Riga residents split over turning on heating: some endure damp, others save
A resident of an apartment building complained on social media about neighbours not wanting to start the heating season. Riga has no single heating start date, and the city's largest property manager RNP plans to switch heating on from 12 October this year.
A woman living in an apartment building has described on social media how her flat turned cool and damp this autumn, while the building's manager is not rushing to switch on central heating because she is the only one asking for it. Her post sparked a debate over whether heating should be started earlier or only once it gets colder. The question is relevant in Riga, where the start of the heating season differs from building to building.
Differing views
The woman writes that mould is forming in her flat and believes her neighbours do not want heating because they do not want to pay. She uses an electric radiator and a dehumidifier, but one radiator is not enough for the whole flat, and she finds the electricity costs higher than the likely cost of central heating.
Commenters noted that comfort can vary greatly within a single building. Floor, corner location, number of exterior walls, window quality and insulation all play a role. One resident said her flat is at +28 degrees, while another described a first-floor corner flat with poor windows as cold. One commenter noted that modern automated heat substations adjust heat supply to the outdoor temperature.
How heating is switched on in Riga
Riga has no single date for the whole city. The utility Rīgas siltums can supply heat all year, but in each building the manager organises the start according to residents' decisions. RNP, Riga's largest apartment building manager, began mass connection on 9 October in 2023, 3 October in 2024 and 1 October in 2025. This year RNP announced on 5 October that it planned to start heating on 12 October, connecting all buildings gradually over three days. By then, heating had already been started in ten buildings at residents' request.
RNP usually starts when the outdoor temperature stays at or below +14 °C for at least three days, drops to +8 °C at some point, and similar conditions are forecast to continue.
Damp and mould
The US Environmental Protection Agency recommends keeping indoor relative humidity below 60%, ideally around 30–50%. The World Health Organization says persistent damp and mould are linked to respiratory symptoms, allergies and asthma. Heating alone is not a cure if ventilation is lacking, but warmer surfaces reduce the risk of condensation, while ventilation and a dehumidifier help lower humidity.
