Hive Hot water and Heating advice..

[Matty125]

Hi,

I am planning on installing the hive kit to replace my conventional boiler and thermostat setup. Before I start would appreciate some help running through the approach. The current system is a glow worm 60ff linked to a lifestyle LP241 controller and RS1 room thermostat.

Pictures of the existing wiring:

Controller:


Thermostat:


Junction box:


In terms of the install I am expecting the Hive Controller to be a direct replacement for the lifestyle LP241 (straight swap out)

I know I have to bypass/remove the RS1 thermostat as this will be replaced by the Hive unit. In following the cables back to the junction box the top 3 cables appear to go directly to the boiler. The 4th from the top I believe goes to the room thermostat and the 3 lower cables going to the mid position actuator (3 port valve) black lead, water tank thermostat white cable and pump white cable.

To bypass the room thermostat, is the safest approach to disconnect the 4th cable from the top and wire into a separate junction block? (completely separating the cables from the rest of the junction block?) I can then do the same at the other end (room thermostat) leaving the 'dead' cable in situ?

The existing controller is set to Pump rather than gravity, and I understand the hive default is fully pumped so no changes are required.

My last query relates to another thread on this forum whereby another user has a problem with a 60ff boiler and hive install https://www.diynot.com/diy/threads/hive-wired-wrong.418141/

This sounds like a fault with the glow worm system - is there anyway of knowing if the capacitor used is required prior to hive install? If so where would I install it at the junction block?

Many thanks for any help offered.

 

[CWHEATING]

Not sure but I thought when you purchased the Hive it came with a time clock that has a built in stat and a hub.
So you’d put the hub where the old clock is and stat/clock where the old stat is.

 

[stem]

In terms of the install I am expecting the Hive Controller to be a direct replacement for the lifestyle LP241 (straight swap out)

Yes, provided that you have the dual channel version of the hive, the backplate terminals you need [N, L, 1, 3 & 4] are the same.

I know I have to bypass/remove the RS1 thermostat as this will be replaced by the Hive unit.

The easiest way to do this is by tracing the thermostat cable with the blue, red & yellow wires back from the thermostat to its origin. Note where the red and yellow wires are connected, then disconnect all three wires and the earth and remove the cable. Now add a link wire between the two terminals where the red and yellow wires have just been removed from.

The existing controller is set to Pump rather than gravity, and I understand the hive default is fully pumped so no changes are required.

Correct, that's as it should be for your system.

My last query relates to another thread on this forum whereby another user has a problem with a 60ff boiler and hive install https://www.diynot.com/diy/threads/hive-wired-wrong.418141/

No need to worry about that. If your heating is working now with the LP241, it will continue to work with the Hive, you are swapping like for like.

 

[Matty125]

Many thanks for the responses.

From what I can see the thermostat cabling goes from the junction box, down underfloor and then chased into the wall, is there any way of checking? The other 3 cables (top) of the junction box go into the loft space and towards the boiler mounted in the kitchen - hopefully I should be eliminate theses to prove which one is the thermostat cable.

I'm planning to give the install a go over the weekend - Ill update this thread as I go..

Thanks again.

 

[stem]

If you can't physically follow the cable, you should be able to identify it by what is is connected to.

For example. If you can see that one of the switching wires (most likely the yellow*) connects to the white wire of the motorised valve. [I see the far right used terminal of your wiring centre has a yellow and a white wire connected ] The other switching wire (most likely the red*) connects to terminal (4) of the LP241, and the blue wire goes to a neutral connection. then you have found your cable.

Otherwise, testing each of the cables with red, yellow & blue wires with a multimeter is the only way to be sure.

*no problem if the red & yellow are transposed.

 

[Matty125]

Stem,

Many thanks for the advice. In looking at my setup, I suspected the thermostat wire was the 4th from top (in the junction box image). From this, the yellow wire goes to the white wire from the 3 port valve. The red wire is connected to a yellow which appears to go back the controller (position 4 - yellow wire in the controller image ). The blue appears to go to the neutral - 2 blues and a black? With this in mind I'm confident its the right cable, but I will double check where the top 3 wires go to from the junction box just to eliminate them - I'm sure they go to directly to the boiler.

 

[Matty125]

Stem,

Just to finish off this thread, hive installed and appears to be working correctly - many thanks for your help! There was a delay in installing due to a failed 'air pressure switch' on the boiler which needed to be repaired beforehand...

Thanks again..

 

[BenBen1]

Hi Matty125,

I am just facing a similar issue and have the exact same thermostat with cables going into N, L and 3. I was wondering, did you plug them in directly in the same place in the Hive receiver N/L/3? There is also "common" and "heating off" in the Hive receiver (slots 1/2), did you leave them empty?

Any help is welcome. Thanks!

 

[stem]

First of all, as you haven't mentioned it, I assume that:

1) Unlike the OP you don't have a programmer elsewhere for on/off time control, and therefore the existing thermostat provides both time and temperature control of your heating.
2) You don't have a stored hot water supply (aka a Hot water cylinder)
3) You are installing the single channel version of the Hive on a combi boiler.

If the above are all correct, then you can proceed, if not, it's back to the drawing board.

The thermostat N goes to Hive N
The thermostat L goes to Hive L
The wire in the thermostat 3 goes to Hive 3 (heating on)
You need to add a link between Hive terminals L and 1 (Common)

Terminals 2 and 4 remain empty.

 

[BenBen1]

Hi Stem,

all the 3 assumptions are correct:
- the thermostat provides temperature control (no time and also no programmer elsewhere)
- No stored hot water supply, just a 1-yo combi-boiler (easycom 28c).
- Single channel

Thanks for the additional info, therefore I will just plug an extra cable between L and 1 in the Hives receiver.

I appreciate your quick response !