Sooner or later, you may be thinking about upgrading your home’s heating system. This thought may visit you, because of the desire to make this system more convenient to operate, or, for example, if you realize that you are paying too much money for heating. One way or another, you will need certain equipment for this operation. Heating regulators, and more specifically thermostats, can help in this situation. Heating regulators are a fairly broad term that includes boilers, timers, thermostats, and much other equipment that will help you control the temperature in your home. These heating controls can be either mechanical, which requires a manual connection, or automatic, which have the ability to connect to the Internet, automatically adjust parameters and even study your habits.
Thermostats
A thermostat is a special device that serves to provide and regulate a certain temperature in a room, thereby creating a comfortable environment for living or working. The principle of operation of the thermostat is based on automatic installation and regulation of certain indicators of the room temperature, which is set by the consumer.
Advantages
- Using a thermostat will significantly increase the life of your heating system
- This system will help you significantly save money on heating bills
- The rooms will always be cozy and comfortable
- The thermostat will maintain the minimum required indoor temperature when you are away from home
Types of thermostats
According to the technical design, room thermostats can be divided into:
- mechanical
- electromechanical
- electronic
Mechanical thermostats do not contain any electronic components. Their principle of operation is to change the properties of materials under the influence of temperature. Copper powder wax can be used as such a material. When heated, this mixture melts and expands, and this expansion is used to open and close the valve. The advantages of these systems are simplicity and clarity of control, reliability of use, low cost, and long service life. Also, these devices have certain disadvantages. This is low functionality, the possibility of error, and the presence of small clicks that appear when voltage is applied to the heaters.
Electromechanical thermostats use a relay as the main device. The thermostat is cylindrical and filled with a temperature-sensitive substance. When heated, expansion occurs, and when cooled, this substance contracts. And a special drive regulates the temperature using an electric circuit, which reacts to a change in the volume of a substance.
The electronic thermostat has a more complex structure than the previous two types. This device is based on a thermal relay, a temperature sensor, and a signal transmitter. In general, the principle of operation of this device is the same as that of a mechanical one, only the electronic thermostat has a more complex mechanism. The advantages of this type of thermostat include the accuracy of detecting and adjusting the temperature, ease of use, and the possibility of more settings and adjustments.
By functionality, thermostats can be divided into:
Simple
Simple thermostats do not have the possibility of different adjustments. They can only maintain a certain temperature.
Programmable (Viconics, Johnson Controls, and Lux)
Programmable thermostats have functionality that allows you to use many different settings for the convenience of the consumer.
The thermostats can be divided into:
Wireless
Wireless thermostats work using certain signals from an executive unit with a controller. An indisputable plus of such thermostats is that you do not need to make holes for wires. But it should also be noted that the signal strength decreases due to the walls.
Wired
Wired thermostats maintain communication between units using wires. The power source is an ordinary household network, and the signal can be transmitted over a distance of more than 50 meters.
Thermostat Working Principle
If you have an electric or gas boiler in your home or office, then you regulate the temperature in the room yourself and manually. You yourself set the required temperature directly at the heating source. This action has to be done very often, which takes time, effort, and also causes inconvenience. Plus, your boiler is constantly working either at full capacity or at a large percentage of it, because it heats gas or water, not air. And because of this, there are large cash costs for heating.
When you put in a room thermostat and set it to a comfortable temperature, it will regulate the operation of the boiler and maintain the same temperature in accordance with the specified parameters. Indoor air cools down much more slowly than water or gas in the heating system. If you set the setting to 20 degrees, then the thermostat is will support it in the apartment, but not in the boiler. This is more correct because while the temperature of the house is at the norm you have set, in the heating system it can drop to 15 degrees while the boiler is turned off. Precisely due to the period when the boiler is not working, your money is saved.
Connection and Setup Tips
It is best to install thermostats in living rooms where the temperature is coldest or room is most crowded. If installed in a kitchen, hallway, or closet, false alarms can occur. Also, the thermostat should not be placed next to a battery, heater, or where the sun’s rays fall on it. Also, you should not place the device where there will be a draft or electrical equipment that will interfere.
After connecting, the thermostat needs to be adjusted. This can be done either using the keys on the device, or the touch screen if the thermostat has one. Using the switches, you can set the temperature fluctuation mode, air cooling, and heating, the interval of the sensors, and other functions, if any.
Now you know more about the main types of room thermostats, their advantages and how they work. This means that you can conclude whether such a device is needed in your home or not. But if you are already thinking about buying it, then most likely it will not be superfluous and will help eliminate all the inconveniences that bother you.