My air source

[tommy12398]

Our manifold 

[PeterW]

Brilliant !! No blending valve..!! You’re dumping water from the ASHP straight into the UFH and it will be short cycling and also not at optimal temperatures. Can you set UFH and DHW temps separately on the ASHP..?

[tommy12398]

I don't think I can. Is my system not the best!

 

[tommy12398]

Few more manifold pics

[PeterW]

Lots of space and easy to modify that to have a blending valve and even space for a buffer tank by the looks of it. 

[tommy12398]

How would a blending value help. You would if thought the ashp company would of fit one?

[PeterW]

1 minute ago, tommy12398 said:

How would a blending value help. You would if thought the ashp company would of fit one?

Protects the flow temperature and also allows better control. And the ASHP company should have fitted one - they just like to tell everyone that they aren’t needed with ASHP.. bit like being told you don’t need a circulation pump as the ASHP can do it… both a myth !!

[Kelvin]

Your manifold and control are also the same as my old one. Was it supplied by Freedom Pumps by any chance? The original warranty certificate will probably say so. 
 

The difference with ours was we had a blending valve and a temp/pressure gauge. That said our blending valve failed so I had to replace. When I did I added the ability to the pump as they also fail. Three of our neighbours had them fail. Not cheap to pay someone to replace it either. 

[tommy12398]

1 hour ago, PeterW said:

Protects the flow temperature and also allows better control. And the ASHP company should have fitted one - they just like to tell everyone that they aren’t needed with ASHP.. bit like being told you don’t need a circulation pump as the ASHP can do it… both a myth !!

It does have a circulation pump. Just can't understand there reasoning for the sake of a few £100s why not fit one?. Its a reputable company.  I was talking to my local plumber and he did say there stuff is good quality. 

[PeterW]

11 hours ago, tommy12398 said:

Just can't understand there reasoning for the sake of a few £100s why not fit one?. Its a reputable company. 

So a lot of the ASHP installers tried to tell customers they didn’t need them - problem was that they didn’t understand how they worked or what they did and created problems. With large floor areas and multiple loops it can sometimes be a challenge to get the flow rates needed, and once loops start closing down you can get flow restrictions on the ASHP that can trigger faults on the ASHP flow rate. 
 

It is why you need a decent design and understanding from the outset - and then it needs to be followed !

[tommy12398]

Fair enough. But abit too tenicnal for me to set up!!. My plan now is to put a wood burner in. I have plenty supply if free wood. And then turn the heating off or have it very low say 15°c. Then all the ashp has to worry about is keeping water hot 

[Thedreamer]

28 minutes ago, tommy12398 said:

Fair enough. But abit too tenicnal for me to set up!!. My plan now is to put a wood burner in. I have plenty supply if free wood. And then turn the heating off or have it very low say 15°c. Then all the ashp has to worry about is keeping water hot 

 

Sounds like a good way to minimise the electricity bills.

 

I have a centrally placed Charnwood C4 stove surrounded by dense concrete blocks with a direct air feed. Which does my 'winter spacing heating'. 

 

If you have the wood and are in the countryside then this set-up works well. 

 

Since moving into our house in June 2020, I have spend about a fiver on space heating, adopting this approach.

[tommy12398]

Sounds like the way Togo. Are there any makes to stay away from. The price difference between stoves are massive.  Will one at £500 do the job a £1500 will do.

[PeterW]

With stoves you get what you pay for. And you can easily pay £1000 for install and flue. 

[Thedreamer]

I'm not sure on the ones to avoid. 

 

As well as the usual room/heat output calculations.

 

I wanted one that was:

 

British or European made.

Good airtightness seal

Could be fed by a dedicated air feed

 

We paid £800 for our Charnwood C4 in 2019.

[JohnMo]

Ours was £4k with slate hearth, the flue, air supply pipe, full labour and Heta Scanline 8 full soapstone.

 

Costs don't stop at just the fire.

[Iceverge]

We use direct electricity for everything 2 adults, 2 small kids. 

 

10kwh/day for electricity for water heating. 

 

Install decentralised MVHR rather than a stove. It'll cost less and save more energy over the year unless you're constantly running the stove.

 

There can be house insurance issues with stoves these days. Some underwriters require a certified sweep and will increase the premium if you have one.