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Heat Pump + Tado Setup: Smarter Control for Secondary Pumps?

Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs)

Last Post by Lloydi 3 weeks ago

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Lloydi

(@lloydi)

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Joined: 3 weeks ago

Posts: 2

Topic starter 27/09/2025 8:47 am

Hi everyone,

My heat pump (Samsung Gen 7 controlled by Havenwise) currently operates independently of my home's heat distribution system (underfloor heating downstairs and radiators upstairs, distributed via 3 secondary pumps with a Tado thermostat in each room to control the UFH manifolds' actuators and the on/off of the secondary pumps).

I currently have my Tado room target temperatures set well above the real target in order to ensure that the secondary pumps remain running in anticipation of the heat pump turning on to, well, pump heat into the house. I'm concerned that this is adding unnecessary wear and tear to the pumps as they are, essentially, running 24/7.

I am interested in trying to form a direct link between the on/off of the heat pump and the on/off of the secondary pumps. My initial thought is that I could attach smart relays to each of the secondary pumps that are turned on and off by a state change of the heat pump (heat pump turns on = close relays and turn secondary pumps on, heat pump turns off = open relays and turn secondary pumps off).

I have also considered trying to get my system to operate fully open loop, remove the secondary pumps and just use the primary pump in the heat pump to distribute the heated water around the house, but I think this may be a long and involved task (we also have a 3-pipe 100l buffer in the way to complicate matters), whereas adding relays to 3 secondary pumps would, possibly, be a less invasive process.

Has anyone ever had a similar experience and found a reliable, elegant solution?

Thanks!

This topic was modified 3 weeks ago by Mars

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Mars

(@editor)

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Joined: 5 years ago

Posts: 3609

28/09/2025 10:22 am

I suspect this is one for @pirate-rich

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Pirate Rich

(@pirate-rich)

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Posts: 28

30/09/2025 11:53 am

There is no straightforward way to maintain excellent control and keep the heat pump satisfied when third-party controls are involved. Simple is better, in my opinion, unless the control is specifically designed to optimise the heat pump (which Tado, without its optimiser, isn't). A friend of mine always says KISS... Keep It Simple, Stupid. And with heat pumps, you really need to do this for optimal efficiency.

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Lloydi

(@lloydi)

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Joined: 3 weeks ago

Posts: 2

Topic starter 30/09/2025 4:59 pm

@pirate-rich thanks for the reply.

If I were to explore options regarding making our heating system open loop, what should I be looking for from any potential installers? Are there any basic checks that they should be performing to ensure that our system is suitable for such a change? (Repurposing of the buffer as a volumiser, the ability of the HP pump to successfully distribute the water around our house at a sufficient rate etc.).

The existing secondary pumps attached to our UFH manifolds are 17 years old, so, I assume, they may be reaching the end of their useful life. Perhaps now is the right time to be exploring alternatives before the pumps, inevitably, give up on the coldest day of the year!

Thanks.

This post was modified 3 weeks ago by Lloydi

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