It’s gotten cold in the big city this week. Meteorologists are warning of a storm that is expected to hit New York shortly before Thanksgiving. From now on, people are walking around like Michelin men again and even walking their dogs in little coats. You might think it’s good that it’s nice and warm inside the apartments. But that’s just where the problems begin.
If you walk through the urban canyons, you can see steam rising from drains and shafts everywhere. It is part of the cityscape like the silver-colored food trucks and the yellow taxis. Miles of pipes wind beneath the asphalt surface from the southern tip of Manhattan to Central Park. A relic from the late 19th century, when coal and wood stoves polluted the air and city leaders sought a more environmentally friendly alternative. Since then, steam has not only heated skyscrapers like the Empire State Building, but also almost 80 percent of all older residential buildings.
Their radiators lead a strange life of their own. They appear out of nowhere at any time of the day or night. Sometimes a gurgling sound, sometimes a knocking noise, as loud as if a bunch of construction workers were tearing the apartment apart. And they bring the apartments to tropical temperatures. According to a report by the Urban Green Council, 70 percent of New York apartments are chronically overheated in winter. Thermostats that can regulate heat are a rarity.
Real estate sites therefore have all sorts of tips on how tenants can make the sauna at home more bearable. They say, for example, that you can throw a blanket over the radiators or repurpose the fan from the summer. Most New Yorkers put in less effort. They just throw open the windows. While triple-glazed windows and polystyrene-insulated facades are being discussed in Germany, they blow the excess heating air out the window.
Of course that’s not good for the climate. And that’s why the steam heating systems should now be replaced or replaced. The New York city government has adopted an ambitious climate plan that aims to reduce all emissions to zero by 2050. A new law for buildings will come into effect from next year. Owners then have to reduce the CO₂ emissions of their homes year after year. If they miss the targets, they face heavy penalties.
According to a presentation by the city administration, almost every one of New York’s more than one million buildings must be converted. And that leads to an idea that sounds familiar. The housing authority has started replacing steam heating in social housing with heat pumps. Mayor Eric Adams has promised that a total of 30,000 of the devices will be installed in the next few years. The tenants are already looking forward to a more pleasant indoor climate and fewer coughing fits.
It’s better not to tell them about the drama the heat pump caused in Germany.