Storage Heater-please help!

Jennifer_lou

Hi guys, new to this forum but desperately trying to find out how to work my storage heaters, and can't find anything that relates to mine online!

I have three storage heaters in my flat, two small, one large. The large one says 'FGS STORAD' but I can't find a model number.

The large heater has two wall switches and two dials. No panel or any other buttons/switches/dials. One switch and one dial relates to the convector heater, this I can get to work no problem. The other switch (a wall switch) seems to link to the storage heater, however there is only one dial, which says 'storage'. So does this relate to input or output, and how do I go about setting it up efficiently? There is also a sort of sliding knob on the top of the heater, which whether I slide it left or right doesn't seem to do anything (though I can't be sure!)

The two smaller heaters seem a little more straightforward. With a wall switch and two dials. One labelled 'storage', one labled 'output'. However all numbers on all heaters have completely rubbed off, so it might be guesswork!

Any help or hints would be fantastic, I'm on the economy 7 tariff, but other than that I'm stumped I'm afraid. Thank you so much.

Neil_Jones

Eco 7 heaters work by releasing heat throughout the day and charging up at night. If they're switched on at the wall they won't appear to do anything until after the next charging cycle which is typically 12am-7am.

Normally one dial will control the amount of heat being released and the other will control how much heat the internal bricks get. Typically output is what it says (how much heat to output during the day - you'll find this will tail off as the day progresses) and storage is how much heat to store - the higher it is often means the colder things are. Nine times out of 10 turning things clockwise results in the higher settings.

lstar337

Turn both wall switches for each heater on.

The two dials are 1. 'Input' or 'Charge' & 2. 'Output' or 'Boost'

Set the 'Output/Boost' dial to 0 or as low as it will go, this is only to be used if you need an extra boost of heat, and generally is not needed unless your heaters are under-specified.

Set the input to about a quarter during the milder winter months, half as it gets colder, and full at the coldest parts.

Just in case you don't know how a storage heater works:

Think of it like a big box of heat. Each night at roughly midnight the power comes on and starts to fill these boxes with heat for the next 7 hours (hence the name E7). The Input/Charge dial controls how much heat is put into the box. To keep it simple, imagine that a quarter on the dial fills the box a quarter with heat, half fills it half, and full fills it all the way up. You may need to keep an eye on the weather because you will need to increase the input if there is a sudden cold snap. In most cases you can set it and forget it. Once the big box is full it will slowly release heat over the next 17 hours, heating your home. The output control opens a flap (yes it really is that simple!) at the top of the box that lets the heat out much faster. The upside is that you get a quick boost of heat if you need it, the downside is that your heat will run out faster and may not last you until your next 7 hour charge period.

IMPORTANT: THE OUTPUT FLAP MUST BE CLOSED BEFORE THE CHARGE PERIOD, OTHERWISE ALL THE HEAT WOULD FLOOD OUT AND IT WILL NOT CHARGE!

Hope that helps. Any further questions, just ask.

Jennifer_lou

Hi guys, apologies if im not replying correctly here, as I say I'm new so not quite sure how it all works!

I really appreciate the replies, and the information applies to the smaller heaters, however, as I mentioned, the larger heater does not have an output dial. It has two dials, one that says convector, which controls the convector heater within the unit (which works fine and I understand), but the only other dial simply says 'storage'. My guess would be this is 'input', however how then would I control the output and the flap?

Thanks!

[Deleted User]

Hi,

sounds as though it only has input, and if you need a boost you will need to use the convector, though it will be on the more expensive day rate.

Jennifer_lou

Yes, that's what I'm describing, so do you know how I would set up the storage heater effectively with only an output dial, and the flap etc?

Richie-from-the-Boro

You have 2 heaters in 1, a [1] stored (radiative) heat system which uses cheaper night-time eletricity on an E7 tariff, it comes on and off automatically. You also have [2] an on-demand 13a (convection) heater using more expensive daytime electricity.

Jennifer_lou

Hi guys, thank you for all your responses. I'm maybe not explaining myself very well.

I understand the two smaller heaters and how to use them.

I understand how to use the convection element of the larger heater.

I am trying to find out how to use the storage element of the larger heater.
It has ONE dial saying simply 'storage'.

So how do I go about changing output, setting up, using effectively, opening/closing the flap etc?

Thanks

ChaunceyGardiner

The ‘storage’ knob is the input control. The higher the setting, the more heat will be stored. Either there is no output control on your particular model, or the slider you describe operates the output flap. If you shine a light in the grille, you should see the flap, which will probably be thick with dust, rising and falling as you move the slider. On such an old heater, the mechanism may well have seized up. It should also be fairly straightforward to take the heater body off to get at it. As others have said, you shouldn’t really bother with it anyway, since it is easy to forget to close it at the end of the evening. Perhaps you’re thinking that if you don’t open the flap, the heat can’t escape, but that is not the case.

Jennifer_lou

Thank you so much for your response. I had actually wondered similar about the slider and had already shined a light in, but couldn't see anything obvious moving or changing. However I might try to take the pannel off as you suggest, because it seems the most logical explanation that the slider controls the flap. I'm generally out during the day so ideally want to store the heat until the evening (although I understand this isn't guaranteed with these types of heaters), so I definitely want to try to find it.

Without an output dial, is it safe to assume that once I open the flap (if I find it) in theory it will start releasing heat, but there's no way of me specifically controlling how much?

Thanks!

Really appreciate your help.

ChaunceyGardiner

Jennifer_lou wrote: »

Without an output dial, is it safe to assume that once I open the flap (if I find it) in theory it will start releasing heat, but there's no way of me specifically controlling how much?

You seem to have an output slider, rather than a dial. Regardless, the further you move the control, the more the flap gets poked open. It’s really very primitive. Honestly, you’re overthinking this. Most of the heat from a storage heater is radiated, rather than convected, anyway. Just make sure the flap is closed and then forget about it.