Temperature controllers for radiators: selection and installation of temperature controllers

Temperature controllers are small in size but very practical devices for controlling heat transfer in everyday life. Depending on the actual need, temperature controllers for radiators increase or decrease the volume of coolant. Agree, this is useful for the well-being of the owners of the house / apartment, and for their wallets.

If you wish to purchase temperature controllers for equipping radiators, we suggest that you familiarize yourself with a detailed description of the types of heat transfer control devices. We brought and compared their control methods, operating principle, cost, installation specifics. Our recommendations will help you choose the best variety.

The information presented for consideration, collected and systematized for future buyers of heat regulators, we supplemented with visual photo selections, diagrams, normative tables, videos.

The benefits of heating thermostats

It is known that the temperature in different rooms of a house cannot be the same. It is also not necessary to constantly maintain one or another temperature regime.

For example, in a bedroom at night it is necessary to lower the temperature to 17-18^aboutC. It has a positive effect on sleep, allows you to get rid of headaches.

The optimal temperature in the kitchen is 19^aboutC. This is due to the fact that there is a lot of heating equipment in the room that generates additional heat. If the bathroom temperature is below 24-26^aboutC, then the room will feel damp. Therefore, it is important to ensure high temperature.

If the house has a children's room, then its temperature range may vary. For a child up to a year, a temperature of 23-24 will be required^aboutC, for older children 21-22 will be enough^aboutC. In other rooms, the temperature can vary from 18 to 22^aboutWITH.

A comfortable temperature background is selected depending on the purpose of the room and partially on the time of day

At night, you can lower the air temperature in all rooms. It is not necessary to maintain a high temperature in the house if the house is empty for some time, as well as during sunny warm days, during the operation of some electrical appliances that generate heat, etc.

In these cases, the installation of the thermostat has a positive effect on the microclimate - the air does not overheat and does not dry out.

The table shows that in living rooms in the cold season, the temperature should be 18-23^aboutC. On the landing, in the pantry, low temperatures are permissible - 12-19^aboutWITH

The temperature regulator solves the following problems:

• allows you to create a specific temperature in rooms for various purposes;
• saves the boiler resource, reduces the amount of consumables for system maintenance (up to 50%);
• it becomes possible to disconnect the entire riser to emergency shutdown the battery.

It should be remembered that using a thermostat it is impossible to increase the efficiency of the battery, to increase its heat transfer. People with an individual heating system can save on consumables. Residents of apartment buildings with a thermostat can only control the temperature in the room.

Let's figure out which ones exist types of temperature controllers, and how to make the right choice of equipment.

Types of temperature regulators and operating principles

Thermostats are divided into three types:

• mechanical, with manual adjustment of the coolant supply;
• electroniccontrolled by an external temperature sensor;
• semi-electroniccontrolled by a thermal head with a bellows device.

The main advantage of mechanical devices is low cost, ease of operation, clarity and coordination in work. During their operation there is no need to use additional energy sources.

Modification allows you to manually adjust amount of coolantentering the radiator, thereby controlling the heat transfer of the batteries. The device is highly accurate in adjusting the degree of heating.

A significant drawback of the design is that it does not have a marking for adjustment, so the unit will have to be tuned exclusively by experiment.One of the balancing methods will be introduced below.

The main elements of a mechanical type controller are a thermostat and a thermostatic valve

The mechanical temperature controller consists of the following elements:

• regulator;
• drive;
• bellows filled with gas or liquid;

The substance contained in the bellows plays a key role. As soon as the position of the thermostat lever changes, the substance moves into the spool, thereby adjusting the position of the stem. The rod under the action of the element partially blocks the passage, limiting the ingress of coolant into the battery.

Electronic thermostats are more complex designs based on a programmable microprocessor. With it, you can set a specific temperature in the room by pressing several buttons on the controller. Some models are multifunctional, suitable for controlling a boiler, pump, mixer.

The structure, the principle of operation of the electronic device is practically no different from the mechanical analogue. Here the thermostatic element (bellows) has the shape of a cylinder, its walls are corrugated. It is filled with a substance that responds to fluctuations in air temperature in the home.

