Each of the Mediterranean countries has adopted its own methods of heating and cooling rooms, although many of them are used in all regions.
"In France, for example, both collective and individual heating and air conditioning systems are common, and heating can be either water, air, or electric," says Alexander Shvarev, director of RFContact and Wedgewood Estates. There is no uniformity in Cyprus either. "In projects costing from $2.5 million, a central air conditioning system is being installed. But mostly houses equipped with an individual air conditioning system – the so-called climate control in each individual room are offered for sale," says Alexander Shadrov, director of the Moscow representative office of Cybarco.
Such a climate control system can be programmed for a certain operating time and for heating or cooling the living space to a comfortable temperature. Sensors are located inside the room that monitor the indoor climate and, when the temperature in the room drops, turn on again for heating. Thus, the system allows you to maintain the same temperature for a long time. Usually, liquid, most often diesel fuel, is used as a heating material in such systems. Also, at the request of the owner of a separate house, heating batteries can be installed in his dwelling.
Igor Kukui, senior real estate adviser at the Bulgarian company Fort Noks, explains that their company specializes in the construction of housing complexes where individual air conditioning systems, the so-called "splits", are used in each apartment. This is also enough to heat the premises, because many property owners in Bulgaria use their apartments only during the holiday season, from May to October.
"In Spain," adds Andrey Desyatnik, manager of Soldel, "the installation of a heating system depends on the budget that the owner of the house has and his personal climatic preferences. Let's say that the "cold-resistant" British living in Spain in winter prefer to save money and do not heat their apartments at all. But Russians and Spaniards prefer to heat their houses anyway."
The most budget option is heating with a gas burner. A much more expensive, although more common in Spain, heating system is a heat–cold air conditioner, which allows you to cool the room in summer and warm it in winter. Another fairly popular method that is used in small apartments and small houses is wall–mounted or floor-mounted electric heaters. Now in Spain, heaters are in fashion-tiles made of porcelain stoneware disguised as a painting. Apartment buildings are often heated with batteries.
In Cyprus, as well as in France, various heating systems are used, the most economical is a gas stove. "It is more expensive to install electric heaters and steam heating on diesel fuel," says Filon Ellinidis, sales manager at Rom'es LTD. – A cylinder with diesel fuel with a capacity of 580 liters is enough for the whole winter. In winter, many Cypriots try not to use air conditioners – they consume too much electricity. But in summer, they do not spare energy for cooling the room, no house can do without an air conditioner."
The main thing is ergonomics
The heating and air conditioning of private houses is very different from apartment buildings. So, in apartments, "underfloor heating", so common in Russia, is practically not used anywhere. Experts say that installing such a system is often unprofitable, and by and large it is not really needed in a warm country. If it is still installed, it is much more ergonomic to make a "warm floor" in a separate house than in an apartment. "In Cyprus, only 7% of houses are equipped with a underfloor heating system," Philon Ellinidis clarifies. – And it will not be easy to find a buyer for such a house – the heating system adds about 5-10% of the cost to the building."
If in private houses the choice of the type of heating is the prerogative of the owner, then in apartment buildings individual heating systems provided for during construction are most often used – electric heaters in each room or air conditioners
Apartments in Cyprus usually use electric heating with oil radiators. At the same time, construction companies do not install such systems, but only prepare electrical networks for further installation of the heating system. "If we rent an apartment building, we provide heating installation at the request of the customer. In this case, our task as builders is to ensure that all wiring and fasteners are carried out in advance," says Alexander Shadrov. – A special company for the installation of such systems installs pipes, connects electricity. A separate meter is installed for such heating. Usually, in apartment buildings, there is enough heating with the help of an air conditioner."
In France, both collective and individual heating systems are used. The latter are much more expensive to install, but more economical to operate. As Alexander Shvarev says, in prestigious private houses, "underfloor heating" is used both on an electric and water basis. The most expensive option is combined heating systems, where both "underfloor heating" and separate air conditioning systems are provided.
"In the big Spanish cities of Madrid and Barcelona, central heating is installed in apartment buildings. In resort towns, there are only individual home installations in each individual apartment," says Andrey Desyatnik. – Underfloor heating can be installed in a separate house, but not everyone uses this heating option. In general, in Spain, the climate in winter is so warm that it is not necessary to heat the house every day.
" "In Bulgaria, it is believed that the use of a central air conditioning system is advisable only in a hotel or an apartment hotel," says Igor Kukui, "and in apartment complexes, when each apartment has its own owner, central air conditioning does not justify itself, since it entails high costs for the owner."
Everyone is free to choose for themselves the heating and air conditioning system that allows them to feel most comfortable. At the same time, it is necessary to be prepared for the fact that combined systems, which are used in Russia, will cost the owner much more and at the same time will not be economically justified.
Fashionable ecology
There are various subtleties related to the climate that you should pay attention to when buying a house. In Bulgaria, it is customary to orient housing in seaside resorts to the south. "Our company's buildings are built, like most new buildings in Bulgaria, using monolithic frame technology, but we lay the piers with Ytong material, superior to brick in its thermal conductivity characteristics and, which is also very important, more environmentally friendly," says Igor Kukui. – The thickness of the walls in such houses is 30 cm. For greater thermal insulation, all buildings are built using an external insulation with a thickness of 6 cm, which is protected by mineral paint from external influences. We install metal-plastic windows with energy-saving K-glass. The internal partitions are made of Ytong material and drywall."
The walls of houses in Cyprus are thinner than in Bulgaria, 16-25 cm thick – this is an ordinary monolith without insulation. Alexander Shadrov says that windows prefer to be installed with double glazing and with an aluminum frame – they protect well from noise. In Cyprus, they mostly try to hide from the sun. The expert advises that when choosing a house, make sure that the bedroom windows face east and the living room faces west.
In France, they strive to build the most environmentally friendly houses. "During the construction of the building, the energy and water exchange between housing and the environment is calculated," says Alexander Shvarev. – Therefore, the house is oriented to the south as much as possible, fireplaces are installed with an additional heat exchange and ventilation system. The state strives to save money: houses have a system for recycling rainwater and used, but previously purified water, which goes to watering lawns. The installation of solar panels allows not only to provide energy to the house, but also to make a profit – excess electricity can be sold."
French builders are increasingly using environmentally friendly building materials with minimal energy exchange. Waterproofing of foundations is certainly performed. Although in the south of France, rocky soils are considered a stable and sufficiently dry foundation for buildings, rain and groundwater still enter unprotected foundations, which leads to increased humidity of walls and premises, increases heat exchange, and consequently heating costs. If earlier waterproofing was neglected because of the climate, now they are trying to save energy. Often, windows and stained glass windows made of three–layer plastic are installed in houses - and all for the same reasons of saving electricity.
"It is necessary to ensure that the apartment complex has an underground garage, and in a separate house there is a basement with a garage," adds Andrey Desyatnik. – In this way, additional isolation of the building from the ground is carried out, which is especially important for real estate that is located near the coastline. In houses near the water, the atmosphere is more humid, and if the foundation is not deep, the house may be wet."
Creating a landscape design of the site,It is customary to plan the planting of green spaces according to the movement of the sun and the wind rose. It is necessary to protect the house from the wind, while getting as much illumination as possible, therefore, "green walls" are planted on the downwind side, and on the sunny side of the house they try not to use the shade from the plantings. But everything is very individual here: only the most experienced and professional gardeners pay enough attention to this, most, trying to please customers, meet their wishes.