ᐅ How do room thermostats work in a detached single-family house?
Created on: 27 Nov 2020 11:59
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fraubauer
Good day.
I am interested in understanding how the controllers for underfloor heating, specifically the room thermostats, work.
I have simple ones with an LED light that turns on when the underfloor heating is active. The dial does not show temperature numbers but has about 15 markings.
Currently, the dial is set to marking 10 out of 15.
That means the underfloor heating only switches back on when the temperature falls below the level of that marking (but what temperature does that correspond to? There are no degree numbers on the dial).
According to my thermometer, it is about 22 degrees Celsius (72°F). So the underfloor heating heats until just above 22 degrees and then turns off. When the temperature drops below 22 degrees, it switches on again.
If I turn the dial further to the right to marking 11, would the underfloor heating then turn on when, for example, 23 degrees is undershot?
Is that a roughly correct understanding?
These simple controllers operate the actuators on the manifold valves, right?
If the controller is turned further to the right, does the valve open more (allowing more heated water through the pipe), or does the underfloor heating simply run longer with the same water flow?
Also, what happens if I replace the controllers with digital ones?
With those, you can input a specific temperature, e.g., 23 degrees Celsius (73°F).
Does the underfloor heating then simply run longer at 23 degrees than at 22 degrees, or does more heated water flow through the pipes?
I want to understand this before I talk to the heating engineer about a possible upgrade.
I have looked for information here but haven’t fully understood it.
Thank you very much.
I am interested in understanding how the controllers for underfloor heating, specifically the room thermostats, work.
I have simple ones with an LED light that turns on when the underfloor heating is active. The dial does not show temperature numbers but has about 15 markings.
Currently, the dial is set to marking 10 out of 15.
That means the underfloor heating only switches back on when the temperature falls below the level of that marking (but what temperature does that correspond to? There are no degree numbers on the dial).
According to my thermometer, it is about 22 degrees Celsius (72°F). So the underfloor heating heats until just above 22 degrees and then turns off. When the temperature drops below 22 degrees, it switches on again.
If I turn the dial further to the right to marking 11, would the underfloor heating then turn on when, for example, 23 degrees is undershot?
Is that a roughly correct understanding?
These simple controllers operate the actuators on the manifold valves, right?
If the controller is turned further to the right, does the valve open more (allowing more heated water through the pipe), or does the underfloor heating simply run longer with the same water flow?
Also, what happens if I replace the controllers with digital ones?
With those, you can input a specific temperature, e.g., 23 degrees Celsius (73°F).
Does the underfloor heating then simply run longer at 23 degrees than at 22 degrees, or does more heated water flow through the pipes?
I want to understand this before I talk to the heating engineer about a possible upgrade.
I have looked for information here but haven’t fully understood it.
Thank you very much.
N
nordanney27 Nov 2020 13:18fraubauer schrieb:
If the heating water temperature is higher, the underfloor heating simply runs for a shorter time; if the heating water temperature is lower, the underfloor heating runs longer until the desired temperature is reached. But does running it longer not mean higher heating costs? Plot. It is always more efficient not to send heating water into the house at a high flow temperature but rather evenly at a lower temperature. This is also gentler on the heating system. It’s similar to a car: constantly stopping and starting on short trips isn’t good, while driving steadily at about 100 km/h (62 mph) on the highway over thousands of kilometers is gentler. This also affects fuel consumption, which is comparable to heating costs.
F
fraubauer27 Nov 2020 13:29nordanney schrieb:
Plot. It is always more efficient to supply the heating water to the house at a consistently lower temperature rather than a high flow temperature. This is also gentler on the heating system. It’s similar to a car. Constantly turning it on and off for short trips isn’t good, but driving thousands of kilometers steadily at 100 km/h (60 mph) on the highway is easier on the engine. You can also notice it in fuel consumption, which corresponds to heating costs.Alright.
So it’s better to drive longer in 5th gear rather than shorter and faster in 4th gear.
That makes sense.
Thanks
T
T_im_Norden27 Nov 2020 17:10If by "the underfloor heating turns off" you mean that the heat generator (heat pump, gas boiler) is switched off, this is usually not the case.
The heat generator runs as long as there is still a demand for heat. In other words, if even one thermostat in a single room is still calling for heat, the system will continue heating.
The heat generator runs as long as there is still a demand for heat. In other words, if even one thermostat in a single room is still calling for heat, the system will continue heating.