Author: April Naoman

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Driftwood Spars

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DRIFTWOOD SPARS

CASE STUDY

CORNWALL

Six months after the installation of the Genius Hub controls at the Driftwood Spars Hotel, and in slightly warmer weather it was time to go back to see Louise Treseder (owner) and Keith Tyack (manager), at their boutique hotel set just down on the beach below Saint Agnes in North Cornwall.

As the project manager of their installation, I asked them how they had got on since the installation, as I was eager to hear about how this remote hotel had managed with such advanced smart heating control since all they had before was four time clocks controlling two large modern Worcester Bosch gas boilers. Before we set foot on site they were not exactly sure which time clock did which part of the hotel so this was a big step into the 21st century for controls.

Taking a step back to try and understand their motivations, and why they went for Genius Hub in the first place, I asked them why smart heating controls? Keith, the manager of the business who drives one of the hotel’s Electric Vehicles (a Nissan Leaf), was quick to point out; ‘It is about sustainability and we know the energy costs are going to go up and up, and before we looked at recycling we wanted to reduce the energy usage of the building.’

He continued, ‘We found Genius Hub after a lot of time looking online – we were looking for a key card system for the electric locks and came across the Genius Hub website. We choose Genius Hub because of the professionally of the company, it was great that we had a visit from one of their engineers who showed us what we could save. It was a bit more bespoke for our site not just a generic domestic solution like Nest or Hive.’

One of the things that was important in the decision to go with Genius Hub was that the hotel was quite unique, having two separate buildings with two plant rooms, and they needed to make sure that it was going to work all as one system. The cost was also important, so the fact that Genius Hub could split the payments down and spread them over two years helped a lot too.

I also wanted to know what their initial concerns were, safe in the knowledge that hopefully this was now a thing of the past, Keith told me that his greatest concern was ‘making sure that it would work. The fact that the Carbon Trust supports the product was key to making this decision.

The reason why we went for it was because it would help reduce our energy costs for the business, with the monthly payments for the system being less than the savings we make on gas each month, as well of course, as improving our environmental credentials.’

Because the installation is key to any project, I wanted to know what were his first impressions of Genius Hub? ‘Really really good’ he said ‘we are as enthusiastic now as we were when we first heard about it. It is actually easier to use that I expected to be fair!

The installation was faster and less disruptive than we were lead to believe, I closed the hotel as we were replacing the kitchen extractor system and I expected there to be more time spent in the rooms. This made it easier for the engineers which was nice for them, but in reality there was a lot less disruption that I thought and we easily could have kept the hotel open. The overall journey was good and they (Genius Hub) were really flexible about the install which has worked really well for us.’

Coming onto why have the installation as if it’s not all about the environment and the savings, I wanted to know what did they like about the system. Louise this time was in no uncertain terms adamant that ‘it solved the problem we had. Customer comfort is key and they now have more control of their own stay with the individual radiator valves in each or their rooms. It was a constant battle about turning the heating on if a guest complained about being cold. If I was not here then someone would have to go to the boiler control cabinet and turn it on, and they would inevitably have done the wrong thing. Pressing random buttons to try and make it work. We were also constantly having to replace cheep radiator valves and wasting money getting the right valves. The AA inspector was also really impressed when he was having his look around!’

Then it was time to speak with another member of the staff; Pete (the maintenance man) and he was really onboard, as he knows that the customers will have more comfort. He can also be confident in the temperatures in the rooms are rights if customers are not happy with the temperatures.

So after another wonderful meal and a revitalising walk along the coastline above the Driftwood Spars hotel it was great to see another customer enjoying using the system so much and taking advantage of the additional control they now had for their guests.

Thank you to our local Installers Mr Electric Cornwall for their hand in the installation and if you have not visited this little gem of a hotel on the North Cornwall coast yet, then be sure to drop in for a night, if not to taste their delicious catch of the day then at least to ask them about their new heating control.

