Experience w/ HeatManager A.K.A Intellicon HW+

[Rmelo99]

I was pointed towards a Beckett product called the HeatManager by a fellow forum dweller "RedWood" who just so happens to also live in CT!! while on another thread

I began doing my own homework on the product and got several of my coworkers onboard to also get one. In a nutshell this is a "computer" that attaches to your HotWater boiler that saves energy by economizing your heating/burner cycles.

In our research we came across a product made called Intellicon HW+($180+/- online) that very closely resembled the Beckett Heatmanager($150+/- online). The first most apparent difference was a nifty LCD display to provide feedback. Our pooled research also led us to find that the same company makes the Beckett units. Those according to our research are essentialy a barebones version "processor wise" of their own intellicon HW+ and has no display.

Keep in mind all this research was being done while OIL was sky high per gallon. I'm on nat gas, and just wanted to save some money$$$. The websites claim guarantee's of 10% and some individuals claiming 20-30% on other blogs.

I've been running for about 1.5months now and my readout display of total savings is at 32.5%!!! This number fluctuates but has stayed above 30% for a few weeks now.

Installation was a breeze and took about 15mins. I tried to get all my co-workers to do their own installation, but not are all so brave. One had their boiler tech install it for about $75 I think.

The rest of us did our own installs. The funny thing is the one that was professionally installed was installed upside-down so the LCD is hard to read, and not very neat. All the DIY installs came out very clean.

Just wanted to share my experiences with other people who are considering something like this. I'll be glad to answer any questions.

 

[Redwood]

So you have had a positive experience I take it?

 

[Sponsor]

 

[NHmaster]

We push the Beckett unit pretty hard to our customers. Unit has a couple minor drawbacks, mostly going away in the winter and turning the heat down. ( fools the controller) but that's pretty rare. They will save an average of 15%, maybe more. There are better, more expensive and more complicated units out there also like the Taco and Tekmar units (same company(tekmar) makes both of them) None of these are anything new to the market. Honeywell first introduced an analog unit back in the 50's. In the 70's when the oil crunch first hit Both Taco and Ener-Trol marketed units that did the same thing the Intellicon and Beckett units do.
In my opinion, if you have a boiler you really should have a set-back controller.

 

[GreenHeating]

Intellicon HW+ 3250

Over the last several years my customers all have been sucessful using the Intellicon by saving at least 10% of thier energy cost, I have seen past 30% in the older oversized boilers. The Intellicon is just the more sophisticated version of the Beckett Heat Manager. The installation is rather straight forward compared to the tekmar or taco and it does not require calibration annually. I also personnally have it on my Biassi/Riello Oil fired with taco zone control (6 zones) and the 3150 Hydrolevel. I run the boiler on cold start and over the last two years I have been averaging a solid 12% in savings. I have verified this by turning the Intellicon off on alternating days to see the difference in burner run time. So in a nutshell I highly recommend, I have run in hvac technicians and fellow owners that seem to rather use the Tekmar, but i suspect that is for no other reason other then they usually charge $750 for installation versus the Intellicon HW+ 3250 which is practically a DIY type of job. but i charge $150

 

[Green_Eyed_Monster]

I have installed over 50 HW + 3250's in the Greater Toronto Area in the last year guaranteeing minimum 10% savings with payback time within 1.5 years. Every installation has been successful. The Intellicon HW + 3250 has been a great product for our end users and for us as distributors. I would not hesitate to recommend any of the Intellidyne units for the full scope of their commercial and residential applications. For more info on these units and all the entire Intellidyne product line check out this website: www.energybank.ca

 

[izthebye]

HW+ setup query

Hello. I'm new to the forum and have just installed a HW+3250. I'm not too clear on the instructions and was wondering if someone could help?
Here are my current parameters:
I use a Honeywell L8124L (triple?) aquastat on my boiler. High set point is 195F, Low setpoint is 170F with the differential set to 15 deg. I also use the domestic hot water coil.

I don't understand the instructions on the limit settings for the HW+, particularly the reference to the "B" stat. I have left them at default. HLOLIM is 145 deg and LO is 115 deg.

Can someone please suggest me what settings I should have on both the aquastat and the HW+?