We install filters for offices and flats, take water samples from the taps and help building managers understand where a problem arises. A reverse osmosis filter with installation costs from €250, a basic test from €35.
Centre buildings and city water
Centrs is Riga's main administrative, commercial and cultural area outside Vecrīga (the Old Town). In the 2025 report of Rīgas ūdens (Riga's water utility) it is not among the neighbourhoods where services are only partly available, and in the same year the company renewed some of the water mains in Centrs (about 14.7 km in total across 13 neighbourhoods). Your own borehole or spike well (“spice” in Latvian) is not a real option for a building in the centre, and we do not offer one.
The neighbourhood is on the right bank, and Rīgas ūdens states that right-bank consumers receive groundwater from the Baltezers and Zaķumuiža abstraction sites. On its way to the tap the water passes through the street network, the building's inlet, the risers and the flat's pipes. In an old building it is often this last part that affects what you see in the glass.
An office: drinking water without bottles
If an office buys drinking water in bottles or large jugs, the alternative is a filter connected directly to the plumbing in the office kitchen. That can be a reverse osmosis filter under the sink with a separate tap, or a filter that feeds a water dispenser or a coffee machine. Then there are no jugs to store and no deliveries to wait for.
- Reverse osmosis filter with installation from €250; it needs room for the tank and a connection to the drain.
- A filter for a dispenser or coffee machine: we choose it by the appliance manufacturer's requirements.
- Cartridge replacement on a schedule: water filter maintenance, labour from €40/h.
An office in a building owned by someone else can usually install a filter in its own premises. If a new pipe has to be connected to the shared riser, agree it with the owner or the building manager.
A flat in an Art Nouveau building
If after a renovation the flat's new pipes are joined to an old riser, rust and sediment particles from the riser end up in the new mixer taps, the water heater and the washing machine. A mechanical pre-filter at the flat's inlet catches them, and the colour of its cartridge shows how many particles are coming through.
Hardness in the Rīgas ūdens network averaged 1.82 mmol/l in 2025, and the company states up to 2 mmol/l. Converted to German degrees (1 mmol/l equals 5.6 °dH), that is about 10 °dH. Cabinet Regulation No. 547 on drinking water sets no limit for hardness, so whether a flat needs a water softener is a practical decision: if limescale is only a problem in the kettle, a filter jug or reverse osmosis in the kitchen is enough. More: water softening.
For a building manager: where the problem arises
If several residents or tenants complain about the colour, smell or taste of the water, one test from one tap gives no answer. We take samples at several points on the same day and in the same way: at the building's inlet in the basement, on a lower floor and on an upper floor. An accredited laboratory measures the same parameters, and we compare them with each other and with the network averages published by Rīgas ūdens.
If the water is good at the inlet but worse on the upper floors, the cause is in the building's internal system, and the manager has grounds for inspecting or replacing the risers. If the figures are already worse at the inlet, you take the result to Rīgas ūdens. A basic test costs from €35, a full test with microbiology from €95 per sample: water testing.
Sources: Rīgas ūdens, contract performance report for 2025 (Centrs not on the list; renewal of water mains); Rīgas ūdens, “Water abstraction” (right bank); Rīgas ūdens, 2025 averages and frequently asked questions (hardness up to 2 mmol/l); Cabinet Regulation No. 547, Annex 2 (no limit value for hardness); Riga City Council binding regulations No. 17, point 63.6. Checked 03.11.2026.
Premises that have stood empty for a long time
If an office or a rented flat stands empty for weeks between tenants, the water stands in the pipes and filters. Before using the water again, open the taps for a few minutes until the water runs cool and clear. We replace filter cartridges after a long idle period if the manufacturer requires it, because manufacturers usually state how long a cartridge may stand unused. If a new tenant wants reassurance, we take the sample after flushing the pipe, so that the result describes the water rather than a stagnant pipe.
Access and organising the work in the centre
In the centre, car access is often restricted, parking is paid or unavailable, and courtyards are entered through gates. We carry the filters and tools in by hand, so no large equipment is needed. In your request, say whether the building has security or a pass system and at what times work can be done in the office, so that it does not disturb the staff.
Nearby neighbourhoods
In Vecrīga, Avoti, Brasa and Grīziņkalns the buildings also get city water, and the questions are about filters and water quality inside the building. All neighbourhoods: Riga.