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Book a room at the Driftwood Spars

Escape to the Driftwood Spars, nestled in the heart of the stunningly iconic Trevaunance Cove, St Agnes.
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Greyhound Coaching Inn

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THE GREYHOUND COACHING INN

CASE STUDY

LUTTERWORTH

The Greyhound Coaching Inn in Lutterworth invested in a Genius Hub in Summer 2018. Last winter was their first winter controlling the temperatures in each room of their hotel from their computer at reception. This family-owned 18th century coaching inn is set in the heart of Lutterworth and has been sympathetically restored by Robert Eggleston to provide a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere to all of the guests. The avenue between the two main buildings is a little oasis and a wonderful place to enjoy a pint after a days work or a bite to eat between visiting some of the local attractions.

Being a Grade II listed hotel it was difficult for Robert to make changes to it to save energy and improve the guest comfort. There are 33 en-suite bedrooms all decorated to a high standard and full of charm and individuality. This meant that there are lots of thick walls for the wireless signal to have to navigate through and this has not been a problem for the reliable mesh network that the Genius Hub uses.

As the project manager for this installation I revisited this hotel 6 months after the installation to listen to the feedback from the staff on how they found using the system and what the guests thought of it. This hotel has a mix of heating in the rooms from wet radiators, wet towel radiators, electric convection heaters and fan assisted radiators – there aren’t many other types of heating you can put into a building really! The Genius Hub had no problem controlling all of these and bringing together all of this control to the front desk.

Here are some of Robert’s responses to my questions on how the first winter has gone.

Why smart heating controls?
“The unique times we use the different rooms in the building and it’s a Cinderella of the business. The expectations are now much higher of guests than they were 10 years ago. The rooms were all stables in our stable block, the walls are 12 inches thick, so we struggle with the heating in that part of the building. It’s also difficult because the sprawling nature of the building, and there are even solid concrete floors too!”

“The Genius Hub sounded like a good idea and would fulfil a desperate need to get on top of a big problem of the expense of heating and the lack of control in the rooms. We have very powerful boilers and there was no control, just a programmer next to the boilers and a single wall mounted thermostat in various parts of the building. We had to have the whole system on for just one person. We were always concerned about the comfort of the guests. Often before Genius Hub was installed we would not want to have the whole heating on in the middle of winter, so we’d use portable electric heaters on a quiet Sunday night and this was all ad hoc. The electric portable heaters were always a concern for us too with them being a fire hazard.”

Why did you choose Genius Hub?
“The savings were never the main appeal, it was getting in control of the situation that we were not in control of. Using electric convection fan heaters was not good enough.”

Was there anything you were concerned about?
“Would it work for me in this hotel? I could have phoned up one of the existing customers but choose not to. I was also concerned about what the after sales service would be like with the support desk.

I can now say that YES it works really well in our hotel and the support desk has been brilliant, Especially April who has always been on hand if ever we had a question.”

How was the installation?
“Painless, the staff were not unduly bothered. There were no issues with the staff and we didn’t have to apologise to any of the guests, the whole system went in like a normal change over of the rooms.”

Would you recommend Genius Hub?
Yes – definitely. I think that most of the staff would too as they enjoy the control they now have of the rooms from reception!

Conclusion:
“The comments from the guests now are that the rooms are nice and warm where as we never used to get that before. It’s always warm when we walk into reception now whereas before it would be cold during the day. The boilers used to be turned off from 09:00 – 17:00, now they are being managed by the Genius Hub so they only come on when heat is really needed, now we can just leave it and we can forget about it, before we had to continuously turn the boilers on and off. Before, it was requiring so much effort to keep on top of it and a lot of management was required. I don’t have to buy any wood for the fires any more too and this is a big saving. We also are happy to report that the electric fan heaters are no longer being used!”

As a project manager, it is always a pleasure visiting hotels who’ve had the system installed as I find each time I go back the staff are always welcoming, friendly and pleased to tell me how well they have been getting on with the system. Despite some times having had the Genius Hub thrust upon them by the owners of the building it doesn’t take long for everyone to see the benefits and enjoy the savings.

