About Us

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  • Meta Description: Learn about OptiHeatX, our mission, and the journey that led us to create optimal heating solutions. Meet the founders, Ilan and Miriam.
  • Title Tag: About OptiHeatX: Our Mission, Our Journey, Our Founders

(Gamma.app prompt: A family photo of Ilan and Miriam, perhaps in front of their Serbian house, with a subtle overlay of heating-related icons.)

Welcome to the About section of OptiHeatX! Here, you’ll learn about our company’s background, our mission, and the journey that led us to create a revolutionary approach to home heating. We’re passionate about empowering homeowners and professionals with the knowledge and tools to achieve optimal heating efficiency, comfort, and resilience.

Our Journey

👋🏻 Hey there! We’re Ilan and Miriam, the founders of OptiHeatX. And like many of you, we were once completely overwhelmed by the world of heating systems.

We’re a family who decided to make a big change in 2022. We left our old lives behind and moved to Serbia, seeking a simpler, more fulfilling way of life. We bought two old brick houses on one plot, ready for renovation and a fresh start. We had big dreams… and a lot to learn!

Our first winter in Serbia was a wake-up call. We were living in one of the houses while renovating the second, and our heating situation was… well, let’s call it “rustic.” We had a traditional cooking stove (“šporet”) in one room and a small wood-burning stove (“burĹľujka”) in another.

Imagine this:

  • Constant trips to fetch wood, even in the freezing cold.
  • Uneven heating – one room scorching hot, the others freezing.
  • Waking up to a cold house every morning.
  • Worrying about the fire hazard.
  • And, of course, the cost of all that wood!

It was far from the comfortable, efficient heating we were used to. We felt like we were living in the 19th century, not the 21st! We knew we had to find a better way. We were determined to create a modern heating system that would provide city-apartment comfort without breaking the bank (or requiring us to chop wood all day!).

So, we started researching. We looked at heat pumps, hybrid systems, and all the latest technologies. We talked to installers, read countless articles, and studied system diagrams. And the more we learned, the more we realized that the “standard” solutions offered by many manufacturers and installers weren’t actually… well, optimal.

We discovered that many systems were designed around promoting specific equipment, not around creating the best possible solution for the homeowner. We saw how installers often fell into the [Web of Marketing Traps], pushing overpriced components, complex installations, and inflexible designs. We encountered the “monumental piping” trap, the “inlet-outlet delta” problem, and the limitations of even “smart” thermostats.

We were particularly interested in hybrid systems – systems that combine multiple heat sources (like a heat pump and solar collectors) for maximum efficiency and resilience. But we found that most manufacturers took a very… manufacturer-centric approach. They’d design their systems around their own equipment, making it the “primary” heat source, and then add on other components as afterthoughts. This resulted in systems that were often unnecessarily complex, expensive, and not truly hybrid.

We talked to several installers, but they only offered standard connection schemes. They weren’t willing to consider our specific requirements or explore truly innovative solutions. That’s when we realized: if we wanted a truly optimal system, we’d have to design it ourselves.

So, with zero prior experience in plumbing or heating (but a lot of experience in systems development!), I (Ilan) took on the challenge. I started designing a hybrid boiler room scheme. I created, I revised, and I simplified.

And you know what? It worked. On January 18, 2024, we launched the heating system in our new house, powered by an air-to-water heat pump. And the results have been amazing. We’re talking about heating costs as low as 22.1 EUR per month average in December 2024 and January 2025 – that’s what we call optimization! Later, I even built a solar collector with my own hands and integrated it into the system, and developed all the aspects related to multiple water heaters in our hybrid water-based heating system, achieving necessary safety, usability and automation capabilities.

Our heating system became more than just a way to keep our house warm. It became a proof of concept. It showed us that it was possible to create a truly optimal, efficient, and resilient heating system, even without prior experience, by:

  • Focusing on Principles: Understanding the fundamentals of heating and thermodynamics.
  • Prioritizing Function over Form: Choosing components and designs based on performance and cost-effectiveness, not just aesthetics.
  • Embracing a Hybrid Approach: Combining multiple heat sources intelligently.
  • Leveraging Smart Automation: Using technology to optimize system operation and minimize energy waste.
  • Taking the DIY Route (When Feasible): Empowering ourselves to control the design, installation, and cost.

Turning a personal challenge into a mission, we have created OptiHeatX to help others to get truly optimal, innovative, and empowering heating systems. We created the Guide to share the knowledge we gained, the Road Map service to provide personalized guidance, the Project to provide implementation ready documentation, and the Automation system to provide intelligent control. We want to empower you to take control of your heating system, avoid the common pitfalls, and achieve the comfort, efficiency, and cost savings you deserve. This is a new approach and it’s a game changer in heating.

Meet the Founders

Ilan Kazakov

Founder

(Gamma.app prompt: Professional headshot of Ilan Kazakov.)

I’ve always been a systems person. I love diving deep into complex problems, figuring out how things work, and finding better, more efficient ways to do things. My background is in systems development, and I’ve been fortunate enough to apply that passion to projects like Trafarea.Startups (a platform for win-win organizing and conducting startups) and the future non-blockchain Web3 Values platform Trafarea. But OptiHeatX is personal.

OptiHeatX is the culmination of that journey. It’s about sharing the knowledge we gained, the solutions we developed, and the passion we have for creating truly optimal heating systems. It’s about empowering you to take control of your heating, avoid the common pitfalls, and achieve the comfort and efficiency you deserve.

Miriam Kazakov

Co-founder

(Gamma.app prompt: Professional headshot of Miriam Kazakov.)

Background and contributions will go here. Consider a similar, engaging narrative style.

Conclusion: Your Path to Optimal Heating Starts Here

We created OptiHeatX to share our knowledge, experience, and passion for creating truly optimal heating solutions. We believe everyone deserves a heating system that’s efficient, comfortable, resilient, and easy to manage. Explore our resources, and discover how you can transform your home heating experience: