@saz, the Vaillant ads are coincidental. They have signed up to sponsor the forums for six months and the ads went live last night. 😀

If you don’t have success with the Vaillant engineer I’d be happy to escalate the matter within Vaillant on your behalf.

As for the strainer, it plays a ridiculously big role in our system despite appearing to be so small and ‘insignificant’. Most of our flow issues are caused by the strainer.

@editor Ha ha yes ok! I retract my comment, it's just I'm feeling in a bit of a David versus Goliath situation with my installers and other parties at the mo. I also have a very dark sense of humour at times, you have to with these things I feel!

Useful info to know about the strainer tho so thanks for that!

Ok, so the work outstanding to refit the strainer and finish flushing the system has been booked, but then get another email saying I will have to allow access to every room in my house for thermal imaging whilst this process is taking place? Also another full function test taking place by Vaillant a few days later. I'm grateful but really unwell and just need a rest now that I finally have a bit of warmth, my home has not felt like my own for months!

Engineer out yesterday. Expressed all my thoughts to him re system efficiency and bills, UFH and meter issues. He has altered my settings with regard to the heating (cicrcuit 1) and has placed a fixed value temperature on it. At first glance this actually appears to be using more electricity (I have meters installed so can measure this). He has altered things so that my third party controls talk directly to the system interface and not the sensocomfort controller.

No answers re UFH return temp higher than flow except that it appears pipework is correct. Possibly gauge faulty on return? Unable to answer meter issues. He said weather comp no good really?

Any thoughts anyone? I'm getting quite close to having a nervous breakdown I think.

Posted by: @saz

Engineer out yesterday. Expressed all my thoughts to him re system efficiency and bills, UFH and meter issues. He has altered my settings with regard to the heating (cicrcuit 1) and has placed a fixed value temperature on it. At first glance this actually appears to be using more electricity (I have meters installed so can measure this). He has altered things so that my third party controls talk directly to the system interface and not the sensocomfort controller.

No answers re UFH return temp higher than flow except that it appears pipework is correct. Possibly gauge faulty on return? Unable to answer meter issues. He said weather comp no good really?

Any thoughts anyone? I'm getting quite close to having a nervous breakdown I think.

Hi Saz,

The fact that he stated that weather compensation is no good, would indicate to me his level of knowledge and expertise. What changes did he make and what are the settings now?

Hi Derek. to be honest I have no idea what if any changes were made via the installer menu, I wasn't upstairs when he was working on the interface but on the Sensocomfort gone is the 'Zone 1' I think, and the subsequent 'eco' 'normal' etc. and it has been replaced with 'Fixed value control, circuit 1'. I rang Vaillant and they said this is normally used for pools and towel rails??!

Posted by: @saz

Hi Derek. to be honest I have no idea what if any changes were made via the installer menu, I wasn't upstairs when he was working on the interface but on the Sensocomfort gone is the 'Zone 1' I think, and the subsequent 'eco' 'normal' etc. and it has been replaced with 'Fixed value control, circuit 1'. I rang Vaillant and they said this is normally used for pools and towel rails??!

Hi Saz,

I would ask the company for a detailed written report of the changes that were made, and the reasoning behind the changes.

@derek-m Yes, I guess I'll have to but it's all so tiresome. I wish they would just leave details of this with the end user, like just filling in one of those lists in the manuals. Every single time someone comes here something or other is altered. I was hoping the visit yesterday would make my situation better, not worse. *sigh* He genuinely appeared to be understanding of the situation here. I'm kinda done with the tweaking and going around in circles. It's literally dominated the last few months.

I can definitely empathise @saz - it’s very, very frustrating, even more so when things aren’t working and costing a lot of money to run. Have you asked Vaillant if they’d send out one of their engineers to look over the system and settings?

I agree with Derek - turning off weather compensation, especially during this spell of mild temperatures is not a sensible move. 

PS - I’ve merged your threads because it gives greater context to your problems.

I’ve just reread the thread and you have had a Vaillant engineer come out. This engineer that just visited, were they from a completely new company?

@saz, who was the original installer? Are you at liberty to reveal who it was?

@editor My system wasn't originally set up for weather compensation, I asked this engineer about it as I was hoping he would set it up so I could trial it to see if it would reduce my consumption/improve the COP and he basically said it was not much good, citing issues if front doors were opened etc. and wouldn't recommend it. He was from Vaillant and was the same person who flushed the injected sealant out. So he's put a fixed value temp on the on it this time and I don't know what else was changed except he said he had stopped my third party controls operating the heatpump via the sensocomfort controller, I think I remember now that he said that the sensocomfort recording the temp in my hallway might be causing the pump to come on even if other rooms were up to temp and I wasn't calling for heat. This is the second time my screen has changed. Recently it changed to something saying 'desired temperature' and I don't even know who made that change and why? The reports never fully reflect what gets talked about at the visits either, most of my questions don't get answered. It's so frustrating.

I don't feel able to publicly name the installer or the out of hours company my LL uses due to the fear I have talked about previously. I really would like a person independent of both manufacturer and installer out, who wouldn't have any divided loyalties or regard for the purchasing power etc. I feel like as an end-user I may be being thrown under a bus so to speak in order to shut down issues raised/complaints, even though I am the bill payer and my issues and questions are legitimate. I'm grateful that the leaks appear to have stopped (although I feel there might be a very gradual pressure drop going on) but the fact that the pump 'works' now is just all people appear to be interested in and not whether it's needlessly underperforming perhaps and costing an arm and a leg to run compared to my previous pump. It's got to the point where I can't run the heating unless all this nonsense and inconsistency can get sorted out and I will only have hot water once a week (to run legionella cycle). I'm regularly having sleepless nights over it all (and was before the rise in electricty price). This is just no way to live in this day and age.