Postimees · Home & Construction (Kodu ja Ehitus) · 2025
How to choose the right heating system for a private house in Estonia's climate?
English translation of the original Estonian article. Original headline: Kuidas valida Eesti kliimas eramajale sobiv küttesüsteem?
See the original design in the magazineWhen building or renovating a house, many decisions have to be made, and one of the most important is the choice of heating system. After all, everyone wants to live comfortably and feel cosy at home. Estonia's changeable climate, however, makes its own demands. Summers may be moderately warm, but winters can be cold, and technical solutions start to play a role in maintaining quality of life.
When choosing a heating system, you naturally have to take into account the condition of the house, its floor area, the occupants' consumption needs, the homeowner's wishes and the planned budget.
Every common heating system has its advantages and disadvantages. When starting to build a house, some people have a clear view of which heating solution to choose. Others use a so-called process of elimination, first removing from the list of possible options those that definitely won't work depending on preferences, square metres or budget.
There are, of course, many ways to heat a house, some of which require an unconventional approach and a clear vision. Below is an overview of the most common heating systems, their advantages and disadvantages, to help you make the best decision.
Stove heating creates true homely warmth, but it also poses a challenge – who wants to carry firewood all the time?
A fire crackling in the hearth, a warm room and a cosy atmosphere – who wouldn't dream of that? A lifestyle close to nature makes many hearts beat faster. There is great charm and a kind of romance in it – carrying wood indoors, making a fire, admiring the living flame and then relaxing in front of the warm fire or enjoying the heat of the stove's warm wall.
Yet behind this seemingly beautiful lifestyle lies a much less comfortable reality, because fuel raises a host of questions, from dealing with firewood to closing the damper.
Advantages
- Traditional and cosy, creates a pleasant atmosphere.
- Independence from the power grid, providing warmth even during power cuts.
- Relatively low heating costs if wood can be bought cheaply.
- Renewable energy, after all!
Disadvantages
- Requires constant work: stocking up on wood, storing it, carrying it in, making the fire and keeping watch.
- Following safety requirements and documentation to ensure fire safety.
- Due to the floor plan, heat may not be distributed evenly.
As you can see, stove heating has its advantages, including independence. For some homeowners, these arguments may outweigh all the negatives.
"Considering unexpected fluctuations in electricity prices, or if you want your home heating not to depend on electricity at all, having a stove, fireplace or beautiful cooker with a large glass door is certainly a safe choice. Based on our 25 years of experience selling heating systems, we can say with confidence that quality stoves remain a popular choice: modern stoves, especially soapstone stoves, are very efficient and entirely suitable as the main source of heat. Their heating output is high, they store heat for up to 48 hours and the combustion process is clean," explains Kristjan Niine, sales manager at Kodukolle LT OÜ.
For even heat distribution, it is definitely best if the heat source is in the middle of the building. The shape of the heated area and the partition walls also play a role in how heat is distributed. Ideally, then, the stove should be at the heart of an open-plan space – that way it radiates warmth in every direction.
"With a fireplace or cooker you can use heat-powered fans that help warm the room faster and more efficiently," Niine offers a solution.
Pellet heating offers convenience and steady warmth, but is it always reliable?
Buying a pellet boiler usually requires building the pipework for a whole central heating system, with a few exceptions. True comfort, after all, comes from warm floors and/or radiators pleasantly giving off warmth. Although the system can function unattended for several days depending on the size of the pellet hopper and the temperature, it still needs the homeowner's attention from time to time.
With pellet heating, a common drawback is considered to be the need to build an extra room with demanding requirements, as the most common boilers are large and, to be honest, not very attractive. Nevertheless, beautifully designed pellet stoves, some even with a glass door to admire the living flame, have been sold successfully on the Estonian market for many years. There's no need to build a large basement or an extension to the garage, because such a pellet stove can grace the living space itself.
Advantages
- Automatic and convenient – minimises the need for manual heating.
- Steady heat – well suited to long cold periods.
- Environmentally friendly – uses a renewable energy source.
- Clean combustion – high efficiency.
Disadvantages
- Requires space for storing pellets.
- The cost of equipment and installation can be high.
