Radiator replacement in an apartment

Why the radiator is not only your business

The Law on Residential Properties counts heating elements in an apartment as common property if their operation depends on the building's common-property engineering utilities. If the work affects common property, the consent of the apartment owners' association is needed. In a building with central heating, this usually applies to replacing even a single radiator.

In 2020 Riga City Council explained that for rebuilding a building's heating system the design is commissioned from certified specialists, the documentation is agreed with the building manager, and the work is carried out by certified specialists or construction companies. This was said about the whole building's system, but replacing one radiator is also an intervention in it. So first ask the building manager whether the building has requirements for radiators and connections.

When a radiator is usually replaced

A radiator is replaced if it leaks, is damaged, or if the room's finishing changes in a full renovation and you want a new radiator in the same place. If you want to move the radiator to another wall, it needs new pipes from the building's system, and agreement with the building manager is then even more important.

If you plan to insulate an external wall from the inside, the radiator under the window may have to be removed for a time. That is also work on the building's system; see internal wall insulation.

Connecting water underfloor heating to the building's heating usually affects common property under the Law on Residential Properties, so it needs the association's consent. Electric underfloor heating is not linked to the building's heating: underfloor heating installation.

The usual order of work

1. Agreement You agree the work with the building manager, and also when the heating riser will be shut off, drained and refilled.
2. Choice The type and size of the radiator are chosen according to the space under the window and the distance between the existing pipes.
3. Removal Once the system is shut off, the old radiator and its fixings are removed.
4. Installation The brackets are fixed, the new radiator is hung and connected to the pipes.
5. Refilling and checking The system is refilled as agreed with the building manager, and the connections are checked for leaks.

What to write in the request

• How many radiators you are replacing and in which rooms.
• What the old radiator is (for example cast iron or steel) and how the pipes are connected.
• Whether the radiator will stay in the same place or has to be moved.
• Whether the building manager has been informed and what they replied.
• The building series or year of construction.

How much radiator replacement costs

Radiator replacement costs from €115 per radiator. Prices are for labour. Materials are calculated separately in the estimate.

Example: in a 2-room apartment three radiators are replaced, and the labour is 3 × €115 = from €345. The radiators, valves and pipes are in the estimate separately.

The price of radiator replacement is affected by the number of radiators, whether they stay in place, the condition of the pipes and whether the replacement is part of a larger renovation. An exact estimate can be made after seeing the apartment. All prices: renovation prices.