Smart Wireless Thermostat - receiver not hardwired to router

[Njgreer]

We currently have a Google Nest 3rd Gen Thermostat and Heatlink receiver - the relay on the Heatlink has failed so I need to get a new thermostat and receiver and Google have stopped selling Gen 3 in UK and Gen 4 is not compatible in the UK so I do not want to throw good money after bad buying a 2nd hand Heatlink incase fails in a month!

Is there are system that satisfies the following:
- Wireless Smart Thermostat (will be approx 15m from receiver)
- The receiver is connected to internet by Wifi only - our router is far away from receiver!

The current Google Nest manages these but our electrician told us that the Hive and Tado Smart systems connect to internet with wire only - that is a definite no unfortunately!

If a Smart Thermostat is not possible is there a wireless normal programmable thermostat and receiver that people can recommend?

TIA!

 

[RandomGrinch]

We currently have a Google Nest 3rd Gen Thermostat and Heatlink receiver - the relay on the Heatlink has failed

Firstly how old is your Nest?
If you contact Google, they have been known to be fairly generous with replacing defective Heat links, even when the warranty has long expired.
It's worth a try.

but our electrician told us that the Hive and Tado Smart systems connect to internet with wire only

The Tado and Hive systems do connect to the router via a wired connection but these are the wireless communication hubs - they do not have a physical connection to the thermostat or receiver; they would simply be mounted next to the router.
How far away would the hub be from the router?
Hive, for example sell signal boosters, or you could run an ethernet cable so the hub is slightly closer?

Google have stopped selling Gen 3 in UK and Gen 4 is not compatible in the UK

I haven't looked for installation information for the new gen 4 Nest yet, but I doubt it will be any less compatible with UK boilers - there may need to be some rewiring, but that would be needed for a new stat anyway.
The Nest gen 3 was also fairly ubiquitous - you may be able to find new old stock in some local suppliers.

 

[ericmark]

My Drayton Wiser thermostat base connects wireless to the router, clearly wired to the boiler. The thermostat is wireless, and battery powered, as a result it does not auto light up when you approach it, or use the built-in PIR to detect when you are home. If using geo-fencing, it uses IFTTT not the built-in system used by Nest, but to be frank, Nest left me cold, so all in all seems to work better than Nest, in the main in that it is placed where it needs to be, not where the wires allowed Nest to be fitted.

But I still use the Nest to work DHW, and I control them both using the Nest Mini's, So just today tried "hey google set living room to 20 degrees" and pleased to say all three devices worked together one Energenie TRV head, one Kasa TRV head, and the Wiser wall thermostat all changed to 20ºC, did not even know I could do that, until today. The main reason to moving to Wiser is the TRV heads can be linked to the hub, not got any yet, but on my to-do list.

I was told Nest Gen 3 worked with Energenie, well I have failed as yet to get them to work together in any useful way. I got Nest Gen 3 as it allowed all hard-wiring except for internet, and it does mean two wires thermostat to hub allows me to control both CH and DHW, but lack of integration with TRV heads has resulted in my adding Wiser as well.

 

[Stuckinarut]

Probably plenty available, but certainly worth exploring Nest replacement first as suggested by @RandomGrinch. Failing that, Heatmiser Neo Air, EPH controls - possibly the CP4i, Wiser, et al. Why does it have to be WiFi?

 

[Njgreer]

Firstly how old is your Nest?
If you contact Google, they have been known to be fairly generous with replacing defective Heat links, even when the warranty has long expired.
It's worth a try.


The Tado and Hive systems do connect to the router via a wired connection but these are the wireless communication hubs - they do not have a physical connection to the thermostat or receiver; they would simply be mounted next to the router.
How far away would the hub be from the router?
Hive, for example sell signal boosters, or you could run an ethernet cable so the hub is slightly closer?


I haven't looked for installation information for the new gen 4 Nest yet, but I doubt it will be any less compatible with UK boilers - there may need to be some rewiring, but that would be needed for a new stat anyway.
The Nest gen 3 was also fairly ubiquitous - you may be able to find new old stock in some local suppliers.

Thanks for your reply - it is 4 years old.

I have already spoken to Google and they said as out of warranty they would not be able to replace unfortunately.

The router is on the 3rd floor of our house and receiver is on ground floor so far away with some thick walls between them. Can you please explain more about the Hive or Tado as I am not clear!

I could buy a 2nd hand heatlink from ebay and wait for Google to hopefully release a new UK compatible version - what would you do?

 

[Njgreer]

My Drayton Wiser thermostat base connects wireless to the router, clearly wired to the boiler. The thermostat is wireless, and battery powered, as a result it does not auto light up when you approach it, or use the built-in PIR to detect when you are home. If using geo-fencing, it uses IFTTT not the built-in system used by Nest, but to be frank, Nest left me cold, so all in all seems to work better than Nest, in the main in that it is placed where it needs to be, not where the wires allowed Nest to be fitted.

But I still use the Nest to work DHW, and I control them both using the Nest Mini's, So just today tried "hey google set living room to 20 degrees" and pleased to say all three devices worked together View attachment 372231one Energenie TRV head, one Kasa TRV head, and the Wiser wall thermostat all changed to 20ºC, did not even know I could do that, until today. The main reason to moving to Wiser is the TRV heads can be linked to the hub, not got any yet, but on my to-do list.

I was told Nest Gen 3 worked with Energenie, well I have failed as yet to get them to work together in any useful way. I got Nest Gen 3 as it allowed all hard-wiring except for internet, and it does mean two wires thermostat to hub allows me to control both CH and DHW, but lack of integration with TRV heads has resulted in my adding Wiser as well.

Thanks for your reply - does your Drayton Wiser receiver connect to your Google Nest thermostat or do you have a 2 different receivers? Could the Drayton Wiser thermostat be used for DHW and CH?

 

[Njgreer]

Probably plenty available, but certainly worth exploring Nest replacement first as suggested by @RandomGrinch. Failing that, Heatmiser Neo Air, EPH controls - possibly the CP4i, Wiser, et al. Why does it have to be WiFi?

Thanks for your reply. My router is very far away from the receiver so can only connect to router via Wifi.

Would you recommend getting a 2nd hand receiver before changing over to another brand? What brand would you say is 'best'?

 

[ericmark]

Two independent hubs. The Drayton Wiser comes as three options, single, two, and three channel, I am using single channel for CH only.

 

[ericmark]

Thanks for your reply. My router is very far away from the receiver so can only connect to router via Wifi.

Need to check, some devices act as relays to others, because I use SkyQ all my TV units act as boosters, so hard to say how the signal gets to router.

 

[UpgradeME]

Can you please explain more about the Hive or Tado as I am not clear!

There are THREE components to those systems, one which sits next to the router and connects via RJ45 cable (Bridge/Hub), one component that connects to all the boiler wires (Receiver) and a third component which attaches to the wall in your hall (Thermostat).

So, whilst they only connect via a cable, it's a seperate part of the system and doesn't need to be located near the existing Heat link.

 

[Stuckinarut]

Would you recommend getting a 2nd hand receiver before changing over to another brand?

You could, depends how much you want to pay for one, and how long it’s likely to last.

What brand would you say is 'best'?

Hard to say, I haven’t dealt with enough of them, Honeywell used to have a good reputation and still do, but their quality has dipped. Stay away from Salus and Secure