Setting up my CH system...boiler, TRVs and room stat?

[beardybikeboy]

Apologies if this is in the wrong place...!Could anyone give me a numpty's guide to setting rads etc?

So we have a new (ish - 2yrs) condensing combi, a wireless programmable room thermo in the living room, and TRVs on each rad in the house.

How should I set things up for max efficiency? eg:
should the boiler be as hot as possible and then we just tweak the TRVs? Or otherwise?
should I have the TRV in the living room set at highest, and then tweak the other rooms accordingly? If the living room is quite warm but the other rooms not warm enough then something needs to change because (from my understanding) the system fires and shuts off according to the temp in the living room only, right? Whereas TRVs in each room only 'kick in' if the boiler is firing but that particular room is cooler than it should be? So if the living room gets to temperature no other room will keep heating? So do I have the living room trv high and the others somewhat lower?

Thanks!!

 

[D_Hailsham]

should the boiler be as hot as possible and then we just tweak the TRVs? Or otherwise?

Set the boiler temperature to 75C and let the room stat control whi=en it is turned on and off. It shouldn't need be any higher, except in very cold weather (below -1C).

TRVs should be set to give the required room temperature. There shouldn't be any need to alter a TRV because of weather changes - it's like cruise control.

should I have the TRV in the living room set at highest, and then tweak the other rooms accordingly?

Yes, the TRV in the room with the wall stat should be set to Max so it doesn't stop the wall stat controlling the boiler.

If the living room is quite warm but the other rooms not warm enough then something needs to change because (from my understanding) the system fires and shuts off according to the temp in the living room only, right?

That's correct. The boiler will turn off when the rooms stat has reached temperature. If the other rooms have not reached temperature then:

1. The rads in the living room are too large; or
2. The rads in the other rooms are too small; or
3. The system is not correctly balanced.

As it's a wireless stat, you could experiment by putting it in the hall, which is usually the coldest place (set the hall TRV to max), and controlling the living room temperature with the TRV.

Once you have found the most suitable setting for a TRV there should be no need to alter it. Setting a TRV to max will not heat the room up any quicker.

If the room with the wall stat reaches temperature too quickly, you may be able to slow this down by closing the lockshield valve slightly. You will have to experiment.

 

[beardybikeboy]

Many thanks, that's a big help