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Smart or not?

 
Thermostats, Volumisers, Buffer Tanks, TRVs, Pumps, Piping, Valves, Radiators & Controls
Last Post by Mars 3 years ago
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 alastair
(@alastair)
Estimable Member Member
254 kWhs
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Posts: 34
Topic starter 08/10/2021 8:32 am  

Hi all

I'm wondering whether I am over-thinking all of this - I have a tendency to do that and come up with scenarios that would never happen. 

I was thinking that it would be useful and cool to have something like Tado TRVs linked to the radiators when we put the ASHP in (assuming we go with that option). The people we have been getting quotes from say that Tado isn't needed but none of them have explained why not, or how the system they suggest would work or things like that.

So, are smart systems a nice to have, or will they make a tangible difference to the way the ASHP works?

[for info we live in a square box, two floors, 4 beds, built yr 2000, 10mm microbore, radiator heated, standard brick house].

 

Cheers

Al


   
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 batalto
(@batalto)
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Joined: 4 years ago
Posts: 1091
08/10/2021 9:48 am  

@alastair smart TRVs are expensive for what you might save (especially given your floor space). Normal TRVs would be fine, just set them to the right number. They will then turn off/turn down the radiator automatically when they reach temperature. However these are pretty useless if you don't close the doors as the house is a closed envelope.

1 - 10°C

2 - 15°C

3 - 20°C (bedrooms)

4 - 25°C (living spaces)

5 - max temperature (use these where ever the thermostat is)

 

12kW Midea ASHP - 8.4kw solar - 29kWh batteries
262m2 house in Hampshire
Current weather compensation: 47@-2 and 31@17
My current performance can be found - HERE
Heat pump calculator spreadsheet - HERE


   
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 alastair
(@alastair)
Estimable Member Member
254 kWhs
Joined: 3 years ago
Posts: 34
Topic starter 08/10/2021 11:10 am  

@batalto Thanks for that. I have a feeling that we have a very simple use case and that I'm finding all the really extreme use cases online and trying to force what has been done there onto our house 🤣 . Good to know I can stick with standard controls for now. 


   
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 batalto
(@batalto)
Famed Member Member
3655 kWhs
Joined: 4 years ago
Posts: 1091
08/10/2021 11:22 am  

@alastair I think they would be better with big long houses, or mixes of building type. For a normal house I think it's false economy. Mars has smart ones, so I'm sure he can chip in

12kW Midea ASHP - 8.4kw solar - 29kWh batteries
262m2 house in Hampshire
Current weather compensation: 47@-2 and 31@17
My current performance can be found - HERE
Heat pump calculator spreadsheet - HERE


   
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 Derek M
(@derek-m)
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Joined: 4 years ago
Posts: 4429
08/10/2021 5:17 pm  
Posted by: @alastair

Hi all

I'm wondering whether I am over-thinking all of this - I have a tendency to do that and come up with scenarios that would never happen. 

I was thinking that it would be useful and cool to have something like Tado TRVs linked to the radiators when we put the ASHP in (assuming we go with that option). The people we have been getting quotes from say that Tado isn't needed but none of them have explained why not, or how the system they suggest would work or things like that.

So, are smart systems a nice to have, or will they make a tangible difference to the way the ASHP works?

[for info we live in a square box, two floors, 4 beds, built yr 2000, 10mm microbore, radiator heated, standard brick house].

 

Cheers

Al

Hi Al,

If your system works fine at the moment without TRV's, then it may not work any better with them. As far as what would happen if you have an ASHP installed, you may be able to check with your present system. I presume that you have some sort of boiler at the moment. If possible, you could try reducing the water flow temperature coming from your boiler, to the lower temperatures produced by an ASHP. This would allow you to see what effect this has on a room by room basis and also give you an idea of the water temperature an ASHP would need to produce to meet the heat demand of your home.

The lower the water flow temperature that is required, the more efficient an ASHP would operate.


   
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Mars
 Mars
(@editor)
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26708 kWhs
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09/10/2021 8:09 am  

We've gone down the smart TRV and thermostat route @alastair and they work very well in conjunction with a low flow rate system like a heat pump. It can be a bit complicated, and we've covered as much of this as possible in this video:

Buy Bodge Buster – Homeowner Air Source Heat Pump Installation Guide: https://amzn.to/3NVndlU
From Zero to Heat Pump Hero: https://amzn.to/4bWkPFb

Subscribe and follow our Homeowners’ Q&A heat pump podcast


   
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Mars
 Mars
(@editor)
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09/10/2021 8:16 am  
Posted by: @batalto

@alastair I think they would be better with big long houses, or mixes of building type. For a normal house I think it's false economy. Mars has smart ones, so I'm sure he can chip in

I probably agree with batalto. Smart thermostats and TRVs are pretty cool, and it's great to be able to automate room temperatures based on time of use as opposed to running from room to room turning TRVs up and down – this running around requires a bit of planning if you're running a heat pump because it can take hours for medium-large rooms to warm up. Our TV room is a great example of this. We keep the room on 19-20C throughout the day - at 16:30 we raise the temperature via our smart TRV to 23C so the room is snug by the time we go to watch TV in the evening. It then drops back to 19-20C when we're done.

I haven't done the maths, but I don't think they'll pay for themselves. 

Buy Bodge Buster – Homeowner Air Source Heat Pump Installation Guide: https://amzn.to/3NVndlU
From Zero to Heat Pump Hero: https://amzn.to/4bWkPFb

Subscribe and follow our Homeowners’ Q&A heat pump podcast


   
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