marshian

I bought into Wiser system - pretty convinced that when I was running scheduled heating times with the old boiler with “smart” TRV’s it did a pretty good job of saving energy (I was manually compensating for outside temp ) Now with new boiler running WC and 24/7 I’m fairly convinced that Wiser and the “Smart” TRV’s aren’t making any saving the only functionality I’m finding really useful is the ability to control HW schedule remotely. I’m pretty sure removal of 80% of the TRV’s and replacing with decorators caps is going to happen soon but for the remote control I’m pretty sure I’d go back to a simple on/off programmer and a wired thermostat on the wall in case of too much solar gain in shoulder seasons……. so much for technology

Really interesting info - I've gone thro similar albeit still using gas boiler Over the past 4 years I have gone successively from gas fired, heating to a schedule trvs everywhere, flow temperature pinned at 68C and rooms all set to different target temps "probably over zoned" gas fired, heating to a schedule trvs everywhere, upgraded rads lower flow temps 48C was pretty much as low as the boiler would go to 55C in the worst of winter (best description is manual WC) - I was using "hour boosts" in shoulder seasons when house needed a little heat but a full schedule was too much. heating 24*7 still got trvs everywhere but majority set too a temp that cannot be achieved WC flow temp (32C at 0C OAT) (I still have a couple of areas where effectively the TRV's are in operation but they are high heat loss areas) In the last few weeks I've been experimenting with turning of the boiler for a several hours during the day and I'm rapidly coming to the conclusion that it's not saving me any energy - or rather energy not being used during switched off period is being used to get the house back up to temp Comparing energy used v HDD data it's pretty clear to me that proper WC (using OAT sensor and the correct curve) combined with open zones is a way more comfortable environment at the expense of a slight increase in energy usage * over the winter period (* compared to Scheduled heating) That increase in energy usage is now being recovered as a result of WC being far more efficient at keeping the majority of the house at target temps now we are in the shoulder seasons so where I was considering going back to scheduled heating or turning off the heating for periods I'm leaving it 24/7 Data HDD Month 2022 2023 2024 2025 Jan 377 366 414 Feb 294 248 332 Mar 291 251 288 Apr 239 211 161 May 141 101 Jun 55 84 Jul 39 45 Aug 42 31 Sep 28 38 88 Oct 116 130 159 Nov 217 283 278 Dec 399 291 300 Total 759 2,219 2,161 1,195 KW (Heating only) Month 2022 2023 2024 2025 Jan 1,388 1,440 1,901 Feb 1,076 942 1,507 Mar 1,056 814 1,024 Apr 604 600 342 May 99 38 Jun 24 54 Jul - 41 Aug 5 - Sep 108 8 183 Oct 384 399 651 Nov 776 663 868 Dec 1,442 1,146 1,429 Total 2,710 6,468 7,061 4,774 KW/HDD Month 2022 2023 2024 2025 Jan 3.68 3.94 4.59 Feb 3.66 3.80 4.54 Mar 3.63 3.25 3.55 Apr 2.52 2.84 2.12 May 0.70 0.38 Jun 0.44 0.64 Jul 0.00 0.91 Aug 0.12 0.00 Sep 3.88 0.22 2.07 Oct 3.32 3.08 4.11 Nov 3.57 2.34 3.12 Dec 3.62 3.94 4.77 Avg 3.57 2.91 3.27 3.99

Indeed I have Copper pipes under a suspended ground floor and running in a very well ventilated void - these are all insulated (CW, HW and CH Flow and Return) Copper pipes above an insulated cold loft that is ventilated - these are all insulated (CW Tank Feed, HW F&E The only pipes between loft and floor that are insulated are the flow and return to the HW Tank from the boiler and All pipework in the airing cupboard All HW, CW and CH flow and returns inside the heated envelope are not lagged mainly because they are boxed in or under the first floor - I did consider it

A Gas boiler - output and modulation rate chosen poorly and run at non condensing temps will also hit you in the wallet 100% agree - Condensing boilers were mandated with little or no explanation of just how the efficiency could be improved with lower temp heating and DHWP - I'd take a punt and say that most condensing boiler temps are set at 55-60 deg C as that's really the temp which gets the HW tank up to a sensible level and aren't set up for WC S and Y plan aren't really the problem as such - boilers not being told if they are heating HW or doing Space Heating is the issue The mandated move to condensing boilers is just another example of governments trying to do the right thing but making it a utter horlicks of it all Same with BUS grants - all it's doing is inflating the cost of the conversion from gas boiler to ASHP - increasing the profits of manufacturers and installers and being funded by the taxpayer.

I'm sure we can be flexible on the date..........

