Vaillant VRC400 programmer,anyone familiar?

[africadan]

Help,

My boiler just is not working properly

I have a vallient Ecotec Plus with a VRC 400 weather compensator

My plumber installed the boiler. he set the heating curve to 1.9 - is this too low, as I have read that is should be 2.6 to 2.8

The main problem is the boiler is on all the time. I have set the timer to come on at 6-9 and 18-2300 but the heating is on all the time! I just dont need it on all the time and its costing lots of money!

Any ideas....
Thanks

Dan

 

[gas4you]

Yes the heating curve should be set as you say.

Have you checked that the clock/timer sysmbol is showing on the top line of the display?

If you have the 'sun' symbol then it is set to be on 24hrs and ignore the time settings.

 

[africadan]

Thanks fo rthe message, It was on Automatic symbol with the energy saving symbol as well. But that was on all the time. Should I put it on the Eco setting with the off setting??

Thanks

Dan

 

[firasa]

I have an EcoTec Plus boiler & the VRC 400.

The external thermometer is south facing and my boiler is in the loft. The VRC400 is in my living room.

I must admit, the blasted thing is a pain to programme - and I have Masters degree in Computer Systems Engineering! The instructions aren't exactly easy to follow.

I too can't seem to turn the thing off - there are also options to time the pump & hot water, but these should operate automatically when required?? Its been installed for over a year & a half - and I just got my gas bill through. I think I need to learn how to programme this thing!

 

[Tipper]

Yes the heating curve should be set as you say.

Have you checked that the clock/timer sysmbol is showing on the top line of the display?

If you have the 'sun' symbol then it is set to be on 24hrs and ignore the time settings.

No, I thought it is the same as the VRT360/360f in that the sun symbol means it is daytime! This is because you get a half moon at night/ during off periods. Either way it is working to the timings set up in the heating periods.

Surely the controller doesn't know the internal temperature unless the controller is in a room in the house where it acts like a thermostat or temperature indicator, not in a cupboard, not in the cold garage. Doesn't it have a thermistor inside measuring the ambient temperature around it?

Weather compensation is based on the comparison between internal and exterior temperatures and the heating time/heat input necessary to acheive the internal temperature based on changes to the external temperature.

Its name/number 'VRT' stands for Vaillant Room Thermostat ( or whatever the German equivalent is) surely?

 

[gas4you]

Even on the VRT360 the sun symbol on its own is heating on 24hrs and the 360 just acts as a room stat.

There isn't a 'daytime' or 'evening' setting

Half moon is off, but at the ECO temperature setting. I set mine at 6C.

You will also get a smaller sun and half moon appear when the 400 or 360 is set to auto, to indicate what period is active at that moment in time

 

[Tipper]

Well my 360f ain't working like that.

It definitely goes 'off' ie to 'Eco' after the timed on and comes back on in the morning when the sun do shine!

I keep the Eco set at the suggested 15degC but am still waiting to see the impact on the gas bill as the boiler was only fitted in November and we are having an unusually cold period down here in the westcountry.

We have the heating on all day, being an early retired and leisurley couple, and set back over night and I like the comfort factor of this thus far but time and cost will tell.

The main issue is the totally carp instructions for the 360f from Vaillant. They will send simplified instructions for those brail challenged but they don't help with the technical set up of the programmer and what all the features are supposed to do. I'm a retired heating engineer I can't sort it out!

What is the digital/analogue control setting for, for example? Nobody seems to know and Vaillant won't tell you.

And how do I get the house to warm up quicker in the morning? My old Potterton Profile was far quicker at getting up in the morning! The Vaillant is a bit like my teenage son.

Do I really need anti-cycling timing that stops the boiler running for 20 minutes at a time? Surely this hinders getting the house up to temperature?

If Vaillant monitor this forum, and they should do if they know what's good for them, then get your fingers out boys and explain what it is designed to do!. Get a decent translation of the instructions please and a suggested operating scenario.

Sorry rant over!

 

[gas4you]

In your case when on eco, the heating does not go 'off' just keeps the room to 15C.

The only way to turn it properly off is to set 'off' in the top line of the display.

Your heating may be taking longer to heat up now because your engineer may have range rated the boiler and your original Potterton may have been too big for your system.

 

[Tipper]

The old potterton probably was oversized as it cycled alot except in the coldest weather. The Vaillant was range rated but the house took hours to warm up, ie from 15C to 21C.

It is now set to full output so as to allow the 360f/boiler to modulate the output as it is designed(?) to do. Although the flow temperature is limited to 75C which seems low to me but I suppose that's to ensure the return is as low as possible, ie below 55C to get it into condensing mode. (Is this simply so as to get the A rating?) Bearing in mind it is a new boiler on an old system the flow temperature cannot match the original radiator design temperatures unless it is increased but then the condensing performance will suffer.

Can't see the point in range rating a modulating boiler though!

Still can't find any info on 'Digital' or 'Analogue' control either.

 

[Deleted member 105431]

Analogue the boiler will lower the flow temps automatically according to the rate of air temp rise. Once warm it will modulate down the flow temp and vice versa, this will acheive excellent efficency. Digital is on/off operation similar to conventional bimetallic strip roomstat. Personally I set d0 acoording to the system, d1 to 8 and d71 to 70 and analogue mode on the vrt 360. These settings help acheive high efficency the trade off being slower warm up times.

 

[Tipper]

That confirms what I thought, thanks. I check those settings to see how it's set up.

(Getting complaints from the other half about this 'new' boiler though, but it is very cold for Devon! The river outside the house froze last night and is set to do it again I suspect.)