Heavenly warmth
In the middle of the Donaustadt district of Vienna, the Holy Maria Goretti parish church in Neukagran has become a firm feature for over 65 years.
The Neukagran parish church, which was designed by architects Peter Czernin and Lukas Matthias Lang, is a listed building, and has become an important feature of the 22nd district.
A few years ago, the heating in the church had to be urgently updated, due to cracks in the air tank. Franz Zoubek, a qualified engineer from the parish council and the building authority for the Archdio- cese of Vienna worked together on finding a sustainable solution to the problem. They opted for the installation of an energy-saving, low-temperature floor heating system that was to be operated with pellets. They decided to use the VarioComp floor heating system from Variotherm, since its low construction height of just 20 mm meant that it was compatible with the listed building renovation standards. Other convincing arguments in favor of the system were the fact that it was easy and fast to install, and that it quickly provided comfortable heat, as well as reducing heating costs.
Construction errors corrected
Before the renovation could begin, there were several challenges that had to be overcome. It emerged that the 500 m² church floor, which until then had been hidden under a PVC covering overlaid with carpeting, was very uneven in places. After the church floor had been levelled, 530 m² of VarioComp panels (gypsum fibre board tested for its biological properties) could be laid. No less than five kilometres of VarioProFile pipes (aluminium multi-layer composite pipes) were laid in the premilled routing. Finally, the VarioComp filling compound were applied.
Divinely warm
The 13-metre modular wall heating behind the altar also provides comfortable radiant heat. Thanks to the surface heating installed on the floor and walls, temperatures in the church can reach +12 °C, even if the temperatures outside fall to -10 °C - even with impressive 35 cm-thick (!), non-insulated concrete walls. Without heating, there would be subzero temperatures in the church.
The first five heating periods have been more than satisfactory. "With the direct, oil-fired air heating, the heating costs for the church ran to around 6,600 euros per year. Now, they’re just 1,000 euros or so," Mr Zoubek from the parish council explained.
As well as the financial advantages, environmental damage is also a thing of the past. The 49 tonnes of CO2 that the church used to produce have now been reduced to just six tonnes.