Heating controls

Using heating controls correctly is the easiest way to keep your rooms at a comfortable temperature. And in doing so, they'll help to reduce your household's fuel bills and CO₂ emissions, too.

In fact, fitting the correct heating controls could typically save you around 15% of your heating bill. What's more, fitting a condensing boiler along with a full set of heating controls could save as much as 45% of your heating fuel bill: around £250 a year.

As their name implies, heating controls allow you to choose when the heating is on, how warm it is, and where you want the warmth. They will also make sure that the boiler is only turned on when it needs to be.

What makes a full set of heating controls?

A properly controlled heating system should typically have:

• A time programmer
• A room thermostat

OR:

• A combined programmable room thermostat instead of separate programmer and room thermostat.

PLUS:

• A cylinder thermostat if your home has a regular condensing boiler with a hot water cylinder.
• Thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs).

Are you making the most of your heating controls?

You may already have a full set of heating contols in your home - but are you getting the best from them?

Take a little time to find out what each control does using our quick guide below and you could save money and valuable energy. If you do have any of these controls already refer to the instruction manuals that came with them, for specific advice on your particular make(s) and model(s). If you don't have any manuals to hand, copies can usually be downloaded from manufacturers' websites.

What is a programmer?

Programmers allow you to set when the heating and hot water come 'On' and go 'Off' again. By installing a programmer, and heating your home and hot water only as and when necessary, you will save energy and money.

What is a room thermostat?

A room thermostat constantly measures the air temperature of a space and can be set to whatever temperature suits you best. They are usually in halls, stairs or landing areas to sense the average temperature of a home's main living spaces. When the temperature falls below the setting, the thermostat switches on the central heating; once the room reaches the set temperature, the thermostat switches the heating off. Please note that the heating needs to be switched on for the thermostat to work.

Digital room termostat

What is a programmable room thermostat?

A programmable room thermostat lets you choose the times you want your home to be heated and the temperature you want it to reach while it is on. In other words, it allows you to heat rooms or the whole house to different temperatures in your home at appropriate times of the day and week. And again, by heating your home and hot water only as and when necessary, it can save energy and money too.

What is a cylinder thermostat?

A cylinder thermostat keeps a constant check on the temperature of the water in a hot-water cylinder. It switches the heat supply from the boiler on and off as necessary to keep the water at a set temperature. Installing a cylinder thermostat could save you up to £15 and 90kg of CO₂ a year.

What are thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs)?

TRVs sense the air temperature around them and regulate the flow of hot water entering the radiators to keep a set temperature in a room. Again, they can help you save money and energy - by allowing temperatures in some rooms than in others, and to turn off the heating in rooms that aren't used.

In the majority of cases TRVs can not turn off the boiler when the whole house has reached the right temperature. To do that, you will need a room thermostat as well. Radiators in the space containing the room thermostat should not normally have TRVs. But if they do, you should keep the TRVs on their highest possible settings, and set the room thermostat to the required temperature instead. By installing TRVs, you could save around £6 a year and around 45kg of CO₂ a year.

* Hot advice - programmable thermostats, room thermostats and TRVs all need a free flow of air to sense the temperature. They must not be covered by curtains or blocked by furniture. Nearby electric fires, televisions, wall or table lamps could also stop them from working properly.

Control individual room temperatures with thermostatic radiator valves

There may also be grants and offers available to help you install a new boiler or heating controls.

Savings assumptions

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