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Book a room at the Greyhound Coaching Inn

The Greyhound Coaching Inn is a charming and traditional 18th Century coaching inn located in the South Leicestershire town of Lutterworth.
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Mighty Gadget – Genius Hub Review

We were lucky enough to get another independent review of the latest Genius Hub Smart Heating system by Mighty Gadget. Here is what they said:

MIGHTY GADGET REVIEW by JAMES SMYTHE

Genius Hub formerly Heat Genius has been around for a few years now, launching when the smart home heating market was just taking off. At the time they were about the only company to offer zoned heating on the market.

Zoned heating allows you to control more than just your boiler, you can have radiators on a schedule using different temperatures throughout the day, and with Heat Genius you can even have presence detection.

Since then the competition has ramped up with Tado, Honeywell, Netatmo, Eve and others all offering zoned options. There is also RadBot which sort of sits in the middle between a dumb TRV and a smart programmable valve.

I have been lucky enough to use Genius Hub for a few years now, I have not switched to one of the better-known brands, and I would say this is a testament to how good their system is. I have had some of the radiator valves since version one, all of which have been discontinued, be the Genius system still supports them, and I have not been forced to swap out old for new.

Over the years, Genius has carved a niche for themselves in the market,  becoming popular with larger homes, hotels and businesses. The reason being, of course, is that zoned heating can save a fortune when you are dealing with dozens of rooms and all the radiators.

There are also various other accessories you can get to improve the system, the main two being the thermostat, and room sensor. Both of these keep track…

To see full review, please click this link: https://bit.ly/2JAGo3W

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Working with professionals at Mode Hotel Lytham is great!

Working with professionals at Mode Hotel Lytham is great!

LYTHAM ST ANNES

Not one but two… Andrew already has the Genius Hub in his very smart Mode Hotel in Lytham St Annes, and now the Genius Hub is going into his second hotel which is just finishing a major refurbishment down the road in Lytham.

The Mode Hotel in Lytham St Annes is no ordinary hotel, owner Andrew Whitaker realises the importance of the latest technology to make the guests experience easier and more memorable. 

When you check into this sea front hotel offering great views of the sea and promenade, you’ll not only get a wonderfully warm welcome from Anna, but you will find in your hotel room your very own smartphone which you can use during your stay at the hotel. It helps you to find out information about the area on a designated website, you can use it to take photos and you can even email friends from it. 

You are not limited to only using this in the room neither, it has a mobile SIM so you can take it with you down the beach or into town, and if anyone calls the hotel for you it is forwarded directly to the room phone, in your pocket or hand bag wherever you are!

When it comes to the rooms then there are our smart valves to make sure that the room is at just the right temperature when the guests arrive. If guests boost the heating when they are in the room and forget to turn the radiator down again, then rather than come back to a sauna, as like with traditional heating systems the smart TRVs will turn down after a pre-set time so guests come back into a room at just the right temperature again.

With the occupancy detection Andrew knows that the rooms will be heating when the guests arrive and will drop to a cooler temperature when they head out into the town or for a bracing walk along the seafront in the winter months, saving valuable energy and improving the guest experience at the same time.

What’s been great about working on this project is working with professional Hotel Design consultants Joel Firth from Firth Architects and also Tom Bailey from Bailey Engineering. Getting into the design early has meant that the cost of installation is kept to a minimum as only the right control is added first time, and when calculating the ‘unders and overs’ for Genius Hub verses basic controls (that give little if no savings) it makes the payback on a Genius Hub system all the more attractive.

From an installation perspective all of the Electric Switches controlling the dual fuel towel radiators can be flush mounted easily with no surface boxes to be seen, this makes for a really smart installation, costing less and looking excellent.

The hotel is being handed over to Andrew in the first week of May 2019 so be sure to visit it if you’re up in Lytham this summer, it over looks the square and is a 2 minute walk from the sea front.

