Anyone used Rointe heaters?

mark_1969

Cardew, you appear very knowledgable on this subject and I would appriciate your, or any other professionals advise if you don't mind.

I currently live in a modern 3 bed house with storage heaters heating the rooms.

I need to replace these as they are getting a little old now and had looked into the ROINTE style heaters.
Reading your posts I have been put of this idea and wondered what you would recommend.

Storage heating v Dimplex duoheat.

Any other suggestions

Many thanks

Mark

penrhyn

Creda also make good storage heaters, I had them in a flat some 10 years ago, TSR model IIRC.

k661an

I have been reading this thread for the last hour and arrived here originally by googling Rointe. I'm thoroughly convinced not to go down that route.

I have a 4 bed 100year old 'semi-d' cottage in the south east (so not in the arctic Northern wastes) with no gas, no oil. My heating is provided by a 12kwh nightstore heater off E7 running a number of rads when required during the day (or night). Controllability is good with adjustable charge setting, rad temperature control from the heater, TRVs on all rads and of course a room stat. However, the capacity of this unit is less than what I need for the whole house unless it goes on to peak rate daytime boost (which I reckons dims the whole village when it kicks in!) so it needs some back up. I have one night storage heater to help with this but need more.

Having had a look at an LPG boiler working in tandem with the existing system and been quoted something like £8,000 to install, not including the bulk tank and associated shenanigans, that has been nipped in the bud....So -
What is the best route? The Rointe and similar systems clearly seem something of a stitch up and I have read the threads with great interest (and mirth in some cases). It strikes me that to get the most cost efficient results from electric storage or direct heat delivery the salient point - and one which does not really get picked up on - is one of heat loss. If we accept that the cost of providing 'x' amount of heat from 'y' amount of electricity is always going to be the same then that generated heat has to be delivered or retained and used in the best way.

With E7 being used in the house clearly it appears to me that night storage heaters are the way to go (fortunately through my own profession - interior design - I can get the appialnces at decent cost). If a nightstorage heater is efficiently heating up and retaing that heat through exceptional insulation and then delivering a preset amount of heat as and when programmed or asked to do so then that offers a further highly controlable and viable solution. Or am I missing something here?
Is that what these "fan assisted" systems are doing? If so any suggestions as to the best (and good looking) models? And is there anyone out there reading this who has any sort of similar problem they have dealt with or are dealing with, or who can give me some good sound wholesome advice?

KimV

Cardew

Welcome to the forum, and an excellent first post(hope that doesn't sound patronising!)

As you are already using E7 the obvious solution, as you suggest, is to get further storage heaters. Even though the modern storage heaters are reputedly better at retaining heat than the big beasts of yesteryear, I think saying they will offer a 'highly controlable' solution is a step too far! It is inevitable that some heat will 'leak' during the day and they have a finite capacity, so depending on the rate you extract heat during the day and evening, at you will be faced with the main criticism of storage heaters - they run out of heat.

I think that is just a penalty you will have to pay and if needs be 'top up' heating using cheap(but elegant!!!) electrical heaters!

k661an

Thanks for that, Cardew. I was kind of directing that question at you! (But if anyone else has anything useful to add I'm all ears).
When you say electric heaters are you meaning like oil filled rads or fan heaters or something more sophisticated? or what.

KimV

Cardew

Any form of electrical heater will produce exactly the same heat for the same money. It really depends how often you will need to use them to supplement your storage heating. A portable £10 fan heater will suffice and you can put it out of sight in a cupboard if necessary.

Aesthetics will doubtless figure in your decision - so really the choice is up to you. Perhaps use the fan heater until you have determined the requirement.

k661an

Yeah makes sense. Got my sparky coming on Monday and it will be interesting to hear his input but I think in the light of your replies, that I am probably on the right track. I do really believe that well managed electrical heat sources are becoming the way to go. Of course heat loss from the home is another issue and choosing to live in a character gaff without cavity walls and so on is our choice and we have to live with the compromises that brings as well as the advantages, and just try to maximise benefits loft insulation, d/glazing etc.

I have to say that friends and colleagues with oil systems seem to be paying pretty much the same as me for their combined heat. light and power and I do not think I have been particularly prudent in the past. At the end of the day for £8000(+) - cost of LPG system to help out - I can afford an overspend of £50 per month for the next 12 - 15 years! Not that I plan that...so a couple more storage heaters it is.

Now for the shopping...!

KimV

dickllewellyn

Kim

Have you considered a renewable source? If you are currently heating a storage cylinder to pump round radiators (have I understood your setup correctly? "a 12kwh nightstore heater off E7 running a number of rads when required during the day (or night).") then you are already half way there. A solar collector on the roof would happily sit and warm the storage cylinder all day to provide the required heat, and limit the amount the immersion heater is needed over night. Another option could be an Air Source heat pump, although these are much more effective with underfloor heating than with rads. We did a recent job with a large thermal store with a 6KW immersion heater and a 3KW back up immersion heater. The cylinder was also heated primarily by a large wood burner running on pellet fuel. This provides hot water for the taps as well as heating half an old water mill (the other half by gas boiler).

Cardew

dickllewellyn wrote: »

Kim

Have you considered a renewable source? If you are currently heating a storage cylinder to pump round radiators (have I understood your setup correctly? "a 12kwh nightstore heater off E7 running a number of rads when required during the day (or night).") then you are already half way there. A solar collector on the roof would happily sit and warm the storage cylinder all day to provide the required heat, and limit the amount the immersion heater is needed over night. Another option could be an Air Source heat pump, although these are much more effective with underfloor heating than with rads. We did a recent job with a large thermal store with a 6KW immersion heater and a 3KW back up immersion heater. The cylinder was also heated primarily by a large wood burner running on pellet fuel. This provides hot water for the taps as well as heating half an old water mill (the other half by gas boiler).

Kim would be well advised to read the threads on solar thermal and ASHPs before considering the options you suggest.

Soloar Thermal is IMO a complete waste of time in money saving terms. The government commissioned trial of both types of solar thermal panel on average produced 1,000kWh pa worth of energy, the great majority of that in Summer. Even the highest output evacuated tube panels gave a miserable output in winter - when heating is required.

For someone on Economy 7 that would save approx £50 a year. I don't know what you would charge for the system you suggest, but would £3000 be a good guess? It would need a new thermal store??

To suggest an ASHP, costing £10,000+? for a cottage without cavity walls and hence poor insulation, goes against all advice!

dickllewellyn

Cardew wrote: »

Kim would be well advised to read the threads on solar thermal and ASHPs before considering the options you suggest.

Soloar Thermal is IMO a complete waste of time in money saving terms. The government commissioned trial of both types of solar thermal panel on average produced 1,000kWh pa worth of energy, the great majority of that in Summer. Even the highest output evacuated tube panels gave a miserable output in winter - when heating is required.

For someone on Economy 7 that would save approx £50 a year. I don't know what you would charge for the system you suggest, but would £3000 be a good guess? It would need a new thermal store??

To suggest an ASHP, costing £10,000+? for a cottage without cavity walls and hence poor insulation, goes against all advice!

I've no idea of the install cost, the only parts of the instalations we get involved in are the electrical control side. I simply figured if there is already a thermal store there, why not make use of the solar energy currently going to waste, and next year earn some renewable heat payback to boot. Come the Green Deal, these technologies will be within many more peoples reach, and I think heavily encouraged by the government.

I apologise Cardew for bringing it up, you clearly assume all my posts are a sales pitch and rubbish any suggestions I might have. Perhaps in the nature of a forum somebody else can suggest why or why not the ideas I gave may or may not be a good idea.