Heating controls will help you keep your home at a comfortable temperature without wasting energy. Homeowners can typically expect to reduce their energy usage by up to 20% by installing easy-to-use heating controls and by using them effectively. Controls have two primary functions:
1) Deciding when the heating system comes on and goes off.
You should divide the heating system into at least two zones, i.e. space heating and water heating. It is also advisable to divide the space heating into at least two zones – one for living areas and one for bedrooms. Each zone should be controlled by a 24 hour 7-Day Programmable Timer.
2) Maintaining a pleasant comfort level in the individual rooms.
The most cost effective way of achieving this is by fitting Thermostatic Radiator Valves (TRVs) to radiators in rooms that do not have a room thermostat. TRVs automatically regulate the radiator heat output to provide a constant temperature in the room.
For hot water, a thermostat should be fitted to the hot water cylinder so that the water does not overheat. The water temperature should be 60-65 degrees Celsius in order to kill harmful bacteria in the water such as Legionella.
Phoenix Plumbing & Heating (PPH) supply and fit a wide range of heating control accessories, including:
- Programmers for time control
These are available as digital and analogue. - App-enabled Heating Controls
Control your heating from your smartphone. We can supply and fit the app-enabled heating controls products of your choice. The EPH Ember product featured here in the video is a product and manufacturer we recommend. - Programmable Room Thermostats
Digital programmers for time and temperature control. - Set-Back Room Thermostats
Timed-on set temperature, e.g. 20 degrees, when the central heating programmer is timed-on. Lower timed-off set temperature, e.g. 16 degrees, when the central heating programmer is timed-off. - Thermostatic Radiator Valves
Regulates temperature of the room its in. - Heating Control Pack
The Heating Control Pack contains integrated heating controls: Programmers for time control, Hot Water Cylinder Thermostat, Room Thermostats and Zone Valves.
Hot Water Cylinder Thermostat allows you to set the desired temperature of your hot water to your taps so that you do not waste energy or overheat the system. The thermostat turns off the supply of heat from the boiler to the cylinder when the water reaches the set temperature.
Room (Zone) Thermostats are wall-mounted digital and analogue programmers for controlling the room (zone) temperature when the central heating is programmed to be on. They regulate the central heating to the radiators in that room (zone) to keep the room (zone) at the desired set temperature.
Zone Valves divide your heating system into zones. Typical installation is Zone 1 Ground Floor, Zone 2 First Floor and Zone 3 Hot Water System. The Programmer sets the time on and off. This is wired through the Room (Zone) Thermostat. The Room (Zone) Thermostat sends on/off signals to the zone valve to turn on and off the central heating for that zone. A very good reason to have Zone Valves is they give you the option of having hot water to the taps but all the radiators off, which is a lot cheaper and quicker than having an electrical immersion running.
