Hi,

What are the pro's and con's of S Plan vs Y Plan heating arrangements?
I am getting a new heating system and I don't know which one to go
for.

TIA, W

What are the pro's and con's of S Plan vs Y Plan heating arrangements?
I am getting a new heating system and I don't know which one to go
for.

Y-Plan = cheaper, often more compact.
S-Plan = easier to understand and wire up, more reliable, ability to expand
to multiple zones. Zone valves can be placed in separate locations, if
desirable.

My system has 4 zones currently, which may expand to 6. The zone valves for
them a

Kitchen - under kitchen cupboards next to kickspace fan convector.
Downstairs - under stairs cupboard
Upstairs - under stairs cupboard
Hot water - in loft on cylinder

Potential expansion:
Conservatory - under kitchen cupboard, or in conservatory itself
Loft Conversion - in loft next to boiler.

If you're having a new system installed from scratch, it is well worth
subzoning now, whilst it will be cheap to do so. Having separate timing and
temperature settings for upstairs/downstairs is very useful. There's no need
to heat the bedrooms during the day.

If you have a conservatory, independent timing is also very useful and could
save a fortune in heating bills. I'm toying with the idea of installing a
motion detector in series with the programmable thermostat in there. Just
walk in and the room is toasty 5 minutes later (I will be installing a
grossly oversized fan convector as the rapid warmup should give good energy
efficiency by encouraging us not to heat it when not required).

Christian.

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
W wrote:

Hi,

What are the pro's and con's of S Plan vs Y Plan heating arrangements?
I am getting a new heating system and I don't know which one to go
for.

TIA, W

A Y-plan uses less components - one motorised valve rather than two (or
more) and probably doesn't need a bi-pass valve. However, the 3-port
mid-position valve plays a strategic role in the overall control of the
boiler and pump, and is not very reliable - causing the whole system to fail
when it goes wrong.

An S-plan is a better technical solution, and gives greater flexibility -
since extra zones can easily be added (called S-plan-plus) if the pipework
layout permits. With a Y-plan, you're stuck with a single heating zone.

--
Cheers,
Set Square
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"W" wrote in message
...
Hi,

What are the pro's and con's of S Plan vs Y Plan heating arrangements?
I am getting a new heating system and I don't know which one to go
for.

TIA, W

The Y plan 3 port valve is cheaper to initially buy than two zone valves and
there is less pipework involved in connecting it.
I had Y plan on my old system and the main item that regularly failed was
the 3 port valve motor - so my new system uses S plan zone valves which are
likely to be more reliable as they are either open or closed rather than 3
position.
Another advantage of S plan is diagnosing any faults should be easier - it
is easy to determine if the valves are operating correctly compared to the Y
plan 3 port types.

When selecting valves to use - there are many makes to choose from, some
better than others for similar prices.
I chose the Honeywell V4043H as it appeared to be well made and has a good
reputation (my plumbers merchant agreed with my choice also).

Dave

On Wed, 24 Nov 2004 16:40:14 +0000, W wrote:

Hi,

What are the pro's and con's of S Plan vs Y Plan heating arrangements?
I am getting a new heating system and I don't know which one to go
for.

Others have mentioned just about the whole range of reasons.
I'll add that with S-plan you have some back up when things go wrong.
You can manually open the failed valve and run the other 'zone'.

Another things to remember is that if you have a HW cylinder an immersion
is a small cost which can save a great deal of hassle if the boiler stops.

--
Ed Sirett - Property maintainer and registered gas fitter.
The FAQ for uk.diy is at www.diyfaq.org.uk
Gas fitting FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/GasFitting.html
Sealed CH FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/SealedCH.html

On Wed, 24 Nov 2004 19:05:14 -0000, "Set Square"
wrote:

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
W wrote:

Hi,

What are the pro's and con's of S Plan vs Y Plan heating arrangements?
I am getting a new heating system and I don't know which one to go
for.

TIA, W

A Y-plan uses less components - one motorised valve rather than two (or
more) and probably doesn't need a bi-pass valve. However, the 3-port
mid-position valve plays a strategic role in the overall control of the
boiler and pump, and is not very reliable - causing the whole system to fail
when it goes wrong.

An S-plan is a better technical solution, and gives greater flexibility -
since extra zones can easily be added (called S-plan-plus) if the pipework
layout permits. With a Y-plan, you're stuck with a single heating zone.

Thanks to all for the help.

W.

s plan is the best...........honeywell valves...

On Tue, 08 Nov 2005 21:37:23 +0000, gastec wrote:


W Wrote:
Hi,

What are the pro's and con's of S Plan vs Y Plan heating arrangements?
I am getting a new heating system and I don't know which one to go
for.

TIA, W


s plan is the best...........honeywell valves...

Agreed. Honeywell or Horstmann valves. (The latter being electrically
Class II don't require an earth wire which makes for less of bundle
earths trying to get into a terminal in the wiring centre).
They are also interchangable with the Honeywell plumbing part. They
also operate the micro switch when in manual mode (can be useful).

Don't use Danfoss.

S-plan gives an easy upgrade path for extra zones at a latter date (e.g.
extension or diving into zones)l.

--
Ed Sirett - Property maintainer and registered gas fitter.
The FAQ for uk.diy is at http://www.diyfaq.org.uk
Gas fitting FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/GasFitting.html
Sealed CH FAQ http://www.makewrite.demon.co.uk/SealedCH.html

What are the pro's and con's of S Plan vs Y Plan heating arrangements?
I am getting a new heating system and I don't know which one to go

S-Plan every time. Y-Plan is a dinosaur.

S-Plan is fundamentally more extensible (can handle more than 2 zones),
easier to understand and more compatible with modern equipment. Only
disadvantages are very slightly greater cost for a 2 zone system and need
for slightly more room for the extra valve.

Christian.

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Christian McArdle wrote:

What are the pro's and con's of S Plan vs Y Plan heating
arrangements? I am getting a new heating system and I don't know
which one to go

S-Plan every time. Y-Plan is a dinosaur.

S-Plan is fundamentally more extensible (can handle more than 2
zones), easier to understand and more compatible with modern
equipment. Only disadvantages are very slightly greater cost for a 2
zone system and need for slightly more room for the extra valve.

Christian.

I am in total agreement that S-Plan is preferable.

Y-Plan does have *some* advantages - such that a single 3-port valve is
cheaper than two 2-port valves, and a 3-port valve always provides at least
one flow path, so you're less likely to need a by-pass circuit.

Y-Plan has the disadvantage, as mentioned by Christian, that it can't
readily be extended into additional zones. The fundamental disadvantage in
my view is that the motor drive is all mixed with boiler and pump switching
in quite a complex way, such that the valve actuator has a more strategic
role than its S-Plan counterparts. It is a single point of failure for the
whole system - as witnessed by the large number of posts here about 3-port
valve woes.
--
Cheers,
Set Square
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