Printable Version | Subscribe | Add to Favourites
New Topic New Poll New Reply
Author: Subject: very off topic - house heating systems
luke2152

posted on 27/8/18 at 08:45 PM Reply With Quote
very off topic - house heating systems

Well it has dawned on me that I have not a clue how my heating system works and I'm sure the collective here had a pretty good knowledge. This is kind of with a view to installing a smart phone based control system or upgrading system but mainly I just want to get to grips with what all the components do. My hot water requirements in summer are limited to 5 min showers and washing dishes plus I spend a lot of time away from home so I suspect I'm heating far more water than I need to.

So I'll attach photos of the components and explain what I think they do so that I can be corrected:


So a switch connected to what appears to be a timer and in turn connected to a water cylinder. This switch is turned off and I've not used it, when turned on I hear kettle like noise leading me to assume it is an electric heating element in the cylinder that is not used but connected either as a alternative means of heating or just because it is the old system and since upgraded. I don't know if the cylinder stores hot water when the gas heater is doing its thing or if the gas heater is powerful enough to heat the water as it is used (I'm guessing the former).


Siemens controller and appears to be the only modern bit of the system here - it connects to the gas heater above and allows setting of the timing when the gas heater kicks in. I assume this could be replaced with another system with simple rewiring? In the background is control for circulation pump. Max, med and min speak for themselves but what does C1, C2, C3 refer to?


The gas heater. Glow worm 2 by name. Has a temperature control which I assume relates to the temperature the hot water comes out of the tap. I've not adjusted it.


Thermostat I think speaks for itself. It appears to be connected to the gas heater only although the wiring is a bit complicated. I've not had need for the central heating yet so turned down and doing nothing.

View User's Profile View All Posts By User U2U Member
cliftyhanger

posted on 28/8/18 at 05:45 AM Reply With Quote
A pumped system (as opposed to a combi, which does not have a hot water tank and heats water on demand)

When the heating is on, the hot water out of the boiler will circulate around the radiators and the hot water cylinder (the cylinder has a coil of pipe in it that the hot water goes through, which heats the water in the tank)

When the heating is off hot water from the boiler is diverted by a valve so it only goes to the hot water tank (maybe via a radiator in the bathroom, which is quite handy for drying towels etc)

So yes, you are heating way more water than you are using. But is it worth changing things? If the boiler is OK (I have no idea on age and how long it will last etc) it isn't worth doing anything except use the controls to heat the water for about 30 mins or so shortly before the shower.... You don't have to heat the whole tank, the hot water takeoff is at the top.

First pic with the mechanical timer will be for the electric immersion heater in the tank. Probably 2kw electric, gas will be cheaper to use and keep the system ticking over (good thing)

The siemens programmer you need to get the instructions and set it up for when you want the hot water on and the heating on. Then the thermostat set for the temp you want the house at... The heating will then come on ONLY when it is programmed to do so, and will only come on if the house temp is lower than the thermostat.

HTH

View User's Profile View All Posts By User U2U Member
Mr Whippy

posted on 28/8/18 at 06:18 AM Reply With Quote
I think you'd be better off fitting an electric shower, heating a tank like that (no lagging either) is a very inefficient way of doing it. Even a small dishwasher would be a better option, they actually use and heat very little water. If your away from the house a lot I'd be fitting foam lagging on the pipework there in case there was a cold snap. Apart from the wire to the pump it all looks well done, I wouldn't personally bother changing any of the equipment, certainly not some silly phone app. It looks like an older house, perhaps the money would be better spent improving loft and cavity insulation so you use the heating system less.
View User's Profile E-Mail User Visit User's Homepage View All Posts By User U2U Member
motorcycle_mayhem

posted on 28/8/18 at 08:59 AM Reply With Quote
Your lifestyle suggests an electric shower would be a no brainer.

I've also installed an instant water heater under the kitchen sink, it's been superb for hand/dishwashing. The hot water tank is retained, but very rarely used.

An electric towel radiator sits on the bathroom wall.

OK.. so I have no access to gas, the oil burner isn't in great shape, so point-of-use devices fit my needs perhaps more than yours.

View User's Profile View All Posts By User U2U Member
luke2152

posted on 28/8/18 at 12:46 PM Reply With Quote
Good advice well presented. So if i got an electric shower heater and equivalent for the kitchen sink, i could just use the gas for central heating and then only in winter. Makes sense. My reasoning behind wanting a phone app thing would be to turn heating back on prior to returning from a week or two away. Perhaps just remotely operated thermostat?
View User's Profile View All Posts By User U2U Member
cliftyhanger

posted on 28/8/18 at 01:36 PM Reply With Quote
I got a Hive thingy from toolstation a while ago. £50.... so seemed good value to me for those instances when you do leave the heating off when away.

Re kitchen, tempted to say boil a kettle to wash up, save a load of wiring etc.

Electric shower, you "should" get it installed by a sparky, but not complex. Just get the correct size wiring (I would use 10mm stuff, so you caould use a 10kw shower, but 6mm is ok for a 9.5kw one. And much easier to install should you DIY. Don't foget the correct sized MCB that must be RCB protected....

And if away in the winter, either drain the whole system down and turn off at the main inlet (yep, including the H+C tanks) OR fit a froststat to stop a burst pipe. A place I do a bit of work at had a neighbor go away earlier this year, I got a call asking for help as a feed to the water tank in the loft had split, and left running for possibly 3 days. Whole house is still a wreck 6 months on. And the place I work in is just about dry enough to repair/decorate the party wall.

View User's Profile View All Posts By User U2U Member

New Topic New Poll New Reply


go to top






Website design and SEO by Studio Montage

All content © 2001-16 LocostBuilders. Reproduction prohibited
Opinions expressed in public posts are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
the views of other users or any member of the LocostBuilders team.
Running XMB 1.8 Partagium [© 2002 XMB Group] on Apache under CentOS Linux
Founded, built and operated by ChrisW.