Can the app control the smart TRVs?

Taliska

I have an old standard boiler and separate hot water cylinder system (Y system) with a W/B Greenstar 18Ri.

Can the smart phone app remotely and automatically control the settings on the individual Smart TRVs - so, for example, during the day the bedroom TRVs can be turned down to 15°C, but in the morning and late evening they can be remotely turned up to 21°C?

So many questions...

Thanks all

eezytiger

Yes. You will need a starter kit with the bridge and can add the thermostatic valves as necessary. You do not need a smart thermostat in order to control the valves. The app will give you individual control on demand and schedules for each valve. This is how I initially installed and ran Tado for my heating.

However, the valves cannot command the boiler to provide heat. That will be left to your existing system and thermostat/timer to turn the boiler on and off. In my case, with a combi boiler, adding a smart wired thermostat and connecting that to the boiler now allows Tado to fully control the boiler operation and to turn it on when any of the valves dropped below the target temperature. I think it was a worthwhile upgrade for me.

For a system boiler (no idea what a Y system is) I think you'd need a different smart thermostat solution to control everything, including hot water, but that's being my experience and needs. I'm sure Tado supports it though. Just not sure what you would need.

Taliska

Thanks for the comprehensive answer.

A Y system is one with a separate hot water tank with a single valve that diverts the water to rads and/or tank.

Was going to go the whole hog and replace programmable controller and thermostat - and adding Smart TRVs seemed a bit meh if they could not have their temps set based on a schedule.

——

We seem to suffer from leaving windows open whilst the heating comes on - which is not clever at all. The open window detection initially seemed spot on, but I’m guessing it can’t tell if the window is open for long periods of time .. in any case, I hate recurring subscription fees and won’t entertain enabling that feature - which could be a pity.

Still trying to decide whether it’s actually worth the investment and installation hassles for me. We typically have the heating on for a few hours in the morning, and several hours in the evening - and off at night and during the day (even when at home). Will it actually save money and the planet to any worthwhile degree?

Thoughts appreciated.

eezytiger

Hard to say how much you'll save. There are many variables in play, not least of which is the price of the Tado devices. I bought mine from Amazon UK, and prices there are very "flexible". Think I got lucky with my timing. At the more recent prices I've seen I would not be buying. Maybe Black Friday? Also your energy supplier might have deals.

Then there is the quality of home insulation, hours of operation, diligence of managing heating and heat loss open windows/doors. Plus, what's your tariff now and how will energy prices vary in future?

I'm hoping to make savings with Tado, but as importantly, just be more comfortable around the house. We have nine radiators. Prior to Tado we had six dumb TRVs, 33 years old, and not one of them worked as a thermostat. They were all unresponsive to temperature change and just worked as manual wheellhead controls, not thermostats.

So just by switching to Tado we immediately gained seven (yes, I added one) working (accurate!) TRVs, plus the schedule flexibility. Rooms can now be individually controlled to the exact temperature and schedule to maximise comfort and minimise cost. The house is occupied most of the day on most days, so the heating is always on, day and night. Fine tuning exactly which rooms get the heat, how much and when is brilliant.

In replacing our old thermostat/timer with Tado we've not only gained boiler control from remote rooms, but also swapped the boiler from mains relay switching to e-Bus control. This adds extra sophistication to the boiler operating temperature, improving efficiency and comfort, and hopefully costs.

I'm happy with my choice of the Tado system. It is working well for us and giving insight into which rooms need the most heating and might benefit from better insulation or refined temperature adjustment. I only installed the system this month, so far too early to get a handle on the annual savings, but it's looking promising so far.

I've paid for a year of auto assist. I tried the trial and immediately missed the data on offer when it ended, so I coughed up. Whether I continue next year remains to be seen. I do hate subscription services, but if the value is there I'll suck it up. I imagine I'll save at least £25 per annum with Tado installed and perhaps more with auto assist.

Taliska

Many thanks for sharing your experiences thus far.

I must add that getting rid of the manual programmer would be really quite desirable - I hate reprogramming it and seem to find my self manually switching the HW or CH off.

Ah - made the decision and bought the Starter Kit. :-)