Q & A of the Day – How does this inherited Horstmann heating timer work?

 

Question: I’ve just bought a house and inherited an old Horstmann ‘Electrisaver’ electronic timer for the immersion tank. It simply has start and cancel buttons, no timer sections or lights and no boost button like all of the ones that my Internet searches have brought up. 

 

Neither does it have any more information on the case - no model, just the make, so I’m really unsure how to use it! Nothing seems to appear when searching for how to use it.


 

I would really appreciate some advice on how it is used as a timer if there are no timing parts to it. I genuinely cannot wrap my head around how it would time if I am manually controlling it by pressing start and cancel and if there is no boost functionality. 

 

I am on economy 7 and there are two water heater buttons to click on and off underneath this timer device, which I am using at the moment to heat up my water as and when I need to - though I don't know why there are two (one button doesn't light up).

 

Answer: Whilst our ‘Electrisaver’ range has changed a bit in looks and available timing periods, its main purpose, i.e. that of a boost timer, has not. 

 

The most common variants out there would provide up to a one or two hour boost facility. 
I would surmise, therefore, that this unit is there to provide the boost facility for your hot water, possibly through a separate heating element, with the main element or Economy 7 aspect of your system being controlled by something else. This could be a separate time switch, such as one of our Economy 7 controls - or possibly directly by the Electricity Company's meter.


 

Obviously without any specific model reference it is difficult to provide a more detailed answer.
 However if you would like to contact our technical helpline on tel: 01179 788 773 or email [email protected] , we may be able to help further. 

 

If it is possible to take some photographs of the installation and send them to us, this could prove helpful.