplied with its DIN rail mount and 24V DC power supply
• Ready to use: delivered preconfigured with an activated SIM card
• Cost-effective 4G subscription: low-cost internet connection

Climkit Gateway

The Climkit Gateway reads meters connected to its RS485 port via the Modbus protocol and transmits readings to the Climkit platform via the internet.

M-Bus-RS485 Converter

The M-Bus-RS485 converter allows connecting M-Bus meters to the RS485 port of the Climkit Gateway.

It is installed on the same RS485 bus as the electricity meters and comes with a 24V DC DIN rail power supply.

It is available in 2 models depending on the number of connected M-Bus meters:

• MBus60 for up to 60 meters; width: 4 DIN modules
• MBus200 for up to 200 meters; width: 8 DIN modules

It is possible to connect multiple converters to the same Gateway.

2. Next steps