If you are planning a renovation project then it pays to let us know early about it so that we can help with the design of the heating system you’re planning. Send us over any drawings we have so that we can give you a cost comparison for some Genius control. Contact me directly at enquiry@geniushub.co.uk or call the office on 0121 667 8000 and ask to speak to one of the sales team.

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Working with the big complicated stuff…

Working with the big complicated stuff...

How do BEMS (Building Energy Management Systems) and Genius Hub fit together? Simply; BEMS will give you control of the major plant in the building – boilers, pumps, clarifiers, valves, ventilation etc. to name just some of it, on any large site this is key to getting your plant working together and working efficiently. Genius Hub will give you room by room control of wet radiators, electric heaters, air conditioning units and underfloor heating to save you energy by only heating individual rooms when they are used. Genus Hub increase stakeholder comfort by accurately controlling and measuring the temperature in every room. In most large buildings (50 rooms and more) both systems are vital for efficient and reliable use of the plant and for energy saving and comfort.

Today I was working back at the Belvedere Care Home run by the Royal Alfred Seafarers’ Society. This is a beautiful and very well looked after care home providing housing, residential and nursing care to former seafarers, their widows and dependants, and has been for more than 150 years. Their residential and nursing care home, Belvedere House, together with their sheltered flats, is situated within the idyllic grounds of the Weston Acres Estate, near Banstead, Surrey. Believe me they really are beautiful as I’ve eaten my lunch over looking the new lake many times when working on site.

They had a problem which we discovered for them when we were installing the Genius Hub into their 80 bed care home in Autumn 2018. As part of the room control which we offered them, to give them individual and personalised control of each of the residents rooms using our smart Genius Radiator Valves, we also included a mini side project to monitor their 3 gas boilers and biomass boiler to try and establish why the biomass was never working at more than 25% capacity. Not ideal when they were planning on getting the RHI to pay for the installation of the biomass!

We installed additional temperature probes onto all of the flow and return pipes from the gas boilers as well as the biomass and found very quickly that the gas boilers were kicking in far to often, and the reason for this was the shunt pumps for the gas boilers were running 24/7 regardless of if the gas boiler was calling for heat. This was causing the gas boilers to fire unnecessarily and reducing the load seen by the biomass boiler.

Genius Hub always like to use local engineers so thanks to the Genius Hub Pro-Installer used to install the Genius Hub onto this site, Jason Mears. He introduced us to local BEMS specialist GetFix Solutions. Sam Fuller (director and founder of GetFix) was extremely professional and knowledgeable about the various BEMS solutions that was needed for the control of the biomass and gas boilers. Something that clearly should have been considered by the biomass installers but that is another story.

Today we got the new BEMS up and running and linked into the Genius Hub so that the biomass will now take priority and the three gas boilers will only run if the biomass cannot provide enough heat for the heat load. Genius Hub will do its part in keeping the heat load as low as it possibly can, buy only bringing on the rooms that actually need heating. 

Using the occupancy detection in the resident’s rooms, Genius Hub can lower the temperature in the more mobile resident’s rooms who choose to spend the days in the communal areas or those who leave the site for the day. This has a huge impact and stops the care home wasting valuable energy heating rooms that are not occupied during the day up to 24º as required by the tenants.

If you are in the South East of the UK and need any advice on BEMS then please speak with Sam from GetFix, and if you run a care home and are looking at ways to save on your heating costs please contact myself or one of the team at Genius Hub and we can provide a free energy assessment and business case for your site. Please call us on 0121 667 8000 or visit www.geniushub.co.uk.

 

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Are electric Far Infrared panels better than wet radiators?

Are electric Far Infrared panels better than wet radiators?

By: Alasdair Woodbridge

Managing Director at Genius Hub

Today I visited the beautiful Avenue Baptist Church in Southend-on-Sea. This is a church providing vital services to the local community, from playgroups for young families, to football clubs for the youth, to meals for the vulnerable and elderly, Avenue Baptist Church cater for all in the local community. 

