Central Heating Controller
Discussion
I'm trying to find a replacement central heating controller which is fairly simple to use but which has reasonably advanced control options. It's to replace a lash up of an old digital controller (set to be constantly on as the clock no longer works) and a newer digital thermostat which just does the heating. Ideally it needs to have seperate control over heating and hot water (which is the main problem with the current controller) and the ability to set different temperatures for different times of the day. The problem is that it's to go in my grandmothers house and she's not technically savvy to put it mildly! I'll be programming it myself so it doesn't really matter how complex that side of it is but I'd like her to be able to turn it on and off or give it a one hour overide or boost fairly simply without risk of modifying the main settings accidently!
Can anyone give me any pointers on which timers to consider? Currently the Honeywell st6400c or st9400c look like possibilities?
Can anyone give me any pointers on which timers to consider? Currently the Honeywell st6400c or st9400c look like possibilities?
I think you'll struggle to find a programmer that controls Heating and Hot Water as well as room temperature.
Best bet would be to fit a single channel timer for the Hot Water, the Sunvic XL range is easy to use, but reliability is questionable.
They are easy to use, you can select 1, 2 or 3 hour boost using one button and has a large backlit display.
Honeywell timers are simple to use, as are Drayton LP series, but the Draytons don't have boost functions.
Then fit a programmable room stat to control the heating. I've not really seen any that are simple to use. But I find the Honeywell CM907/927 the most user friendly.
You can either simply turn up the temperature and it will maintain it until the start of the next cycle or you can move the slider to manual and set the temperature, this will maintain it until further notice.
Again it has a large backlit display, you can vary the temperature 6 times a day and programme each day independently.
Also if you go for the CM927, it is wireless and you can use it as remote control for the heating.
Best bet would be to fit a single channel timer for the Hot Water, the Sunvic XL range is easy to use, but reliability is questionable.
They are easy to use, you can select 1, 2 or 3 hour boost using one button and has a large backlit display.
Honeywell timers are simple to use, as are Drayton LP series, but the Draytons don't have boost functions.
Then fit a programmable room stat to control the heating. I've not really seen any that are simple to use. But I find the Honeywell CM907/927 the most user friendly.
You can either simply turn up the temperature and it will maintain it until the start of the next cycle or you can move the slider to manual and set the temperature, this will maintain it until further notice.
Again it has a large backlit display, you can vary the temperature 6 times a day and programme each day independently.
Also if you go for the CM927, it is wireless and you can use it as remote control for the heating.
The thought occurred to me after my first post that I was unlikely to find a controller which also did room temperature. I guess I'll be looking for seperate controllers or a seperate thermostat.
A bit of history may help to explain the problem. The original controller lost it's memory every time there was a power cut and was too complicated for my grandmother to reprogram which is why it's now set to be constantly on. This of course means that the hot water is on 24/7. To give some control to the heating the original dial thermostat was replaced with a Drayton Digistat 2. This works fine, but at some point since Christmas my grandmother tried to turn it off on a warm day and managed to switch it from timed mode to run constantly instead. As as result she's burnt £600 worth of oil without realising! Normally she won't need to touch the programmer at all - I set it up for her and it just runs day after day with the same settings. I really just want something reliable with clear on/off/timed switches for the heating and hot water and ideally a heating boost button of some description.
A bit of history may help to explain the problem. The original controller lost it's memory every time there was a power cut and was too complicated for my grandmother to reprogram which is why it's now set to be constantly on. This of course means that the hot water is on 24/7. To give some control to the heating the original dial thermostat was replaced with a Drayton Digistat 2. This works fine, but at some point since Christmas my grandmother tried to turn it off on a warm day and managed to switch it from timed mode to run constantly instead. As as result she's burnt £600 worth of oil without realising! Normally she won't need to touch the programmer at all - I set it up for her and it just runs day after day with the same settings. I really just want something reliable with clear on/off/timed switches for the heating and hot water and ideally a heating boost button of some description.
I carry the drayton tempus 7 on the van is it gives all the functionality you could want- selectable 7 or 5/2 day, 3 on/offs per day, holiday mode, easy summer/winter time changeover, multiple boost/advance options and is quite simple to understand and re set and looks pretty smart.
That said the last couple I picked up seem quite pricey, for what is a digital clock and a couple of stinking relays.
But if you don't need 7 day- and most people don't - I'd go for something like a siemens RWB2 - mechanical, simple, reliable.
That said the last couple I picked up seem quite pricey, for what is a digital clock and a couple of stinking relays.
But if you don't need 7 day- and most people don't - I'd go for something like a siemens RWB2 - mechanical, simple, reliable.
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