Vaillant VRC470 wireless outdoor sensor faulty - use Glowworm sensor?

[processpaul]

Hi

Firstly,

My sensor is failed and I am need of a replacement unit. So far I have found its around £180 for this unit on its own! Its an NTC sensor with a radio transmitter and a small solar panel hardly a fortune to produce.

I have seen online that glow worm (owned by Vaillant) use the same unit for their weather compensator and Climapro2 Rf. Its exactly the same, the mounting plate, and button to start the data connection, even the MHz frequency shown is the same 868, and its Ebus connected so I am going to try one, as the glow worm unit is around £45. I can always send it back if it does not work.

Any Vaillant engineers on here seen these on Glowworm units? I'd be interested to confirm my conclusion?

Thanks.

Secondly to aid further searchs.

If this sensor fails to send data to the receiver, the default temperature the boiler then uses is 0C. This was buried in the Operators Manual right at the back.

It appears that even in summer mode at the room stat controller, this is calling for the heating to fire up as it thinks outside is 0C but i think only after the frost protection delay timer has been reached. I have frost protection set to ECO, with a 10 hour delay.

The only way I have found to stop the heating coming on at a low temperature, even when automatic mode is set to "System Off", is to turn the heating control dial fully to the left.

Processpaul, buried in a Vaillant instruction book as usual

 

[processpaul]

Update:

I can confirm that the Glow Worm Outdoor sensor works with VRC470 RF. £40 instead of £180 for the Vaillant.

 

[AGAS]

they are the same bit late i know think the brackets change on different makes

 

[apbliv]

Update:

I can confirm that the Glow Worm Outdoor sensor works with VRC470 RF. £40 instead of £180 for the Vaillant.

I am in the same boat as the original poster, but am having trouble getting a replacement gloworm sensor to pair with my VRC430f controller. Any clues what I need to do or does it not work with a 430f?
Thanks
Alan

 

[axis5]

FYI I have a VRC430f which I have paired with the Glow-worm outdoor sensor.
Initially it wouldn't pair, the led on the outdoor sensor kept flashing meaning 'according to the glowwork manual' that it hasn't paired (correct). The led on the boiler controller had been showing as red for some time, presumabbly beacuse of the loss of the outdoor sensor. When I pressed this and then tried to pair the outdoor sensor, the led on the sensor only flashed once, and after maybe 15-20 seconds the VRC430f stated showing a signal strength for the outdoor sensor, then after a few minutes a outdoor temperature appeared on the VRC430f.

Hope this helps someone. The Vaillant outdoor sensor is about £200 the Glow-worm one £40!

 

[apbliv]

Many thanks, axis5.
Pushing the button next to the indicator LEDs on the boiler has done the trick. You have saved me a night out!

 

[VR20victim]

Hi

Firstly,

My sensor is failed and I am need of a replacement unit. So far I have found its around £180 for this unit on its own! Its an NTC sensor with a radio transmitter and a small solar panel hardly a fortune to produce.

I have seen online that glow worm (owned by Vaillant) use the same unit for their weather compensator and Climapro2 Rf. Its exactly the same, the mounting plate, and button to start the data connection, even the MHz frequency shown is the same 868, and its Ebus connected so I am going to try one, as the glow worm unit is around £45. I can always send it back if it does not work.

Any Vaillant engineers on here seen these on Glowworm units? I'd be interested to confirm my conclusion?

Thanks.

Secondly to aid further searchs.

If this sensor fails to send data to the receiver, the default temperature the boiler then uses is 0C. This was buried in the Operators Manual right at the back.

It appears that even in summer mode at the room stat controller, this is calling for the heating to fire up as it thinks outside is 0C but i think only after the frost protection delay timer has been reached. I have frost protection set to ECO, with a 10 hour delay.

The only way I have found to stop the heating coming on at a low temperature, even when automatic mode is set to "System Off", is to turn the heating control dial fully to the left.

