Boosting property band ratings with Honeywell Home evohome

Effectively accessing and maximising government funding is key for social housing providers looking to boost energy efficiencies for tenants, lower emissions across housing stock, and meet the current required EPC Band C minimum rating by 2030.

Whilst improving insulation is amongst the measures that can increase SAP points, heating control solutions can also provide an uplift with minimum disruption.

With many properties sitting at a high Band D, Time and Temperature Zone Control (TTZC), can be a cost-effective retrofit solution to provide an average uplift of between two and three SAP points, helping to improve energy performance and achieve targets.

The Warm Homes Social Housing Fund scheme launched in 2021, and £1.29 billion was allocated as part of the 2024 Autumn Budget1.

Choosing products that feature on the Product Characteristics Database (PCDB), is essential to securing funding for energy efficiency upgrade measures. As the database is used to assess the energy performance of building components, the heating controls included on the list have been assessed to make sure they meet specific standards for energy efficiency and are recognised in building energy performance calculations.

Product compliance for energy efficiency upgrades

According to the PCDB, a TTZC must be able to offer independent time and temperature control of two zones as a minimum. If using wireless radiator controllers to achieve the TTZC measure, 80% of radiators need to be controlled via this system, and boiler interlock is also required. Products must meet Part L compliance for zoning as part of building regulations.

The Honeywell Home evohome smart zoning thermostat is one of the TTZC measures currently included on the PCDB list that includes wireless radiator controls for retrofit zoning. This solution can also meet boiler interlock requirements and applicable Part L zoning regulations.

Designed to work with both gas boilers and heat pump systems, evohome can provide control of the appliance plus independent time and temperature control in up to 12 zones in the home via wireless radiator controls. An additional advantage is that the installation can be carried out quickly and with minimal disruption to tenants and the existing décor.

Although evohome can be used as a straight-forward programmable control if required, it comes into its own when heating is needed at different intervals or in different parts of the house at varying times. With evohome, tenants can choose to warm up the rooms they spend time in and avoid wasting energy where they don’t.

There are additional energy usage benefits for tenants. An advanced thermostat, like evohome, also monitors local temperature and communicates closely with the boiler. This way, the thermostat can tell the boiler to adjust its output to deliver the desired temperature at the right time.

With built in WiFi, the evohome smart zoning thermostat can be controlled at home - centrally on the evohome controller, on a phone, through the smart home voice assistant, or remotely via an app on a smartphone or tablet for even greater flexibility.

Gareth Sellers, Strategic Account Manager – North, comments: “The Time and Temperature Zone Control (TTZC) measure is so often overlooked when considering retrofit options that could help improve energy optimisation for tenants and offer valuable uplift when it comes to SAP scores. Yet, when implemented using wireless radiator controls, it stands out as a cost-effective solution to not only help improve energy performance, but that can also be straightforward to install and with limited disruption for tenants.”

Installation videos have been created by the Resideo Academy training team. To access instructor-led and online training on evohome and its installation head to academy.resideo.com.