yesterday total 35 kWh - NOTE THIS IS NOT JUST FOR THE ASHP - THIS IS FOR WHOLE HOUSE - but I have a general run rate of about 15 to 20 kWh for the whole house - I looked at Septembers figures and it didn't once go above 20 kWh used in a day - which you would expect when weather is mild.
The thermostats show 15 degrees in each room - they are calling for heat - as have changed them to 18 in living room and 16 in the other two rooms. It will be interesting if they manage to reach this temperature today. Yesterday in the living room with solar gain - did get up to 17 - not as sunny here at the moment.
I would suggest that you investigate why you are using 15kWh to 20kWh electricity usage, most homes I believe are below 10kWh.
@derek-m Any ideas how I do that? Although I've learnt a great deal from the process, it was my husband who wanted this system installed - unfortunately he had an accident 5 years ago and is severely disabled - so I've had to take on all the maintenance of the system and try to get to grips with it. Possibly this is something for me to ask an engineer from the company who installed it?
I don't think anyone who buys a heat pump realises they get a free hobby with each purchase! Understanding how to use it effectively is a per user solution. I would say that last years COP of around 2, especially if that is all you have been achieving for 7 years is something that the installers should have some ownership of and shame about, you should be specific about that measure if you have more contact with them.
A cold winter and high energy prices are causing everyone discomfort, and especially if you don't know how to change settings to prioritise heat or cost. As I said before, everything I suggest should be taken with the proviso that I have no direct experience of UFH!
Your installers schedule was better than I had feared, as it was not running the heating for a good part of the evening/night. I suggested starting it later as 4-6am are going to be the least efficient period to run the unit. If you can bear a colder start, which is what we getting plenty of this year, then you can nudge the flow temperature up following a cold night and take cost benefit from PV supported running.
If your rooms are not getting generally progressively colder then that shows that 35 is a good flow temperature for the current weather even with a shorter schedule, as you are managing to replace the heat lost over the whole day. 30 will not be enough until the days are warmer, unless you then run also it for longer. Adjusting the temps in fixed flow I hope will give you a better idea of how hot the system needs to run to maintain constant-ish temps. But then running heating in curve mode to set the flow temperatures will be less hassle for you day-to-day as long as you can set a good match between the flow temp need for the external temp in that curve. Having a shorter heating schedule means you have to have a warmer flow to get the heat into the UFH to balance out across the day.
Mitsubishi EcoDan 8.5 kW ASHP - radiators on a single loop 210l Mitsubishi solar tank Solar thermal 3.94kW of PV
@derek-m Any ideas how I do that? Although I've learnt a great deal from the process, it was my husband who wanted this system installed - unfortunately he had an accident 5 years ago and is severely disabled - so I've had to take on all the maintenance of the system and try to get to grips with it. Possibly this is something for me to ask an engineer from the company who installed it?
@derek-m a clearer picture taken just now - 10th Feb at 12:20
- I've never really looked at these - should I be on a regular basis? What are they actually telling me?
The upper temperature gauge (near the red flow regulators) is now reading 29C, and the lower one (near the grey solenoid valves) is reading 23C. This would indicate that the water going into the UFH is at a temperature of 29C, and the water coming back out is at 23C, so there is a temperature difference, DeltaT (DT), of approximately 6C.
Heat energy is therefore being absorbed by your floor slabs.
I would suggest that you now increase the LWT from 35C to 40C, as originally suggested, and see if the increase in water temperature is reflected by an increase in readings on the above temperature gauges.
Also set all your room thermostats to 20C for the time being, to ensure that all the solenoid valves are open. The solenoid valves should be controlled by the appropriate room thermostat, probably via a central UFH controller, and should open the relevant valve to allow warm water into the appropriate UFH pipes when the room temperature is low, and then close the solenoid valve when the room is up to temperature. Try touching each of the grey coloured solenoids, which should feel warm to the touch if energised.
The flow regulator/indicator valves are used to balance the flow rate to each of the UFH loops, to help provide an even flow of heat energy throughout your home.
Do you have more than just the one UFH manifold?
Please report back if the temperature readings change.
Edit.
I forgot to mention that the water pressure as shown on the pressure gauge looks a little on the low side, I would suggest topping up your system to a pressure of between 1 bar and 2 bar.
@derek-m the hot room is a greenhouse - it's not on the grid - has double glazing in that room - so in theory the bathroom has triple glazing - double glazed door into the "hot room" and that room is double glazed
@derek-m "I would suggest that you investigate why you are using 15kWh to 20kWh electricity usage, most homes I believe are below 10kWh."
Look at the appliances that you have and how much energy they use. Anything that involves a heater is going to be a prime suspect. I think that you mentioned that you have battery storage, if so, then ensure that it is not being charged with expensive electricity, and then feeding this energy back to the grid at little or no financial benefit.
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