Hive, Nest, smart heating?

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mat8n

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Does anyone have this?
I work away and think this could be useful for me, just wondering about real world experience of it?

Ta
 
All depends on what you already have.

My wireless thermostat wasn't working well any longer, the Netatmo model was cheap on Black Friday so I got it as it is Apple HomeKit certified. I have not found the need to adjust the heating outside the home. Didn't have it before either.

In my view, if you need a new one by all means get a connected one, but I wouldn't go out of my way to spend my cash to replace it. Great invention but without a real use case for return on investment.
 
I have a Nest. Works very well. Stylish room thermostat.

Key features:

- it works by storing a time / temp schedule - ie 19 deg at 7am, 21 deg at 7pm, 9 deg at 10pm
- you can programme any number of events for any day of the week
- the Nest can learn your schedule by noting how you set the physical thermostat or you can programme it using the app (I prefer the latter)
- if you set the heat for a certain temp at a certain time it will turn the heating on early to ensure the temp is correct at that time - it does this by knowing the internal and external temperatures and by learning how quickly your heating system can raise the temperature)
- the Nest knows when you go out (thermostat notices lack of movement or your mobile phone wifi disconnects from router) and switches heating off automatically (and back on when you return)
- works by wifi and controllable remotely by app on phone or tablet - so you can switch the heating on if you're, say, an hour away from home.

Great piece of kit. Very reliable.
 
mat8n said:
Does anyone have this? I work away and think this could be useful for me, just wondering about real world experience of it? Ta

We've had Hive about 3 years and wouldn't want to be without it.

Just being able to control your heating from anywhere in the house from your phone is most useful. Plus we can do it by voice using Amazon's Alexa.

Adding the fact you can do it from anywhere in the world does prove useful if you lead busy lives and are a tight Yorkshireman who doesn't like the wife turning the stat up to 24 whilst he's away!
 
My main reason is I live alone and work away, so I have to ask people to come and pop my heating on at their convenience.
If I can do it while sat at an airport then that's what I need!
That nest system sounds very good!
 
We have Nest setup with 2 zones and it works exceptionally well.
It is also linked to our Amazon Alexa so I can just say "set the thermostat to......." or "heating off" (lazy I know but it stops the wife messing about with it) .
We previously had a Honeywell voice activated thermostat and it was c#*p.
 
Hive saved 20% off our heating bill.

The numbers are complicated, but we're certain that we've saved at least 20% off our gas bill, without compromising our comfort.

The saving comes from not heating the house when we're out, and being able to control when it comes on.

It's straightforward and idiot proof, as long as you're comfortable with using a modern smartphone.

It should work well for someone in your situation, Mat8n. You can power it up whenever you need it, also ensure it anticipates / covers any local freeze-ups, and or just get it to run itself for a brief while if you're away for a sustained period of time
 
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Another vote for Nest.

What i liked most was that it only has two components vs Hive's three, and the ability to install using existing wiring with no batteries.
 
If your house is empty at varying/unpredictable times then I can see there's an advantage to be had. But otherwise a modern programmable thermostat is simpler and cheaper. You can have different profiles (times, temperatures) for each day of the week, with easy temporary overrides ('party' mode, 'day off' mode) etc. Many of them also learn how long it takes to achieve a certain temperature and adjust the timings accordingly.
 
If your house is empty at varying/unpredictable times then I can see there's an advantage to be had. But otherwise a modern programmable thermostat is simpler and cheaper. You can have different profiles (times, temperatures) for each day of the week, with easy temporary overrides ('party' mode, 'day off' mode) etc. Many of them also learn how long it takes to achieve a certain temperature and adjust the timings accordingly.

Indeed. My Siemens Rev23 does exactly this. £60 IIRC
 
The OP works away a lot, so remote access is required I assume.

Nest can be had for GBP 149, and self install.
 
I think it's all a bit of a con. Basically you heat your house when you're not in.
I tend to switch my heating off when Im not in and switch it on when Im in.
I have a timer that switches water on to heat a various points and heating if needed.
 
If your house is empty at varying/unpredictable times then I can see there's an advantage to be had. But otherwise a modern programmable thermostat is simpler and cheaper. You can have different profiles (times, temperatures) for each day of the week, with easy temporary overrides ('party' mode, 'day off' mode) etc. Many of them also learn how long it takes to achieve a certain temperature and adjust the timings accordingly.


I have a Siemens system in now, I work away for 2-4 weeks at a time, usually not knowing when I'm coming back, so the system doesn't work for me.i have to have it ticking over all the time heating an empty house.

A simple cheaper system isn't remotely programmable so defunct in my situation. I think I'll save money by spending money!

Oh.... And I'm not on holiday! :D
 
Hi Matt, coincidentally I have just fitted a Hive 2 a couple of days ago. Smart stylish bit of kit and works perfectly.
Easy to fit too! :)
 
Dont really see the benefits of this - come in outwith the programmed times and switch it on ,if it is cold, and within 20 mins you can feel the ambient temp changing even it our 90 year old house , i would imagine a newer house would warm up or retain the heat much better. Go out and switch it off or turn the thermostat down, quicker than fumbling with an app , if its particularly cold outside.

Why you would want to alter the heating whist you are not home i just dont understand. Possibly if it dipped to - 15 and there was a chance that pipes may freeze it may be handy but in that case the heating is probably on 24h anyway.

Too many variables in the chain for it not to work properly , app / network / wifi / thermostat , if any dont work then it is useless unless you pop back home to check and i which case you could just switch the heating on anyway.

Just my 2p worth.

Kenny
 
My main reason is I live alone and work away, so I have to ask people to come and pop my heating on at their convenience.
I have no direct experience with either system, but it does sound as though you have the perfect "use case" if you really must have the house toasty warm when you do arrive home.

However, if the problem you're trying to overcome is to avoid any risk of frozen pipes, then a simple fallback stat, or a programmable stat with a fallback setting, is a simpler and cheaper solution. The Vailant control system I have does this and also runs the pump periodically during times when the system is off for long periods.
 
My main reason is I live alone and work away, so I have to ask people to come and pop my heating on at their convenience.
If I can do it while sat at an airport then that's what I need!
That nest system sounds very good!

Out of interest, why does your heating need to go on when you aren't there? I had my normal non IOT thermostat always on with frost protection. So it avoids the heated pipes. And yes when returning from holiday then it probably takes upto 30 minutes to warm up the whole house.
 
The OP works away a lot, so remote access is required I assume.

Nest can be had for GBP 149, and self install.

Many more basic control systems also have a holiday mode.

Exactly, just one switch or button on my old Honeywell system before we leave our home for a prolonged period of time. Now if you are the forgetful kind then I can definitely see the benefit. Also programming is most definitely easier in the smart phone enabled devices. But lets not forget, these are still just fancy on/off switches ;) I fail to see how the device when used the same can save 20%.
 

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