The church have the environment in their sights as well, and feel passionately about reducing their carbon footprint, improving their environmental credentials and reducing energy costs, allowing them to channel the money saved into front line services.

With an antiquated and expensive to run gas heating system connected to wet radiators heating tall rooms, this meant that the cost of keeping the church warm for the various activities was mounting up. Using traditional radiators was not right for the tall rooms where all of the heat (hot air) would rise up to the top of the building leaving those using the rooms cold and the cost of heating astronomically high.

The solution was to swap to Far Infrared panels from Whytelight Solutions. These heating panels being Infrared mean that they heat the people and the objects in the room and not the air. Because they don’t heat the air this saves a lot of energy as in tall buildings the hot air simply rises up into the high ceilings and is no use to anyone up there!

The environmental credentials of these Far Infrared heating panels comes from the upwards of 50% reduction in energy required to heat the building to the same comfort levels, and purchasing the electricity from a green and renewable electricity tariff. Also, they now have little in the way of maintenance costs for the church for at least the next 15 years. Some similar sites also offset some of the electricity used for the heating by installing solar PV, and feeding it back into the grid in the summer months making the site as a whole carbon neutral.

 

Genius Hub are providing the control of these new electric heating panels. We not only offer zoned control of each room from an app, but also occupancy detection, so any zone can easily be set up so it only comes on when people are using the room. This is done with a little occupancy sensor in the room and this automatically turns the heating off when the room is left, giving peace of mind to the Deacons (management) of the church that energy will not be wasted heating empty rooms and saving the church a lot of money.

After the installation I interviewed Dr. Terence Lewis (project manager), proprietor of Energyst Consulting and also a member of the congregation, about why he went down the Far Infrared route and why he chose smart controls. This is what he had to say:

'Having used smart heating controls previously it was clearly the only way forward. I believe it is the future, offering maximum savings for minimum cost.

We chose Genius Hub because they came highly recommended by Whytelight, the specifiers of the Far Infrared panels. I was not concerned about this "new" technology because I did a lot of research before I started. There is a lot of information and proof now that this sort of technology is both reliable and future proof.

Designing the new heating system was easy, I designed it in partnership with Peter Whyte from Whytelight who did a thorough design of the lighting and also the heating. From what I’ve seen so far, my first impressions of Genius Hub have impressed me, especially with its ease of use and flexibility. It can control the church's new electric heating and we may be able to expand it to control the underfloor and radiators in the rest of the church if budgets allow.

We’re aiming for in excess of 45% savings on the energy bills because we are combining the Far Infrared technology with the better control and LED lighting. We know that Genius Hub alone can save upwards of 30% so that, with swapping the old wet radiators to Far Infrared heaters the savings will all stack up quickly. Another important consideration is we are very motivated to look after God's planet, reducing the toxic emissions from the old gas boilers is all part of looking after the planet, as well as the cost savings being a benefit.

We were pleased that the installation has been done by local contractors (Green Energy Electrical) who we knew, they have worked very well considering access challenges on the site within a busy occupied building.

One of the things that we particularly liked about the Far Infrared is the air in the building will be healthier, we suffer from terrible over heating issues in the church, and it can often feel stuffy and too hot, because Far Infrared does not heat the air it heats the people and the objects in the room this will no longer be an issue, it is going to be much easier to control it all with the Genius Hub too.

I'm also looking forward to integrating the Genius Hub into the online church booking management system using IFTTT, as I've heard that's what other churches that have the system do, thereby enabling the right heat in the right place at the right time - all automatically.

In conclusion, really, I'm already looking forward to next winter when we can give the system a really good trial and demonstrate the predicted savings and reduced carbon footprint!'

