Did anyone else know that it is Boiler Switch On Week?

[spuorgelgoog]

I do.

I don't care about the climate, but I do care about my electricity bill.

Owain

[ARW]

It's a big metal lump that could absorb the excess heat without a pump overrun and a bypass.

Probably full of asbestos as well.

It would take three of me to move one.

[T i m]

We will see.

So, extra timer/stats and special valves. How many parts in each compared with a wax pellet type TRV?

Ah, all self powered and wireless then, or do you actually have to have more complexity than a straight TRV?

Ok.

By flexible I'm not sure how much more flexible you need other than to have each room set at whatever temperature you like independently of any other?

eg. I set each room up for her about 5 years ago and she's not asked me or changed them herself ever since?

I'm not saying that having ultimate control isn't a 'nice / good idea', just that I question how many people would ever make full / regular use of it or miss the 'flexibility' over straight TRV's?

Cheers, T i m

[T i m]

Nope, because as soon as the timer calls for central heating the boiler and pump are turned on? If you want heat outside that you set it to Continuous.

See above?

Cheers, T i m

[Steve Walker]

Yes, extra timer/stats and valves. The timer/stats were £14 each at Maplin at the time and the valves (normal Honeywell 2-port) were less than £20 each during a clearance at B&Q.

The valves are bunched together at the manifold points, so junction box to valve wiring 2' max. The wiring for the stats is just alarm cable, easy to run along edges and so on, with no great disruption (that's why I chose to use 12V).

Well, the bathroom and living room are set to heat up earlier than the rest of the house during the week, for me getting up and going to work early. The bathroom is also heated for part of the evening, but not during the day or the rest of the night and it shuts off well before the rest of the rooms. The kids bedrooms are heated in the evenings, as they spend time playing or programming there, but not in the day, except at the weekends. The conservatory is heated in the evenings, as we eat there and and at the weekends, as our middle son has his computer there. Kids bedrooms and conservatory go off before the living room, because we stay up a lot later than them. Our bedroom is heated during the day, as my wife is ill and spends a lot of time lying down there, but dressed and not actually in bed. When the system was originally put in, it was used to keep the boxroom warm enough for our first son as a baby and later to do the same with the front bedroom for both of our younger children.

Basically allowing each room to be heated at a time when it is useful, rather than all rooms being heated just for the sake of one.

And how much energy is used heating all the rooms, even those that aren't going to be used really for most of the day, while trying to heat a particular one or two that are?

SteveW

[invalid]

Then the water in the pipes/bypass gets hot the boiler switches off, then the pipes/bypass cool down and the boiler switches on. Repeat wasting fuel and wearing the system out.

Do this on warm days when no heat is needed too.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

My original boiler was a BE RS Potterton Kingfisher. Big cast iron lump. If that was switched off by the timer etc when at full belt - so also switching off the pump - it would make some rather nasty noises. So designed and built a pump over-run, which sorted it.

[T i m]

So, not only 'more complex' by any normal persons definition of the installation but more expensive?

These are the valves you wouldn't even need in a basic TRV solution?

Lovely, cables running along skirting boards and architraves etc. Very 'pretty' I'm sure. Cable you wouldn't need to run all over the house with conventional TRV's.

Have you ever been camping? ;-)

Is all this up and down temperature a good idea, especially in a well insulated house?

[1]

To get them outdoors in the fresh air right. ;-)

Is it cooled in the summer, given you are obviously keen on fine temperature control across the whole house?

Would it be better to just have blown hot air and occupancy sensors as it's seems that's close to what you have in any case?

Depending if you aren't going for the idea of it being better to keep the whole house at some levelish temperature?

I'd say very little (as they are generally set at a lower temp) and if the house is well insulated, retain that heat well as well.

eg. After setting up our neighbours TRV's for her, she or no visitor has even mentioned that the temperature wasn't perfectly acceptable (I asked).

And this is accepting that environmental temperature is often a fairly personal thing.

The Mrs has always been hot, often not needing a coat when most are wearing one but since / whilst still going though the change, has temperature fluctuations going all over the place. The room might be a constant 20 degrees but she will be cardi on, cardi off, fan flapping, 'are you hot or is it me (flapping her fan)', 'are you cold or is it me' and all the time it's been 20 Deg and I've been sitting there 'just comfortable'.

But then I can seem to 'tolerate' (put up with?) a greater range of temperatures than her. This may be from many hours on motorcycles when you rarely have an optimum temperature and have to just deal with sometimes being freezing cold or boiling hot.

So, have a room at 20 DegC and 5 people and you are bound to have some that are too hot and others that are too cold but it's for *them* to deal with it accordingly with their clothing.

Central heating often seems to be used like people did when they first got colour televisions. EG, they would turn the colour right up to prove the point. I've been to many houses where the temperature is way too hot (for me even) and everyone is walking about dressed like they were on holiday in Spain. Then when they go outside they are 'freezing cold'.

Cheers, T i m

[1] Programming the central heating no doubt! ;-)

[T i m]

Yup.

So, they aren't asking you to pay for it and it's been pretty trouble free for 40+ years so ... ?

Except the chances are the duty cycle will be very long and hot water is needed on warm days in any case.

Cheers, T i m

[T i m]

The boiler I initially installed in here ... then took out before actually using it (and installed in my Uncles house) was a 'Radiation Fuelsaver' (I think, from memory) which was a low capacity balanced flue wall mounted jobby with a copper heat exchanger. I did the same as you and powered the pump via a octal based delay relay, giving the system some over-run to stop the boiler 'kettling' etc.

It worked fine for years.

Cheers, T i m

[Roger Hayter]

Between November and March there are *never* days warm enough for me not to want the heating on. And they are pretty rare for another four months, sufficiently so that operating the CH off switch occasionally is not a burden. My only problem with TRVs is that they represent the room temperature less well than thermostats with varying outside temperatures (unless perhaps you get the 'remote' ones) so need occasional adjustment. But I think I'd be doing that with room thermostats too, perhaps less often.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Just how well TRVs work depends on lots of things. If they are really bad in one particular room, chances are there's a big differential in temperature in that room too.

FWIW, I find fitting them horizontally tends to help a bit. Slightly further away from the rad itself. But more likely to get bashed by things.