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Nursery

The nursery in Reinheim, Germany, was built 35 years ago. Today, it is a model of energy efficiency.

Fonterra Reno: the ideal solution for nursery renovation

The protestant nursery in Reinheim, Germany, was founded 35 years ago and today even cares for the children of children who once attended this centre. Given the age of the building, the energy costs had risen significantly over the years. A complete renovation project was initiated to raise the nursery to energy standard KfW 85 (EnEV 2009 (Energy Saving Ordinance)) and to replace the energy intensive electrical floor heating with an air/water heat pump. After all, electricity costs of around 13,000 euros a year for heating alone were incurred.

Large wall heaters were decided upon to distribute the heat as the floor height was too low for conventional water-conducting floor heating. Since there is no cellar below the rooms, in line with EnEV, insulation against the soil was necessary – at the expense of the remaining installation height.

However, the staff insisted on keeping floor heating as the children in the nursery spend most of their time playing on the floor. And they were successful! Viega’s extremely low profile Fonterra Reno system now creates a wonderfully cosy environment.

Floor heating with an installation height of just 21 mm

The installation of floor heating including the required insulation initially appeared technically impossible. The available flooring height was between 90 and 120 mm. Moreover, it would not have been possible to meet the tight construction schedule due to the drying times required for the wet fill.

Fonterra Reno

The solution came in the form of the Fonterra Reno floor heating system: With an effective installation height of just 21 mm, the system offered sufficient space for additional fill to adjust the height and for insulation. What's more, the Fonterra system panels made of gypsum fibre material with milled in grooves for the heating pipes (material: polybutene, dimensions: 12 x 1.3 mm) meant that wet fill was not necessary. And, as such, the obligatory drying-and-heating stages could be waived.

As a result, not only was the tight construction schedule met, the floor heating which was so important to the nursery was also retained – yet in a far more efficient model. And, incidentally, the electricity costs are now around 70% less. 

Object Nursery
Location Rheinheim, Germany
Year 2014
Object Type Renovation
Area of use Public buildings
Architect Ingenieurbüro Mauß GmbH, Otzberg
Planning Brand & Partner, Dieburg
Installation Müller GmbH, Seeheim-Jugenheim
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