Genius Hub control both wet and electric heating in a number of churches around the UK. If this is of interest then please don't hesitate to get in touch with me directly or contact the office on: enquiry@geniushub.co.uk or 0121 667 8000.
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Genius Hub / EOGB with OpenTherm

Please note! This trial has now been completed. For further information on EOGB’s OpenTherm boiler please see their website: https://www.eogb.co.uk/domestic-applications/

 

Genius Hub has partnered with EOGB to bring to market the first OpenTherm controlled oil boiler. OpenTherm has the potential to bring our boilers into the 21st century providing more control than ever before.

EOGB have created the first and only OpenTherm controlled modulating oil boiler, and we have an exciting opportunity for 5 customers.

Would you like to test EOGB’s new boiler using an OpenTherm enabled Genius Hub?

Benefits of the new modulating boiler system:

  • Increased fuel efficiency of up to 13% (as shown by latest efficiency tests)
  • Great visibility of what your boiler is doing via OpenTherm
  • At the end of the trial, you can choose to purchase the boiler if you wish – 80% discount from the RRP
  • Free installation and removal if you choose not to keep the boiler
  • Free Genius Hub upgrade
In order to qualify, you must meet all of the following criteria:
  • MUST have a Oil boiler
  • Less than 3 hours travel time from Birmingham
  • Boiler load requirement between 15kW and 32kW (3+ bedroom house)
  • Heat only boiler – no built in pump / expansion tank
  • Subject to site survey

If the above is of interest to you, please get in touch at beta@heatgenius.co.uk

Please note that the above is offered on ‘first come, first served’ basis.

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Genius Hub w/ Cornish Partner Channel

Cornish_Partner Channel We had Morecambe & Wise, The Two Ronnies, Cannon & Ball & now Mr. Electric has the 2 Al’s! The @Cornish_Partner Channel, @MrElectriccornw was proud to present Super QS Big Al Denham & Alasdair @HeatGenius Woodbridge.

Video is below!

https://www.facebook.com/CornishPartnerships/videos/356617641581432/

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Our MD speaks to Cornwall

It was a great pleasure to be speaking live on air with presenter Andy Coote on his Thank Source it’s Friday show last Friday (5th November) morning at around 11am.

Tune in to Source FM 96.1 each week to listen to topical discussions. When I was with Andy we discussed our award winning Genius Hub wireless heating control system, how it can cut your heating bills, reduce your carbon footprint and increase your comfort.

This is a great place to start if your thinking about installing heating controls. On the show I talk about the types of building that are suitable, the costs and payback, available grants (Genius Hub now has Carbon Trust Accreditation), how the Genius Hub system can save money for both Domestic and Commercial customers and how Genius Hub continues to support its customers post installation.

Andy, a writer from Penryn, is not only a presenter at Source FM, he is also Chair of Falmouth Business Club. He is heavily involved with networking with local businesses.

I thank Andy for the opportunity to join him and I look forward to spending more time in Cornwall over the coming months with the various projects that are soon to start.

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James Loden – Underfloor heating

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JAMES LODEN

CASE STUDY

Jamie  Loden spent 14 years in the Army and now works for Barclays Bank, currently in their operations and technology division, having previously spent 7 years heading up operations in Africa, where he was involved with their digital app products. Jamie enjoys running and recently completed the London Marathon in under 4 hours. When Jamie, his wife Sarah, 3 children and 4 dogs, returned to the UK they looked for a property, a family home that would suit their lifestyleie

They found and purchased a property that had only one previous owner. It was built in 1989 and had had no alterations made since. Downstairs was the original open fireplace providing the only heat, while upstairs had electric night storage heaters. 

This was not sufficient or efficient and was expensive to run, so everything was removed as part of an extensive renovation. This included under-floor heating (UFH) to the lower level, new radiators upstairs, new hot water system, triple glazing and heating controls to control the UFH and upstairs heating.

Why Underfloor Heating?
Jamie did not want radiators occupying the wall space – especially as there were none to start with and he knew UFH was an option. He started looking into it to understand how it works.

He had watched Grand Designs, but they could not dig up all of the floors as required. Also, there were lots of horror stories about digging up floors. They could have chosen another system that uses microbore pipe in concrete, but having to raise the floor level was also not possible in their case and would have resulted in slow warm-up times and lack of responsiveness.

