HHR Storage Heaters - Dimplex Quantum etc

Gerry1

OffshoreKiteFlyer said:

Gerry1 said:

I've never had a Quantum so @EssexHebridean will be more knowledgeable.

However, if you tell the units that you are away and only want frost protection then I'd expect the standby consumption to be negligible, only enough to power the programmer, a bit like a TV on standby.

As with anything clever and automated, it crucial to understand how the system works and that everything is correctly programmed, especially if operated from a single 24-hour supply.  Mistakes can be expensive, e.g. if it turns out that a unit is charging at daytime rates or the 'real-time' auxiliary heater is doing much of the hard work !

Thanks for your response... The units have been programmed for 5 off peak hours... which is great... I just want to ensure that if I'm away working the draw isn't 5 hrs a night that I'm away

Not necessarily a good idea to shorten the charging period.  If the weather turns seriously cold you run the risk of running out of stored heat in the late afternoon or early evening, and the Quantum then will switch on the 'real time' heater at the day rate which may be even more expensive that the single rate tariff.

The Quantum will seldom charge for the full seven hours, that's only likely to happen if it starts stone cold or during a cold snap.  Far better to specify the times when you want the property to be warm (and the days when you don't because you're away) and then just let the Quantum decide how long to charge; that's what it's designed to do.

To put it crudely, if you knock it off course by messing around with its charging routine, you're likely to find it does its best to keep you warm by making automatic corrections - bang go your E7 savings !

OffshoreKiteFlyer

Gerry1 said:

OffshoreKiteFlyer said:

Gerry1 said:

I've never had a Quantum so @EssexHebridean will be more knowledgeable.

However, if you tell the units that you are away and only want frost protection then I'd expect the standby consumption to be negligible, only enough to power the programmer, a bit like a TV on standby.

As with anything clever and automated, it crucial to understand how the system works and that everything is correctly programmed, especially if operated from a single 24-hour supply.  Mistakes can be expensive, e.g. if it turns out that a unit is charging at daytime rates or the 'real-time' auxiliary heater is doing much of the hard work !

Thanks for your response... The units have been programmed for 5 off peak hours... which is great... I just want to ensure that if I'm away working the draw isn't 5 hrs a night that I'm away

Not necessarily a good idea to shorten the charging period.  If the weather turns seriously cold you run the risk of running out of stored heat in the late afternoon or early evening, and the Quantum then will switch on the 'real time' heater at the day rate which may be even more expensive that the single rate tariff.

The Quantum will seldom charge for the full seven hours, that's only likely to happen if it starts stone cold or during a cold snap.  Far better to specify the times when you want the property to be warm (and the days when you don't because you're away) and then just let the Quantum decide how long to charge; that's what it's designed to do.

To put it crudely, if you knock it off course by messing around with its charging routine, you're likely to find it does its best to keep you warm by making automatic corrections - bang go your E7 savings !

If you are away for work for say 7 days I don't particularly want the units juicing while I'm away - I'm looking at programming possibilities rather than manually switching off at the fused spur... wifi spur? 

EssexHebridean

We've only got one Quantum so the hub isn't something we use at the moment I'm afraid. 

Do remember though - if you turn NSH's off completely while you are away it will take several days for the heat to get back to where it was before you left - it's not  like GSH where you can turn it on for a few hours blast and it'll return the house to its previous temperature pretty fast. We usually take the view that if we are away for a single night, we leave the heating where it is set. If it's two nights, we'll adjust the heat output timings on the Quantum for the first night, but leave them alone for the second. If we were away for a week or longer we'd look at adjusting so that we maintained a base level of heat, ideally stepping it up on the night before we were due back. The older style one currently in use would get turned down to mid-level as there's nothing else we can do with that. We learned our lesson on this one after turning them pretty much off when we were away over Christmas a few years ago - let's just say it was more "chilly new year" than happy...  

Gerry1

OffshoreKiteFlyer said:

Gerry1 said:

OffshoreKiteFlyer said:

Gerry1 said:

I've never had a Quantum so @EssexHebridean will be more knowledgeable.

However, if you tell the units that you are away and only want frost protection then I'd expect the standby consumption to be negligible, only enough to power the programmer, a bit like a TV on standby.

