Hive thermostats general question
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Main reason for a "Smart" thermostat is so they link with the TRV heads. I found you did not need all rooms with linked heads, just rooms likely to be cold, the Hive wall thermostat has an upper limit of 22°C after which it will not switch on if it gets a demand for heat, but under that limit if a TRV head sends a demand for heat the wall thermostat will turn on even if the room it is in is warm enough.
But in the main the TRV head does the controlling of room temperature, just stopped to set this room to 22°C not likely it will hit that before wall thermostat turns off, but I have the wall thermostat mounted in a poor place.
Most the "Smart" systems with the exception of silly Nest the TRV tells the wall thermostat what to do. The problem is the TRV's are all wireless. So some way you need to link the wireless TRV to the wall thermostat/hub.
Or you can very carefully set the TRV and wall thermostat in the same room to work in harmony. So you can set a programmable wall thermostat and programmable TRV and the lock shield valve to work together. I did this with my mothers house, but it did take some time.
If the lock shield is open too much, the radiator will heat up before the TRV can close and it will over shoot, you want the TRV to have turned off on cold days before the wall thermostat, but on warm days the wall thermostat will turn off stopping the boiler from cycling, it can be done, but not easy. The linked TRV and wall thermostat makes it much easier to set up.
But in the main the TRV head does the controlling of room temperature, just stopped to set this room to 22°C not likely it will hit that before wall thermostat turns off, but I have the wall thermostat mounted in a poor place.
Most the "Smart" systems with the exception of silly Nest the TRV tells the wall thermostat what to do. The problem is the TRV's are all wireless. So some way you need to link the wireless TRV to the wall thermostat/hub.
Or you can very carefully set the TRV and wall thermostat in the same room to work in harmony. So you can set a programmable wall thermostat and programmable TRV and the lock shield valve to work together. I did this with my mothers house, but it did take some time.
If the lock shield is open too much, the radiator will heat up before the TRV can close and it will over shoot, you want the TRV to have turned off on cold days before the wall thermostat, but on warm days the wall thermostat will turn off stopping the boiler from cycling, it can be done, but not easy. The linked TRV and wall thermostat makes it much easier to set up.
If you are hard wiring it why do you want a Hive ?
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Lads.................I am only a simple bloke, TRV's talking to stats etc etc put the fear of G** into me PLUS spending hundreds of pounds to save a few pence when I can just turn the stat down is all a simple bloke like me needs...........................BUT.................the hive display looks simple and it has a boost button so I can walk up, press it n get heat
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This
also has a boost button, I got 5 at £15 each, no wiring just unscrew original and fit new.
Central heating is a compromise, yes you can get all singing dancing
with really good control which costs likely more than it saves, there are two types of boiler, those which gain the latent heat (condensating) and those which don't, if the boiler gains the latent heat to do that the boiler turns down (modulates) and up as required to maintain the return water cool enough, and the TRV and lock shield valves are very important with these boilers, they will work without it being set correctly, but not efficiently.
The non condensating boiler like my oil boiler if it warms the rooms then it is doing it's job, and the TRV may allow rooms to be isolated when not in use, but are not essential to economic running of the boiler.
But with a condensating boiler the TRV is king.
also has a boost button, I got 5 at £15 each, no wiring just unscrew original and fit new.Central heating is a compromise, yes you can get all singing dancing
with really good control which costs likely more than it saves, there are two types of boiler, those which gain the latent heat (condensating) and those which don't, if the boiler gains the latent heat to do that the boiler turns down (modulates) and up as required to maintain the return water cool enough, and the TRV and lock shield valves are very important with these boilers, they will work without it being set correctly, but not efficiently.The non condensating boiler like my oil boiler if it warms the rooms then it is doing it's job, and the TRV may allow rooms to be isolated when not in use, but are not essential to economic running of the boiler.
But with a condensating boiler the TRV is king.
Hive can be set to stand-alone mode, which doesn't need any internet connection.
However most of it's features won't work, it will just be a basic thermostat.
Far cheaper and simpler thermostats are available if that is all that's wanted.
However most of it's features won't work, it will just be a basic thermostat.
Far cheaper and simpler thermostats are available if that is all that's wanted.
EM...............you've clearly got a massive brain....can I buy some of it from ya?.........sadly, mine aint! I have a 1yr old condensing combi, my existing progstat is too difficult to program for my small brain PLUS it don't have a boost (switch on for an hour) button, the hive looks simpler AND that all important boost button is on it
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I have to admit I changed my Horstmann DRT2 
for a 
newer model and the easy press up/down was lost even when the two looked so similar the thermostat I have now 
very easy to use, although not quite so easy to program to start with.
But what you need to understand is my old oil boiler is very different to your modern gas boiler, this
is your main control, set correct your boiler should not switch off/on when heating is required, it should turn down, only when at minimum output should it turn off, if you boil a kettle it does not take long to boil, but it takes a very long time to turn all the water into steam, and you boiler is designed to extract the energy that is used to turn water into steam called latent heat.
To do that the return water temperature is important, it needs to be cool enough to turn steam into water, so each radiator has a lock shield valve which is set so the radiator water cools around 15°C as it passes through the radiator, and also the TRV which closes as the room gets warm, the simple one shown works over around 2°C fully closed to fully open, so it does not have °C marked on it as it will vary slightly it will be around 2½ for 20°C.