I'm not talking about safety related issues here I have a simple rule for all white goods "insurance plans" or "extended warranty" costs - I get a minimum of 1 year for free - if something is going to go wrong it's more likely to do so in the first year so I'm very skeptical about the benefits. (You don't hear many companies offering warranty cover going bust) If the cost of the cover for additional 2, 3, 5, or 10 years (Based on a reasonable expectation of expected life) is more than the cost of a replacement new item they can get in the sea * see note I take 25% of the cost of the plan and stick that in a savings account It meant that when I replaced my gas boiler last year the £3500 it cost was all from that same savings account I have a neigbour who covers all his appliances with "Extended Cover" - last year he was crowing about he had his american style fridge freezer replaced FOC -but he pays somewhere close to £300 per month for all appliance cover he has. By my logic American fridge freezer say £700 - 800 he could have covered that cost in under 3 months and as a plus It wouldn't have took 3 "engineer" visits with various parts being replaced as a potential fix while suffering a below par fridge performance before they accepted the fridge was beyond repair (who knew a fridge has a motherboard!!!) Note * It always is!!!!

Last one I did looked like this but it was years ago - Cost was pretty much free as most of the wood was scavenged Sorry didn't build the house so no idea on costs

Bravo Then end of "da bungalow" is the new beginning I'm not surprised at the attitudes of the neighbours - you are exibiting considerate destruction - much better than a munching machine

I'd be up for that - I got a ban from the cherry tree in 1980 (Don't ask it was a misunderstanding about the legal age to drink in a pub without an appropriate adult) However I'm pretty sure 1. They won't recognise me now compared to the spotty teenager I was 2. The grumpy twat that ran the place is probably dead anyway

Or May? First Thursday is the 1st of May (I thought it was a bank holiday but that's Monday the 5th May so nicely away from the 1st)

I'm playing catch up with these blog entries - you have a great writing style - just the right balance of humour and gritty detail - thanks for sharing.

It is indeed

Christ that's darker than @Iceverge

Dark very dark indeed

Don't take it so personally - problem with written communications on the internetz is that you can't see the face of whoever is writing - so it can easily be miss-understood. You are doing a fine job of recycling

I know what temp ours gets too................. Highest in 2024 was 40.2 Deg C, Lowest was -2.1 Deg C Summer months pretty typical to never drop below 25 deg C in the day time Large south facing side - concrete tiles - overheats like an absolute twat!!! Have vented eves - all clear of insulation and they do diddly squit - I'm going to stick an airbrick in each gable end as high up as I can in the hope that it allows some heat to bleed out. Anyway good work on the demolition and skip avoidance

What about a "mouse trap" arrangement - drill holes in mortar and insert dowels to push insulation back under windows

That looks excellent quality work and you've inspired me to do something similar - I keep a beer stocked fridge in the garage - for garden/garage refreshment - it would be so much better if I built a bar area in the corner of the garden - I could run an extension lead for the electricity out thro the garage window and that corregated clear plastic sheeting would keep the worst of the weather off it. Shabby Chic I think they call it I've subsequently spoke to Mrs Alien about my plan - apparently I have to kill her first or something like that - definitely involved a dead body

OK just a suggestion from previous pictures I can see that removing a row or two of tiles means you can look down the cavities - can you not add suitable 2.4 m length of wood vertically down the cavity with a taper at the end to straighten/push the PIR back to being in contact with the internal wall face - then as they blow in beads pull out each length of wood knowing that the beads already in the cavity will keep the PIR in contact with the internal wall face. Insulation company would then be happy with the consistent gap from an infill perspective? Obviously if you can't push it back with 2.4m length from above then it's a bust from that perspective so a bit of wood

Well good luck when you move back in - I hope it all goes well

Because they didn’t have a car or they parked outside the gated drive?

So more to the issue than originally explained. Your house and garage are not currently occupied so he's not causing any issue to you currently and he's not causing issue for 3 & 4 When you move back in the fun will start because effectively he has no-where he can park without causing issues Of you've been there 38 years where did the previous occupants of House number 2 park in the past?

Draw the whole site please including entrance gate etc no defending the person parking there but it maybe that if he parks outside his house he restricts access to another houseowner???

How many rads? Heat loss of the house? Just for comparison and I know it's never going to be a valid comparison but 4 Bed Detached, 2 floors, 113m3 (stupid T shape so a bunch of rooms have 3 external walls) 13 Rads, circuit volume 130 L, Heat Loss 4.74 kWh - Pump Flow rate is between 300 and 600 L/Hr (former being heating circuit which has a lot more restriction and later being when on HW cyl reheat)

OK I don't have ASHP I have a Gas Boiler basically running ASHP flow temps. All rads no UFH. My pet hate is system noise (flow thro the rads) I've gone to a lot of effort to get the flow rates right for each individual room based on the target room temp - I don't run any set backs - heating is on 24/7. I am running a with weather compensated flow temp but it's been well worth the time invested in getting every room right. Highest flow temp I've seen over winter was 35 deg C. Right now the boiler is targeting 22 Deg Flow temp. Sitting in my living room right now all I can hear is the wall clock ticking no system noise at all. I think if your circuit is noisy you might have a little too much flow thro it.