The heating system is an essential element of any home or apartment. Prices associated with installation, operation and changing market trends force people to reflect on their current situation and search for alternative ways of heating homes and apartments. In its product portfolio, FIBARO has a wide range of devices that successfully help to optimize the heating process, which directly results in increased comfort for households while reducing the costs associated with the operation of heating systems.
Underfloor heating
In the case of underfloor heating, one of the most common solutions are heating cables. They are laid before the pouring of the concrete screed – the floor, and the size of the gaps between the cables is strictly specified in the installation manual. The situation is similar when using a heating mat – a strip of special mesh with a woven heating cable, which is placed in a layer of glue or self-leveling mass directly under the panels or plates. When installing the heating mats, it is recommended to keep a distance from standing washbasins and other elements permanently attached to the floor, as a possible replacement of these elements could lead to mechanical damage to the mats. Another solution used in the case of floor installations are heating films. They are made of flat aluminum wires embedded in polyester film and are available in kits that consist of heating modules.
The undoubted advantage of these solutions is the relatively low cost associated with the installation of heating. Owners of PV installations can use the accumulated energy to further reduce the cost of heating their houses. The problematic part may turn out to be a large thermal inertia – the floor will heat up more slowly and cool down more slowly, which directly affects difficulties in adjusting and maintaining a constant room temperature. Due to the risk of overheating the floor, it is necessary to use thermostats with floor temperature measurement.
An alternative to the these heating materials is to use water underfloor heating. It is a low-temperature flat heating, which is installed in the floor and supplied with hot water. With this solution, the floor can act as a heater on its own or serve as a supplement to other radiators installed in the house.
Water underfloor heating offers an even distribution of temperature in the room and lower operating costs compared to conventional radiator heating. However, one should keep in mind to use in the floor materials that tolerate high temperatures – a possible failure of the installation requires one to dismantle a large part of the floor.
The intelligent FIBARO system allows you to automate and optimize all listed types of underfloor heating systems, and provides several possibilities to integrate both systems. The basic solution is to use wall thermostats MCO Home available in the official Fibaro distribution. No electrical installation under Wall thermostats causes no major problems. Just use FIBARO Smart Module which remotely controls connected devices and circuits, and a wireless, battery-powered sensor FIBARO Door / Window Sensor 2 with built-in temperature sensor. Information about the temperature in specific rooms and the settings can be managed directly from the dedicated mobile application Yubii Home for Android and iOS devices.
Still one of the most common types of heating used in homes and apartments is radiator heating. The basic division includes water-powered radiators and electric heaters.
The former are supplied with hot water produced by heat sources and are divided into many types depending on the material, construction, method and place of installation. Water radiator heating is characterized by low cost of installation, convenience of use and ease of repair. The disadvantage of this solution is the fact that unlike underfloor heating, we will not be able to provide an optimal distribution of temperature in the room, despite the significantly higher operating costs. We’re also going to have to deal with the dehumidification of the air.
Wall heaters can be easily integrated into the FIBARO system thanks to intelligent thermostatic heads Heat Controller. The device can be mounted without additional tools on three types of thermostatic valves, and an additional external sensor allows for even greater accuracy in reading the changing room temperature.
Duct heater owners can integrate them with wall-mounted thermostats or, in the absence of an appropriate electric installation, use FIBARO Smart Module and a universal multi sensor FIBARO Motion Sensor with built-in motion detection and temperature sensor.
An alternative to water-powered heaters are electric heaters. They generate heat when the device is turned on and stop heating when we disconnect it from the power supply. The exception will be storage heaters which store heat and gradually heat the room even after the power is turned off. They heat up slowly, but they stay warm longer. Electric heating despite the convenience of use and ease of adjustment unfortunately generates high costs related to its purchase and operation.
When integrating FIBARO system with electric heating, it is crucial to check the power of the heating device – it directly determines the type of FIBARO products that can be used. The first option is to use a smart electrical outlet Walli Outlet or FIBARO Wall Plug – both products are designed to control electrical devices, measure the active power and energy consumed by the controlled load. For devices with higher power, it is possible to use a contactor and control it with FIBARO Single Switch 2
Regardless of the used heating system, the available FIBARO intelligent solutions can help homeowners control the temperature in individual rooms and at the same time reduce the costs associated with heating a house or apartment.