Local only TRVs

[odd marlin]

Hi, I'm very new to HA, and I'm looking to get new Thermostatic Radiator Valves (TRV) that I can ideally use with HA and without other hubs or cloud integrations.

My ideal requirements are:

• Has integrated PID to target temperature rather than just on/off gate.
• (ideally) Local control
• Continues to follow previously set schedule even if network is down

I'm a bit confused, because the Hive TRV003 look like they might fit what I want, but the screwfix website says they're not compatible with HA, and they might also need a Hive controller? I've also considered Tado V3P-4SRT01-TC-ML, but they appear to possibly require cloud access at all times.

Are there any smart TRVs that I can automate locally through HA without extra hubs or cloud reliance?

[prime lark]

Anything Zigbee will work for local control, and many can have locally set schedules (eg the Aqara E1 TRV)

[odd marlin]

Thanks, is there a way to know if a TRV has a proper PID for getting to target temperature rather than a more basic on/off? I'm considering https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006457641338.html but they're so much cheaper I'm worried they won't be as good. The price difference between those and the Hive zigbee units is huge though, around 1/4 the price.

[prime lark]

Honestly, I don't know - I'm far from a TRV expert - I'd hope that some reviews may mention it

[weak bridge]

At 15 USD why not just buy one and play with it 🙂

most of the TRVs I've played with so far all had PID-control based on a setpoint, but I have only played with a few different ones

tado V3 will not work for you without a cloud connection, tado Line X you can control from HA over Matter with a setpoint, and (once set up) they can work without the cloud

if you plan to use TRVs in noise-sensitive rooms then definitely try them out first, some TRVs are quite a bit more noisy than others

[faint shuttle]

Should I buy Tado X?

[crude surge]

No, almost no trvs have any inbuilt pid control, and those that do have it are worthless, because the trv temperature sensor is so wildly inaccurate. Some use TPI out of the box but it's frankly not very reliable and generally ties you into their manufacturer's hub and ecosystem - not worth it imo.

I use sonoff trvs on zigbee with room temperature sensors and versatile thermostat integration to make them clever

[prime lark]

Aqara E1 TRVs can be set to use an external temperature sensor, others probably can too, which makes them much more effective

[crude surge]

Many of them can - if you have the manufacturer's hub

Without the hub, you can do it via Home Assistant with an automation, as they expose the calibration value over zigbee so you can modify it to be equal to the difference between the TRV and room - but that's something almost all of the zigbee trvs can do

[graceful fern]

hi. I'm hoping someone can tell me clearly if the Hive SLR2B can work with home assistant by itself without the hub and the thermostat? i can add it HAOS and can see the changes made when physical button is press, but when i press in HA. it does not change the state. if it does not work, will i need the hub or the thermostat, or both?

[crude surge]

How are you connecting to it? Z2m or zha?

https://www.zigbee2mqtt.io/devices/SLR2b.html

You can send mqtt commands to it to control it, that might work without the thermostat

[graceful fern]

i tried both.

[crude surge]

I don't know, I never tried not connecting the thermostat

[graceful fern]

ok... so if i buy the thermostate it will work. and i dont need the hub?

[crude surge]

Try those commands in the z2m documentation before you buy the thermostat

But you definitely don't need the hub

[graceful fern]

ok last question. is it that the thermostat communicates with the home assistant and then controls the receiver?

as mentioned the receiver comes up on HA and i can see the changes made when physically pressed

[crude surge]

Good question tbh

I think the answer is no. The thermostat controls the receiver directly

Here's the difference between their mqtt devices in my HA, the thermostat only tells you about the batteries, all the climate information gets "funnelled" through the receiver

[graceful fern]

so this is how mine currently look. and i think its zha instead of mqtt.

[crude surge]

Yeah that's zha

What happens if you turn one of those climates to heat?

[graceful fern]

literally nothing

the only way i can adjust it.... is not via a button... i need to set an automation... and the automation does work.... but does not flip the switch

also, as mentioned.... if i do physically press the srl2b i can immediatly see the change in HA

[crude surge]

You could make a template switch?

Yeah that's the boost button though so isn't reliant on the info from the thermostat

[graceful fern]

so i do have sopme buttons here. but again.... they do not change the state of the relay

[crude surge]

I mean this

You can make a template button helper to do whatever you are doing in that automation that works

It's neater

That said... I'd advise just getting the thermostat. It definitely works then, and all this only maybe works

[graceful fern]

ah.. i mean that even that the automation works in HA it does not flip the relap on the reciever itself

lol... i think im going to follow that long mqtt post for the slr2b and see if that works. if not... i'l buy the slrt6

[crude surge]

Good luck

[graceful fern]

i very much appreciate your help Hilburn. thank you very much!!