ᐅ Is night setback heating control useful? – Experiences?
Created on: 17 Sep 2022 21:12
I
In der Ruine
Hello everyone,
so far, I haven’t found a satisfactory answer.
The topic is energy saving in today’s context.
Does lowering the room temperature at night really make sense? There are impressive claims from smart thermostat manufacturers about how much energy can be saved, including with geofencing features.
But is that really the case? Don’t I end up using the energy saved at night to heat up cooled-down furniture and walls again? Is there any real-world potential for savings?
Thanks for your input.
so far, I haven’t found a satisfactory answer.
The topic is energy saving in today’s context.
Does lowering the room temperature at night really make sense? There are impressive claims from smart thermostat manufacturers about how much energy can be saved, including with geofencing features.
But is that really the case? Don’t I end up using the energy saved at night to heat up cooled-down furniture and walls again? Is there any real-world potential for savings?
Thanks for your input.
In der Ruine schrieb:
Does lowering the room temperature at night really make sense?That depends on your "ruin." For old, uninsulated houses, it definitely does!
I’ll follow along here. During the construction phase, we’re basically living in a ruin, and I need to start turning on the heating soon because right now I’m as cold as a stone. And it’s only September. Oh dear.
I hope we can get through the winter with our 3000 liters (approximately 793 gallons).
I hope we can get through the winter with our 3000 liters (approximately 793 gallons).
In der Ruine18 Sep 2022 17:09driver55 schrieb:
That depends on your "ruin."
For old and uninsulated cabins, it’s definitely worth it! 1948
However, I don't think the walls are the problem, but rather the drafts causing the warmth to quickly leave the rooms. I urgently need to address this.
SoL schrieb:
It depends on the application.
If you want to lower the temperature for all rooms at night the same way, a central system is the simplest and most efficient solution.
If you have different rooms with varying heating requirements throughout the day and night, the heating system will quickly reach its limits. If I want to individually adjust the temperature in each room within a short time, then that is correct to some extent. In reality, large temperature differences, especially in new builds, are more of a fantasy. Unless I have an 80°C (176°F) supply temperature, quickly raising and lowering room temperatures is difficult to achieve. Maintaining a constant temperature throughout the house with a low supply temperature is hard to beat in terms of comfort and coziness. And if the house has been at least partially modernized, this is usually also the most energy-efficient option.
G
Gecko192719 Sep 2022 08:35The purpose of a heating system in a house is to compensate for the heat loss of the building at an indoor temperature X and an outdoor temperature Y. Therefore, the heating system only needs to supply as much heat as the house loses to its surroundings. If the house were perfectly insulated (U-value: 0.0) and completely sealed, the heating system would not need to provide any heat to maintain, for example, 21 degrees Celsius (70°F) inside.
The heat loss of a house is calculated based on the insulation quality of the building envelope and the temperature difference between inside and outside. Heat loss due to ventilation would also need to be considered, but we will leave that aside here.
By lowering the indoor temperature at night, the temperature difference to the outdoor air is reduced, and less heat is lost, which the heating system would otherwise need to replace.
The claim that "reheating" a house consumes more energy than maintaining a steady temperature is not entirely accurate. The heat stored inside the building is not lost; it is simply stored. Only the losses to the environment matter, and these decrease as the temperature difference decreases.
With underfloor heating, the energy savings are practically zero because the heating system reacts so slowly that it compensates for any switch-off lasting a few hours. This, of course, assumes a certain standard of insulation.
For heat pumps, there is the additional issue that the strong increase in heating demand in the morning leads to less efficient operation compared to running at a constant output.
This approach only makes sense, for example, if a heat pump uses low-cost photovoltaic electricity during the day or if the significantly warmer outdoor air during daytime makes the air-source heat pump more efficient.
For all types of radiators with conventional combustion heating systems (oil, gas, pellets), implementing a night setback strategy is generally worthwhile, especially in poorly insulated buildings.
The heat loss of a house is calculated based on the insulation quality of the building envelope and the temperature difference between inside and outside. Heat loss due to ventilation would also need to be considered, but we will leave that aside here.
By lowering the indoor temperature at night, the temperature difference to the outdoor air is reduced, and less heat is lost, which the heating system would otherwise need to replace.
The claim that "reheating" a house consumes more energy than maintaining a steady temperature is not entirely accurate. The heat stored inside the building is not lost; it is simply stored. Only the losses to the environment matter, and these decrease as the temperature difference decreases.
With underfloor heating, the energy savings are practically zero because the heating system reacts so slowly that it compensates for any switch-off lasting a few hours. This, of course, assumes a certain standard of insulation.
For heat pumps, there is the additional issue that the strong increase in heating demand in the morning leads to less efficient operation compared to running at a constant output.
This approach only makes sense, for example, if a heat pump uses low-cost photovoltaic electricity during the day or if the significantly warmer outdoor air during daytime makes the air-source heat pump more efficient.
For all types of radiators with conventional combustion heating systems (oil, gas, pellets), implementing a night setback strategy is generally worthwhile, especially in poorly insulated buildings.
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