Further research on renovation and trade websites led to them finding JK Floor Heating (JK). Their website had many pictures of the same type of house as his, so Jamie could see they had experience with his problem. JK had a strong presence in Europe, but were relatively new in the UK, however, they offered a new revolutionary UFH system that did not need floors to be dug up or raised. The pipes would be cut into the existing floor, then covered with the new floor covering.

Jamie sent off a set of floor plans and they returned a quote and offered to conduct a site visit to do a cut test – all free of charge. While at the house, JK staff listened to what the family wanted from the system and explained what would happen and how it would work. However, the flooring company expressed concern about putting flooring directly against the pipes of the UFH, with only glue between the pipes and the wood. A letter from JK confirming that it was a low-temperature system overcame these concerns. 

UFH was slightly more expensive, but taking into account the cost of putting in radiators downstairs instead, the additional benefits of UFH outweighed the minimal increase in cost. The enthusiasm and detailed information provided during the site visit helped Jamie take the decision to go ahead with the installation. He was confident that they knew what they were doing.

Which heating controls?
Adding a state-of-the-art  system was a necessity to achieve energy efficiencies, improve the running costs and to ensure that the family had control over the UFH system and the upstairs radiators. JK had a recognised partner for controls, so this was an obvious starting point. Genius Hub offers automatic room-by-room heating control at an affordable price, controllable through a simple app.

Jamie looked at comparative reviews, which were good and other reviews were excellent, so he had no concerns about the system that Genius Hub could provide. He had looked into alternative control systems, but having the UFH pipes much closer to the surface meant that the heating is much more responsive and therefore perfect for the Genius Hub occupancy detection control.

Genius Hub offered complete control of the whole house at room level, which was important for the family. The property is detached and a number of rooms have two external walls, so are quite different in the way they behave. Two bedrooms and the dining room face North. These require a higher level of heat.

The family dogs use a utility room to dry out after wet or winter walks, so they need the room control to raise the temperature in response to the extra demand. Jamie told us, “The overall trend in home automation is moving away from one central room thermostat, so zoning was the only way to go”.

What about the installer process?
The full scope of the renovation project took 11 weeks. The installation of the UFH system fitted in well and the installation team were at the property twice. They worked efficiently and professionally and the process was extremely unobtrusive. The manifold under the stairs had no impact on space or aesthetics and the second one, in the utility room, is housed alongside a standard boiler. Jamie told us that this has been a “retrofit with no compromises on the floor height and the issues around the doors”. The system was installed and ready to use straight away.

Jamie used his own boiler engineers to install the Genius Hub system. They looked at the parts and decided they would do it. They did find it to be harder than anticipated, having not installed a Genius Hub system before, but the installation manual was clear and there are plenty of online help videos. Jamie told us that on the one occasion they used the phone tech support, the service provided was “second to none”. The successful installation led to Jamie’s boiler engineers being taken on-board as part of Genius Hub Pro-Installers team.

Conclusion?
Responsiveness of the UFH was an important factor. Being able to raise and lower the temperature in specific rooms was key. In winter, there was a requirement to raise the temperature in the study at certain times. Jamie told us that the room that the dogs use is “phenomenally responsive”. People had told him that he would wait two hours to feel the difference when demanding more heat, but in reality it is more like 10-15 minutes with the tiled floors.

Installation of the Genius Hub is quick, easy and causes no disruption because it creates its own wireless network. Fixed wireless repeaters ensure the connection is rock-solid. He states, “You cannot go back once you have zonal control”, adding “Think of life before mobile phones, where there were only landlines – that is the difference. Initially people said that mobile phones would never catch on!”

Jamie and his family are happy with the outcomes of installing both the UFH and Genius Hub and have been making recommendations to friends.

Book your free Genius Hub survey here!

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Visit JK Floorheating

JK floorheating provides innovative underfloor heating solutions with a revolutionary installation method.
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