- Regular maintenance of the burner and system is needed, because pellets may fail to ignite.
Kristjan Niine, sales manager at Kodukolle LT OÜ, adds: "A heat source can indeed be part of a home's design just like any other interior element. A beautiful pellet stove with a glass door has already solved the location problem in many homes. Pellet stoves of different output, functionality and appearance offer a variety of ways to keep a home warm without requiring significant extra space."
The air-to-water heat pump is a common solution in many Estonian homes, but it depends entirely on electricity.
When a home has a warm floor, quality of life already seems much better, doesn't it? Your toes are warm and you don't even have to dream of hot sand on faraway beaches. An air-to-water solution combined with underfloor heating can truly offer many comforts without much need for maintenance. Of course, there are downsides here too – a heavy dependence on electricity and price fluctuations, not to mention noise.
Advantages
- Almost maintenance-free.
- Systems with heat recovery are among the most economical.
- Relatively easy to install, doesn't need much space.
- In a properly insulated house, heating costs are low.
Disadvantages
- Dependence on the availability of electricity.
- Efficiency drops at very low temperatures.
- The outdoor unit produces a certain amount of noise.
The efficiency and heating output of an air-to-water heat pump are affected by very low temperatures (for example –20 °C), at which its efficiency keeps falling. "The heat pump starts compensating for the decline in compressor output with an electric heating element, which increases electricity consumption. It varies between manufacturers, but it can be said that it doesn't really make sense to run a heat pump compressor at –20 to –25 degrees. It's no longer efficient, and the machine's lifespan may start to shorten in such conditions," describes Sivar Mändul, project manager at Prokliima, from Climaservice OÜ.
One drawback of air-to-water heat pumps is noise. What to do? Of course, much depends on the manufacturer and quality of the unit, as well as its type. Sivar Mändul explains: "For example, monobloc units, where the heat transfer medium between the indoor and outdoor units is water, are often quieter than split-type units, where the heat transfer medium is a refrigerant (in plain terms, simply gas)."
To minimise noise, units could be installed away from bedrooms and living areas. "Air-to-water units should definitely not be installed on the wall of the house, but on the ground on a special frame. At the same time, modern buildings have good thermal and sound insulation, and quality units don't make much noise," Prokliima's representative Sivar Mändul is convinced.
A ground-source heat pump is an economical solution for heating a home, but does it suit the soil around the house?
A technologically smart solution, the ground-source heat pump makes it possible to obtain so-called free heat from underground layers, because below the surface layers the temperature stays more or less the same all year round. Geothermal energy can heat both large and small houses.
Advantages
- Very efficient and stable, providing even warmth all year round.
- Environmentally friendly, as it uses a renewable energy source.
- Low heating costs in the long run.
Disadvantages
- Requires a larger investment.
- Installation is more complex.
- Depends on the soil around the house.
- Depends entirely on electricity.
- The source of noise is inside the house.
This system has proven its reliability, low energy use and environmental friendliness, but the investment is larger and the whole technology still depends on electricity.
When installing such a heating system, the question often arises of how deep the ground-source heat pump's pipework should be laid and what the different installation methods are (horizontal, vertical). The answer comes from experienced project manager Sivar Mändul of Prokliima: "With a horizontal system, the ground collector pipework of a ground-source heat pump should be laid at a depth of 1–1.2 m. That is the soil layer where the most solar heat is stored over the summer, which can then be used to heat the building in winter."
Mändul explains that with a vertical ground collector, the depth of the borehole is chosen according to the recommendations of the designer, who calculates the parameters and takes into account the building's heating needs and the geological situation of the site.
In the end, much depends on possibilities and preferences
The choice of heating system depends on many factors, including personal wishes, budget, the size of the house and the specifics of its location. Pellet heating offers convenience and environmental friendliness, stove heating traditional warmth and independence from electricity, an air-to-water heat pump is almost maintenance-free, and a ground-source heat pump ensures high efficiency.
Deciding which technology to use to keep your home warm is part of a long-term investment. So all the arguments should be weighed carefully, taking every detail into account, including maintenance costs. In the end, different heating systems can be combined, letting you enjoy, for example, lounging in front of a warm fireplace together with comfortable underfloor heating.