As the temperature rises, the substance expands, as a result of which pressure forms on the walls, which contributes to the movement of the stem, which automatically closes the valve. As the stem moves, the valve conductivity increases or decreases. If the temperature decreases, the working substance is compressed, as a result, the bellows does not stretch, and the valve opens, and vice versa.

The bellows have high strength, a large working resource, withstand hundreds of thousands of compressions over several decades.

The main element of the electronic controller is the temperature sensor. Its functions include transmitting information about the ambient temperature, as a result of which the system generates the necessary amount of heat

Electronic thermoregulators are conventionally divided into:

• Closed thermostats for heating radiators do not have the function of automatic temperature detection, so they are set in manual mode. It is possible to adjust the temperature that will be maintained in the room, and the permissible temperature fluctuations.
• Open thermostats can be programmed. For example, when the temperature decreases by several degrees, the operating mode may change. It is also possible to adjust the response time of a particular mode, adjust the timer. Such devices are used mainly in industry.

Electronic controllers are powered by batteries or a special battery that comes with charging. Semi-electronic controllers are ideal for domestic use. They come with a digital display that displays room temperature.

The principle of operation of semi-electronic devices for regulating heat transfer by a radiator is borrowed from mechanical models, so it is manually adjusted

Gas and liquid thermostats

When developing a regulator, a substance in a gaseous or liquid state (for example, paraffin) can be used as a thermostatic element. Based on this, the devices are divided into gas-filled and liquid.

Paraffin (liquid or gaseous) has the property of expanding under the influence of temperature. As a result, the mass presses on the stem to which the valve is connected. The rod partially blocks the pipe through which the coolant passes. Everything happens automatically

Gas-filled regulators have a high service life (from 20 years). The gaseous substance allows you to more smoothly and clearly control the temperature of the air in the home. Devices come with a sensor that detects the temperature of the air in the home.

Gas bellows respond faster to fluctuations in room temperature.Liquid ones, however, are characterized by higher accuracy in transferring internal pressure to the moving mechanism. When choosing a controller based on liquid or gaseous substances, they are guided by the quality and service life of the unit.

Liquid and gas regulators can be of two types:

• with integrated sensor;
• with remote.

Devices with integrated sensor set horizontally, because they require air circulation around themselves, which prevents the effects of heat from the pipe.

Thermostats are not only suitable for heating systems based on a gas, electric boiler or converter. They are used in systems “warm floor”, “warm walls”. It is important to choose a modification that is suitable for a particular system (+)

It is advisable to use remote sensors in cases when:

• the battery is covered with blackout curtains;
• the thermostat is upright;
• radiator depth exceeds 16 cm;
• the regulator is located at a distance of less than 10 cm from the windowsill and more than 22 cm;
• The radiator is installed in a niche.

In these situations, the built-in sensor may not work correctly, so I use a remote one.

Typically, the sensors are located at an angle of 90 degrees relative to the housing of the radiator. In the case of parallel installation, its readings will be lost under the action of heat coming from radiators.

Tips before installing the thermostat

We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the following tips that you should remember before starting to install the device.

1. Before mounting the locking and regulating mechanism, you should familiarize yourself with the manufacturer's recommendations.
2. The design of temperature controllers contains fragile parts that, even with a small impact, can fail. Therefore, caution and care should be taken when working with the device.
3. It is important to provide the following moment - it is necessary to install the valve so that the thermostat takes a horizontal position, otherwise the element may receive warm air coming from the battery, which will negatively affect its operation.
4. Arrows are indicated on the casing, which indicate which direction the water should move. When installing, the direction of the water must also be considered.
5. If the thermostatic element is installed on a one-pipe system, then you need to install bypasses under the pipes in advance, otherwise, when you turn off one battery, the entire heating system will fail.

Semi-electronic thermostats are mounted on batteries that are not covered by curtains, decorative grilles, various interior items, otherwise the sensor may not work correctly. It is also advisable to position the thermostatic sensor at a distance of 2-8 cm from the valve.