As it closes more water is at first forced though radiators still open, and then the by-pass valve opens, the boiler monitors the return water temperature and as the temperature increases it slowly turns down, this maintains the home as a constant heat, with very little hysteresis. So not only using less energy, but also better control.
However it has a problem, as summer returns it can't fully switch off, so if left all summer the heating would be cycling on/off to test if required, so we put a thermostat in an area normally kept cool as we want to set it at 17 to 18°C so on a day where it is likely to warm up, heating does not come on, in theory a room on bottom floor as heat raises, with no outside door, and no alternative heating, and that room has no TRV fitted, well in practice often no such room.
So we go for a compromise, the hall has an outside door, so we fit a TRV and a wall thermostat, so when outside door is opened the TRV turns full on to re-heat the hall, but at 16°C it starts to close, so at 18°C nearly fully closed, and the wall thermostat set at 18°C will only work on warm days.
We could of cause use a human machine interface (HMI) in the form of a simple switch, and do away with the thermostat, and manually turn off heating when not required.
Up to this point looking at likes of a care home where heated all day and all night, but often we want to turn off heating when we go to bed, or go to work. If turned fully off then it can take a long time to re-heat home, so we instead turn it down, this also gives frost protection, so turn that hall thermostat to 16°C and it will switch on/off for a short burst to keep hall warm, but since the TRV is wide open, rest of house will get very cool, so by also using a programmable TRV we can turn heat down in hall and still keep rest of home reasonable warm so does not take too long to reheat.
This house takes ages to reheat, I have an open grate and loads of wood, but lazy, and have never lit a fire since I have lived here, so for me the geofencing turning on heat before I get home is good, but last house living room had a 4.5 kW gas fire, and a 3.5 kW fan assisted radiator and a 4 kW standard radiator in the living room, so 15 minutes and room warm again. So last house no need for geofencing.
Every home is different, mothers house huge problem with bay windows over heating the living room, wind direction also changed how her house heated, so there is no one compromise fits all. Yes with some integrated system which would cost an arm and a leg we could have twin matrix fan assisted radiators which can heat or cool each room as required. But few can afford that, so we work on near enough engineering, but to select what is likely to work, you need to understand how it works.
for a newer model and the easy press up/down was lost even when the two looked so similar the thermostat I have now very easy to use, although not quite so easy to program to start with.But what you need to understand is my old oil boiler is very different to your modern gas boiler, this
is your main control, set correct your boiler should not switch off/on when heating is required, it should turn down, only when at minimum output should it turn off, if you boil a kettle it does not take long to boil, but it takes a very long time to turn all the water into steam, and you boiler is designed to extract the energy that is used to turn water into steam called latent heat.To do that the return water temperature is important, it needs to be cool enough to turn steam into water, so each radiator has a lock shield valve which is set so the radiator water cools around 15°C as it passes through the radiator, and also the TRV which closes as the room gets warm, the simple one shown works over around 2°C fully closed to fully open, so it does not have °C marked on it as it will vary slightly it will be around 2½ for 20°C.
As it closes more water is at first forced though radiators still open, and then the by-pass valve opens, the boiler monitors the return water temperature and as the temperature increases it slowly turns down, this maintains the home as a constant heat, with very little hysteresis. So not only using less energy, but also better control.
However it has a problem, as summer returns it can't fully switch off, so if left all summer the heating would be cycling on/off to test if required, so we put a thermostat in an area normally kept cool as we want to set it at 17 to 18°C so on a day where it is likely to warm up, heating does not come on, in theory a room on bottom floor as heat raises, with no outside door, and no alternative heating, and that room has no TRV fitted, well in practice often no such room.
So we go for a compromise, the hall has an outside door, so we fit a TRV and a wall thermostat, so when outside door is opened the TRV turns full on to re-heat the hall, but at 16°C it starts to close, so at 18°C nearly fully closed, and the wall thermostat set at 18°C will only work on warm days.
We could of cause use a human machine interface (HMI) in the form of a simple switch, and do away with the thermostat, and manually turn off heating when not required.
Up to this point looking at likes of a care home where heated all day and all night, but often we want to turn off heating when we go to bed, or go to work. If turned fully off then it can take a long time to re-heat home, so we instead turn it down, this also gives frost protection, so turn that hall thermostat to 16°C and it will switch on/off for a short burst to keep hall warm, but since the TRV is wide open, rest of house will get very cool, so by also using a programmable TRV we can turn heat down in hall and still keep rest of home reasonable warm so does not take too long to reheat.
This house takes ages to reheat, I have an open grate and loads of wood, but lazy, and have never lit a fire since I have lived here, so for me the geofencing turning on heat before I get home is good, but last house living room had a 4.5 kW gas fire, and a 3.5 kW fan assisted radiator and a 4 kW standard radiator in the living room, so 15 minutes and room warm again. So last house no need for geofencing.
Every home is different, mothers house huge problem with bay windows over heating the living room, wind direction also changed how her house heated, so there is no one compromise fits all. Yes with some integrated system which would cost an arm and a leg we could have twin matrix fan assisted radiators which can heat or cool each room as required. But few can afford that, so we work on near enough engineering, but to select what is likely to work, you need to understand how it works.
post a pic of your existing thermostat and I will guide you to a straight swap for something simple with a boost function, to buy a hive to do what you want is an expensive way to solve the problem
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