A heating control system is needed in every place where people live and work. It ensures that the heating system does not waste heat energy and that the right temperature improves well-being and supports our biological rhythm – improving concentration, quality of rest, and sleep. We have written about this many times. However, still, not everyone decides to install a control system. Today, we try to find out what stands in the way of this decision. Why do some of us not control the heating in our homes? We outline the 4 most common concerns and explain why they are unfair.
Modern heating controls – both radiator and underfloor – are mistakenly associated with luxury. Something useful, but not essential. However, the efficient consumption of heating fuel provided by a heating control system is no luxury. It’s about more than comfort and heating comfort, which we are prepared to sacrifice – especially nowadays in difficult economic times.
Temperature controllers are not a luxury good, but a utility good.
They have been created to consciously draw the heating medium throughout the winter season. Precise control algorithms and well-thought-out schedules make it possible to adjust the temperature to how we live and avoid energy waste. We only use as much energy as we need to.
But this is only the case with appliances that constantly control this process. Further conclusions follow: if our installation uses less heating fuel, we pay lower energy bills.
Then there’s ZONE CONTROL, which we sometimes don’t consider at all, thinking it’s unnecessary (“Why do we need a controller in every room?”). We think that if we buy one regulator and install it where we are most often present, it is enough to control the heating. However, this is a dead end, because then we will only have the optimum temperature in that one room – in the other rooms, it will be random.
So what if, for example, the living room is pleasantly warm (because the controller will ensure that it is at a comfortable temperature), but the other rooms in the house are cold? In the end, this will force us to raise the heating parameters, so there is no question of saving money. Worse still, in such a situation, the main room – the one with the regulator and the one where it was supposed to be perfectly warm – will be overheated. It’s a vicious circle.
Only controllers operating in each room separately will allow us to adjust the temperature to our expectations – no matter what kind of heating we have, or what kind of heat source. The consumption of the heating medium will be economical and ecological. And then we will pay lower bills. And that is exactly what a heating control system is needed for.
Since a heating control system is associated with luxury, the fear of the unconvinced may be its price. Because, as we all know, you have to pay a lot for luxury. The idea that a control system is expensive may therefore be a deterrent to purchase. This idea discourages us from calculating and checking “how expensive”. Maybe not as expensive as we thought?
We look at investing in it upfront as an expense, rather than as an investment in saving money. This is exactly what it is – an investment in saving money and energy, as we wrote about above. So if we look at this one-off cost as something that will pay off and pay off in lower heating energy consumption, the price will no longer be a deterrent. It will be a contribution to a ‘cheaper tomorrow’. After all, it is a well-known fact that you have to invest to gain.
In addition to all this, the product range is extensive. Among ENGO Controls, you can find models at really affordable prices. After all, ZONE CONTROLS does not require the purchase of the most expensive controllers right away. Yes, they will work if you want state-of-the-art solutions with many functions, e.g. with Internet control or with the option of a comfortably warm floor (with underfloor heating). Such controllers offer the possibility to expand the smart home system and create scenarios for the dependencies between devices, which is a great help in running a household. However, if you do not care about such advanced functions or controlling your heating via the Internet, there are cheaper products to choose from. Cheaper, but still proven and effective.
The very name “heating control system” sounds like something complicated, something you have to learn, something you have to know how to handle – so that it works as it should, and so that you don’t break anything. This can be a deterrent to purchase because technology sometimes scares us. Especially if we feel that, having brought it under our roof, we are left alone with it. Not everyone feels like reading lengthy instructions and then figuring out everything by trial and error anyway. And there is some validity in this concern – home automation requires a certain amount of knowledge. But, if you choose well, this is not a hindrance.
Many brands – ours, for example – take great care to ensure that the customer is not left alone with the technology after purchase. ENGO Controls offers ongoing and free help with the installation and then with the operation of the equipment. This can be used by installers as well as individual customers. Continuous support is support that lasts for the entire life of the heating control system.
…to get quick support (the nice truth for us is that the service is far more likely to provide technical advice than to take complaints, so few do we have). You can also write us a private message on social media (Facebook, Instagram) and leave your phone number. Our experts will call you back and help you solve any technical problems. The same goes for regional representatives who, at the customer’s request, will inspect the building and provide professional assistance in selecting the system.
We also provide regular training for our authorized installers. Thanks to their experience and knowledge, the customer has the opportunity to ask questions and clear up any doubts during the installation of the system. The installers explain everything in detail. They support the customer not only during installation but also during commissioning and operation.
Finally, we strive to ensure that the user manuals for our products are not “tomes” in which it is difficult to find the information needed. Our condensed manuals are a nutshell of what the customer needs to know to operate the equipment he or she has purchased correctly. Everything is described and supported by clear diagrams. On our YouTube channel, we regularly post instructional videos in which we show, step by step, the process of pairing drivers and deploying the system. So there should be no fear of handling our devices. The customer is never left alone with the technology we create.
It is also a myth that a heating control system is only for new builds. This is not true. Of course, the installation of 230 V appliances does indeed require the routing of cables, which often involves renovation work, forging of walls, etc. Therefore, it is much easier to plan it during the construction phase of a building or premises. The more elaborate the system, the more thoughtful the installation work should be. However, this is not the rule.
If you opt for a heating control system made entirely or mostly of wireless products, cumbersome renovation work is out of the question. Of course, signal strength is important for the smooth operation of the system. Therefore, it is worth knowing that in the ENGO Controls system, each 230 V device amplifies the wireless signal, in a way becoming a repeater. Signal repeaters are also available. This makes it possible to build a robust network of home devices (ZigBee).
Thus, a heating control system can be successfully installed in any building/apartment – even one in which we have lived for a long time.
There is another reason why we do not always control our heating system. This reason is the lack of awareness of how good a heating control system we can create for ourselves. And not necessarily in homes, but also in flats. People simply don’t know that they can do this and how much they can gain by having, for example, a 2-3 room flat. And they can gain the same things as homeowners – comfort and savings.
You will need intelligent TRV heads mounted on radiators (radiator heating), room regulators, and – for example – opening sensors placed at windows. With these devices, we will gain control over the consumption of heating fuel:
– We set our heating schedules: comfort and economy temperatures for the rooms at selected times (zone control). From then on, we don’t worry about what temperature we need, in which room, or at what time of day – the system does it for us. We will never get cold, we will never be too hot. We do not pay extra for this comfort. On the contrary, we save on it.
– The controllers work with the TRV heads to regulate the distribution of hot water to the radiators in the rooms to maintain the set temperature. The radiators do not operate randomly, ad hoc, or ‘on demand’. The temperature is constantly monitored and maintained.
– The sensors installed at the windows interact with the controllers in the smart home system. As a result, as soon as a window is opened, the controllers send a signal to the heads, which stops the heating for ventilation. No heating energy is wasted.
Examples of such rules for flats can be multiplied, depending on your needs. And your imagination.