Altech/Salus - any good?

[Dark Eyes]

Hello folks,
I think my Honeywell CH/HW controller has failed, so I have been looking at possible replacements. Graham do an Altech(rebranded Salus, I presume) one, that is half the price of Honeywell/Drayton ones, it seems to offer very similar function and comes with a 5 Year Warranty!
https://www.grahamdirect.co.uk/product/altech-2-channel-programmer-5-2d-or-7d/

Has anyone got any experience of Altech/Salus 'standard' products (not the new fangled Wifi tech)?
Do they fit standard backplates or will it need rewiring?

 

[ianmcd]

stay away they are crap

 

[CBW]

What’s up with the Honeywell?

Not sure if the Boss one’s are any good, their thermostats were made by Siemens, and the Drayton is a good brand.

https://www.travisperkins.co.uk/programmers/boss-universal-programmer-tpse201-c1511/p/181422

https://www.directheatingsupplies.c...MIkLnZ2JST5wIVg7TtCh3RFwT3EAUYAyABEgL08fD_BwE

 

[Dark Eyes]

stay away they are crap

Okay, I expected that response, but can I ask, Is this from experience or just what you have heard?
Looking through this and another plumbing forum, I have seen mixed reports, some seem to think that they are okay for the money, others, particularly those using the Wifi controlled ones, seem to hate them?
The low price and 5 year warranty are attractive, although I don't particularly want to be making a monthly appointment with my local Graham's merchant's to replace another failed unit...

 

[Dark Eyes]

What’s up with the Honeywell?
Not sure if the Boss one’s are any good, their thermostats were made by Siemens, and the Drayton is a good brand.
https://www.travisperkins.co.uk/programmers/boss-universal-programmer-tpse201-c1511/p/181422
https://www.directheatingsupplies.c...MIkLnZ2JST5wIVg7TtCh3RFwT3EAUYAyABEgL08fD_BwE

It seems to have died, no lights on and nobody at home, even though the fused spur, before it, is okay.
Looking at the manuals, the Boss ones seems to be almost identical to the Altech/Salus, only with a 2 year warranty, and the price isn't much different.
Drayton, I used to think of as an okay brand, but so many, these days, are different companies trading under old, credible brand names; and it only offers 5/2 day programming, and a 1 year warranty.

 

[ianmcd]

Okay, I expected that response, but can I ask, Is this from experience or just what you have heard?
Looking through this and another plumbing forum, I have seen mixed reports, some seem to think that they are okay for the money, others, particularly those using the Wifi controlled ones, seem to hate them?
The low price and 5 year warranty are attractive, although I don't particularly want to be making a monthly appointment with my local Graham's merchant's to replace another failed unit...

No nothing to do with reading anything, I used to install them, more failed than didnt, back up is woefull, and good luck if you think grahams will replace faulty ones , aint gonna happen

 

[ianmcd]

Do they fit standard backplates or will it need rewiring?

nearly all use industry standard backplates and wiring, with the intention that they are interchangeable, but I always recommend fitting the backplate that comes with the new unit, as the connections can be very poor, hardly a big job to swap them over

 

[stem]

Generally, as with most things 'you get what you pay for' if something is half the price of something else that does the same thing, one has to wonder why. Certainly from the posts on this forum Salus does seem to have the 'lions share' of the threads regarding failures and communication problems. Although there are quite a few of them out there now, probably due to their low price.

Having said that, I have a wireless Salus RT500RF controlling the heating in my conservatory and whilst it is horrible to program, it has worked perfectly for at about 8 years. I hesitated to buy it due to the poor reports on here, but at the time it was the only wireless thermostat I could find that had a 16A switching capacity that I needed for electric heating. The rest of my heating controls are Drayton and Danfoss and they've been working perfectly since I installed them over 20 years ago, so the Salus still has a way to go.