The temperature regulator is usually installed on a horizontal section of the pipeline near the point of entry of the coolant into the heater

Electronic temperature controllers should not be installed in the kitchen, in the hall, in or near the boiler room, since such devices are more sensitive than semi-electronic. It is advisable to install the devices in corner rooms, rooms with a low temperature (usually these are rooms located on the north side).

When choosing an installation location, you should be guided by the following general rules:

• near the thermostat there should not be appliances that generate heat (for example, fan heaters), household appliances, etc.
• it is unacceptable that the sun's rays fall on the device and that it is located in a place where there are drafts.

Remembering these simple rules, you can avoid a number of problems that arise when using the device.

Installation of automatic heating controllers

The instructions below will help you install the thermostat on both aluminum and bimetal radiators.

If the radiator is connected to a working heating system, then water should be drained from it.This can be done using a ball valve, a shut-off valve or any other device that blocks the flow of water from a common riser.

After that, open the valve of the battery, located in the area of ​​the place of water in the system, close all the taps.

After the water has been removed from the battery, it must be purged to remove air. This can also be done using the Mayevsky crane.

The next step is to remove the adapter. Before the procedure, the floor is covered with a material that absorbs moisture well (napkins, towels, soft paper, etc.).

Housing thermostatic valve fixed with an adjustable wrench. At the same time, the nuts located on the pipe and adapter, which is located in the battery itself, are unscrewed with a second key. Next, unscrew the adapter from the housing.

Unscrewing the adapter may require the use of a valve located inside the battery.

After dismantling the old adapter, a new one is installed. To do this, place the adapter in the design, tighten the nuts and collar, and then thoroughly clean the internal thread using clean material.

Next, the cleaned thread is wrapped several times with a plumbing white tape (it is purchased separately in specialized stores), after which the adapter, as well as the radiator, and the corner nuts are tightly screwed.

The thread must be wrapped with a sanitary locking tape hourly, making 5-6 turns. It is important that the tape lies flat, so you need to smooth it in a timely manner, if necessary

As soon as the installation of the adapter is completed, you must begin to remove the old and install a new collar. In some cases, it is difficult to remove the collar, so cut out its parts with a screwdriver or hacksaw, and then tear it apart.

Next is the installation of the thermostat itself. To do this, following the arrows shown on the body, it is installed on the collar, after which, fixing the valve with an adjustable wrench, tighten the nut that is located between the regulator and the valve. At the same time, using a second wrench, tighten the nut tightly.

It is important not to damage the threads during the installation of the thermostat, and after tightening, check the connection for leaks to prevent leaks

At the final stage, it is necessary to open the valve, fill the battery with water, make sure the system is working, no leaks, set a certain temperature. AT double pipe system You can install thermostats on the top eyeliner.

Mechanical temperature control setting method

After installing the mechanical models, it is important to configure them correctly. To do this, close the windows and doors in the room so that the heat loss is minimized, which will give a more accurate result heating systems.

A thermometer is placed in the room, then the valve is turned off until it stops. In this position, the coolant will fill the radiator completely, which means that the heat transfer of the device will be maximum. After some time, it is necessary to fix the temperature obtained.

Next, turn the head all the way in the opposite direction. The temperature will begin to drop. When the thermometer shows the optimal values ​​for the room, the valve begins to open until there is a noise of water and a sharp heating occurs. In this case, the rotation of the head is stopped, fixing its position.

Conclusions and useful video on the topic

The video clearly shows how to configure the thermostat and implement it in the heating system. As an example, take the automatic electronic regulator Living Eco from the Danfoss brand:

You can choose a thermostat based on your own wishes and financial capabilities. For domestic purposes, a mechanical and semi-electronic unit is ideal. Fans of smart-technology may prefer functional electronic modifications.Installing devices is also possible without the involvement of specialists.

Have questions about a proposed topic? There is a desire to share personal experience gained during the installation or use of the thermostat? Please write comments.