Processpaul, buried in a Vaillant instruction book as usual

Hi there, thanks you for your post. I have a VRC 470f room controller and I know that the external weather compensationg sensor model VR 20 has stopped working. Prices from vaillent are in the £180+VAT region just for the sensor !! So dead interested in your glow worm solution, but unable to find a supplier who is willing to take if back if it doesn't work. You mentioned that you could always send it back if it does not work. Do you know anyone who would do this or are you pretty confident that it will work ?

 

[processpaul]

I just took the plunge and it did work with the glowworm unit. Do didn't have to send anything back.

Regards

 

[VR20victim]

Hi process Paul, many thanks for your input. Today I'm going to order a glow worm sensor , I'll let you know if its successful.
Regards,

 

[VR20victim]

Hi Process Paul, I bought a glow worm sensor for £45.60 from local supplier. They told me that if it had a seal that i couldn't return it if it didn't work. It didn't have a seal .
Anyway, as soon as i got home i pressed the search button on the vaillant boiler which was flashing yellow ( this flashing, and my room controller telling me to clean outdoor sensor told me i needed a new outdoor weather compensating sensor model VR20 from vaillant which costs £186 plus VAT).The light below the search button on the boiler then started flashing green. I then pressed the tiny red button in the back of my glow worm sensor using a pen and a little red LED above the button flashed twice. So i checked the room controller and it showed an outdoor temp of 11 deg. Also the light on the boiler stopped flashing and remained green. Great, i thought , its working, so i mounted the glow worm sensor in the old location on the outside north facing wall and left it.
During the evening the temp still showed 11 deg so I moved the sensor closer to the room stat by putting it on another wall ( facing east), then the room controller started to show lower temps of 5 deg etc which meant it was working. SO, Im pleased to say the glow worm outdoor weather compensating sensor part number 0020093880 works with the vaillant VRC 470f room controller, I'm no longer a VR20 victim, and I'm £150 better off.
Thanks again, I just wish vaillant and glow worm would come clean or reduce the price of the vaillant VR20 sensor as they are both appear to be exactly the same.

 

[apbliv]

My 2-year-old Glow Worm replacement has started to play up with the "clean outdoor sensor" error message appearing on my VRC 430f. Pushing the on/off button on the sensor gives one flash and then dead with no flashes at all on further presses. The battery shows 3v charge on my voltmeter. Leaving the sensor in sunlight for a while does nothing to resuscitate it, unless I also take off the white plastic cover (resuscitation succeeded twice doing this). I am now doing this for the third time this year. The previous two times it worked OK for around a month and then stopped. I guess I may need to get another one, but I am at a loss to understand why the sensor gives up when the battery has 3v, and a bit of time in the open air with the cover off brings it back to life.

#Update# 8 hours outdoors facing the sun with the cover off has made it work again. Let's see how long it lasts this time.

 

[Adnams4me]

My Vallaint VR20 outdoor sensor died and so nearly did I when I saw the price of a replacement! Fortunately I found this thread and now I am the happy owner of a Glow Worm replacement that cost me £53 inc VAT and postage. No problem whatsoever pairing with the radio receiver on the boiler. Thank you to those who have contributed to this thread.

 

[Gerry450]

My VR20 has just died and thanks to this thread i purchased a new one from ebay at only £39. Would not connect at first but after referring back to this thread i got it connected via the button on the boiler receiver. Thanks works a treat and saved loads of money.

 

[David B/S.Coldfield]

Thanks for all the posts in this thread.

Can I just ask if it is necessary to press the Boiler/Radio Receiver Learn button, set the VRC control centre into LEARN mode and then press the red button on the back of the VR20, or is it just necessary to do the boiler and sensor buttons.

After reading this thread, I have ordered a Glow-Worm sensor and am waiting for it to arrive with the heating a little more active than usual. The wife says the house is toasty... but grumbles when she can't get to sleep

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[David B/S.Coldfield]

Does anyone know the difference between the VR20 and VR21? When I get to the software versions screen on the VRC430f, it says the sensor version is VR21.