As with anything clever and automated, it crucial to understand how the system works and that everything is correctly programmed, especially if operated from a single 24-hour supply.  Mistakes can be expensive, e.g. if it turns out that a unit is charging at daytime rates or the 'real-time' auxiliary heater is doing much of the hard work !

Thanks for your response... The units have been programmed for 5 off peak hours... which is great... I just want to ensure that if I'm away working the draw isn't 5 hrs a night that I'm away

Not necessarily a good idea to shorten the charging period.  If the weather turns seriously cold you run the risk of running out of stored heat in the late afternoon or early evening, and the Quantum then will switch on the 'real time' heater at the day rate which may be even more expensive that the single rate tariff.

The Quantum will seldom charge for the full seven hours, that's only likely to happen if it starts stone cold or during a cold snap.  Far better to specify the times when you want the property to be warm (and the days when you don't because you're away) and then just let the Quantum decide how long to charge; that's what it's designed to do.

To put it crudely, if you knock it off course by messing around with its charging routine, you're likely to find it does its best to keep you warm by making automatic corrections - bang go your E7 savings !

If you are away for work for say 7 days I don't particularly want the units juicing while I'm away - I'm looking at programming possibilities rather than manually switching off at the fused spur... wifi spur? 

Yes, the programmer seems to offer all sorts of possibilities so it would be worth studying the instructions closely.  Most people seem to like Quantums once they've understood how they work and how to program them.

Switching off at the fused spur would be a bad idea because you'd lose frost protection, and you'd probably have to use some expensive day rate heating when you returned to a cold property.

AliceBanned

I’ve found this thread so helpful. I have 30 year old NSH in my two-bed flat. One in living room, one in hallway with convection heaters in both bedrooms. The main bedroom has a large old balcony door and is freezing in winter and the door/window dripping with condensation. The electric heater in there is not adequate for such a room. 

I’m using a dehumidifier in there which helps, as there is some mould on the curtain lining. But I’m at a loss to know what else to do. Should I replace the balcony window - it’s a conventional aluminium patio double door. Or put an NSH in the main bedroom? Or both?

I plan to move in about 2 years and have done some fairly costly renovations already, but ideally didnt want to spend more on a place I won’t live in long term. This winter seeing the condensation is making me wonder though! Thanks

EssexHebridean

We live in a 1950’s experimental build ground floor flat. Walls are brick faced concrete panel - solid, no cavity. Floors and ceilings are concrete. When we moved in just short of 20 years ago there was double glazing but it was almost entirely blown units. Single best thing we did for heat retention was to have all the windows and doors replaced, and the balcony surround too - previously that was just a single skinned panel - now it’s double skinned with insulation between. Literally overnight it became easier to keep the place warm. Today it’s not got above zero here all day so far as I know - but we’ve kept the temperature inside around 19°C all day. My monitor tells me that we’ve used under £4.50 of electricity to do that, at this point. Without the new windows I really can’t imagine how much it would be costing! 

AliceBanned

Interesting. The main bedroom is ridiculously cold and really the main difference to other rooms is the size and quality of window. It has a Juliette balcony which may need improvements to insulation but I hadn’t thought of that. That room also has two outside walls. It’s shocking how cold and I don’t hear it much as it feels wasteful when it’s like a barn with that window😓

AliceBanned

Ps the condensation inside on the frame was frozen icicles this morning 🙈😭!!!

EssexHebridean

We viewed an old cottage this morning with a view to buying. The power has been off since the prepayment meter ran out of credit, and it was bitterly cold inside. I can genuinely say that it was the first time I’d seen ice on the inside of a double glazed window! 😂 

This thread got me thinking about other energy saving improvements we’d made here. At the same time the windows were done we had a wall better insulated in the kitchen - a treble thickness (solid) brick wall reduced to double thickness but with an insulating board installed. More recently we’ve had insulation under new hallway flooring, and some exposed brickwork in the hallway plasterboarded and skimmed - and allowing that our electricity use from the same period last winter is substantially down in spite of far colder temperatures, we’re definitely feeling that’s paid off. 

RedFraggle

Super helpful thread. Am buying a 22 year old purpose built first floor flat with the original Creda NSH in. They are Creda Sensair fan assisted and I really can't decide whether to replace with Quantums before I move in or wait and see what the Credas are like. I am home all day and don't want to run out of heat in the evening.