Hive Thermostat: The Ultimate Guide to Smart Heating Control
Discover the affordability and convenience of Hive smart thermostats, starting at just €24 for the Hive Thermostat Frame. As part of the Hive family of products, these smart devices are designed to seamlessly integrate and enhance your home living experience. Read more in our complete Hive Thermostat guide!
What Is the Hive Thermostat?
You may have heard about these new smart thermostats while looking for the best home heating and you’re wondering just what it is and if they are worth it?
A Hive thermostat is intended to give you more control over your home heating and cooling. It is a digital device that automatically maintains your home’s temperature stable. According to the Carbon Trust, having one installed can reduce your heating bills by up to 35%.
When you consider the average electricity and gas bill in Ireland is €1,818 a year, and today's high energy prices, such important savings can make any smart thermostat a wise investment.
How Does a Hive Thermostat Work Your Heating?
A Hive thermostat works in the following fashion:
- It detects the temperature in your living space.
- If heating is necessary, it will inform your boiler to heat your water.
- The hot water gets distributed through your radiators.
- This increases the room temperature accordingly.
By automatically controlling your home’s temperature, your boiler and central heating system will only function when necessary. In turn, this means a reduction in energy consumption and thus reduces your energy bills.
What Are the Hive Thermostat Advantages?
Apart from the obvious energy-saving advantages of the Hive thermostat, here are some of its main features over other smart thermostats like the Climote, Nest, Netatmo, or Tado to name a few.
- Good Appearance
It is extremely attractive, with a cutting-edge responsive display combined with buttons for ease of use. - Flexible
It can be wall-mounted or kept on a shelf. - Heating Controls
It comes with the ability to control your heating, boost your heating for an hour, etc. - Smart Heating
The Hive thermostat turns off the heating when you leave home through a sensor on your front door. - Special Features
Hive also boasts frost protection and holiday mode features. Keeping your pipes safe and without paying the earth for heating an empty house. - Hot Water Control
It allows you to control your hot water, which is a big plus in our books.
What Are the Hive Thermostat Disadvantages?
Like any product, there are some drawbacks to the Hive thermostat. Here is a quick summary of what these are.
- Only Allows Other Hive Products
Doesn’t allow non-Hive devices to connect to the hub. The only exception is Philips Hue bulbs. - Costly
It is a little expensive as you’ll have to shell out an additional €20-€25 for a frame in a different colour and around €30 for a stand. - Limited Features
The option to turn off the heating when the front door closes is only really useful for a single household, or where every family member leaves at around the same time. - Complex Setup
The setup of a Hive thermostat is a little more complicated than other smart thermostats, which are generally a bit more plug-and-play style. - Risky To Install Alone
You can risk buying the thermostat independently and try to get it to function with other Hive add-ons such as the Hub, although we’d recommend just getting a package that includes everything you need plus professional installation, more information in our Hive prices section.
Efficiency makes your bills cheaper! We’ll also take this opportunity to remind you that in the name of efficiency (and cheaper bills) your heating should really be turned off half an hour before you leave, not a minute or two before you leave.
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How Can I Get a Hive Thermostat in Ireland?
As previously mentioned, it’s not just a simple case of looking up the Hive thermostat online and purchasing it. You also need to consider the following factors:
- Whether you want to opt for the Hub or not
- Whether it's worth paying for the new Hub 360
- If you're going to buy a pack of accessories altogether
- Or, if you prefer to get them later piecemeal.
Below we've looked into how much it would cost you for the basic set-up and where you can buy the Hive in Ireland.
Can I Buy a Hive Thermostat Online?
You can go to the Hive website and buy their Smart Heating product. They have a list of different devices that can help you keep your home warm using smart technology. Here's a list of what's available:
Device Name | Price |
---|---|
Hive Thermostat Mini | €145 |
Hive Thermostat | €199 |
Hive Radiator Valve | €64 |
Hive Thermostat Stand | €34 |
Hive Thermostat Frame | €24 |
Source: Hive
Last Updated: 10/11/2023
What's the Bord Gáis Energy Offer for the Hive Thermostat?
You can also opt to get your Hive heating control through Bord Gáis Energy with their Hive offers for both new and existing customers.
New customers: You can get the same conditions as the online sign-up offer for new customers, 14% off your gas unit rate with a free Hive Heating pack and installation thrown in. The only catch is that you will be locked into a 24-month contract instead of the usual 12-month contract, and the discounts only apply for the first 12 months.
Existing customers: You won’t get any discount off the actual thermostat, it’s still priced at the RRP of €299, but you will get 14% off your gas unit rates, and you can also throw in a boiler service for 50 quid less. Not quite as good as a free Hive, but if you were planning to buy a Hive thermostat anyway, and are with Bord Gáis, you might as well take advantage of the offer. Here's a table showing the current deal:
Benefits | Hive | Hive Plus Boiler Service |
---|---|---|
One Off Price | €299 | €349 (€50 saving) |
14% Gas Discount for Existing Customers | Included | Included |
Hive Active Heating | Included | Included |
Boiler Service Included? | Not Included | Included, Worth €99 |
Full Deal | Hive 14% off Gas | Hive 14% off Gas Complete Boiler Care |
Source: Bord Gáis
Last Updated: 10/11/2023
What Are the Hive Thermostat Reviews Like?
Reviews for Hive Heating controls and thermostat mainly come from the UK section of Trustpilot. Here Hive receives a 3.5 out of 5 star rating from over 20,500 customer reviews.
From weeding out those reviews related to the thermostat and not Hive’s other products or app, customers have been very satisfied with the degree of control Hive permits them over their heating.
Also highly rated was the ease of use and quick installation. The app did come in for a quick bashing, with several customers mentioning how often they had issues with it, and very few satisfied with it.
Areas customers were consistently less than content with included customer service and the instructions included with the thermostat and Hub.
My Hive heating hub stopped talking to the receiver and thermostat. Tried numerous times using the app to reset it and it just didn't work. Took ages on the phone but finally got through to support who began to help me. I had to leave for work but the support agent promised to ring back later. And he did! Cut to the chase, an hour later I am back up and running. Good job, it's getting ❄️.
Paul Dixon on Trustpilot, 08/11/2023
Is the Hive Thermostat App Any Good?
The Hive app, currently available for both Android and Apple devices, is designed to pair with the Hive Hub or Hub 360, and control all your smart home devices, not just the thermostat.
One star feature of the app is the ability to set up IFTTT actions, which can help you to automate your home. Fed up of wandering around the house switching off all the lights that everyone else left on? Set an action (if you have any Hive motion sensors installed) that when no one is in the room, the lights will switch off automatically.
What is IFTTT?IFTTT stands for If This Then That, and is a free web service to get your home smart gadgets talking to each other. You could set up a rule that if a window is open, then the heating must turn off, for example.
Hive makes using IFTTT easy as they have 50 common sense pre-sets you can use, and you can also program new ones. When it comes to the thermostat, however, unless you have a bunch of Hive sensors installed, you won’t be able to enjoy the full capabilities of the app.
The Hive smart thermostat app averages 1.7 out of 5 stars on Google Play and 4.5 out of 5 on the Apple Store, so you're more likely to get a better experience on an iPhone. Here is one example of reviews found for the Hive app.
Keep in mind that you also have the Hive online login you can use which has the same functionality as the app, should you ever experience any issues using the app.
Is a Hive thermostat Worth It?
If we combine the positive reviews for the Hive thermostat, Hive heating control, and the potential savings on your energy bills of up to 35%, the benefits certainly outweigh the disadvantages.
If savings are what you are looking for, don’t forget that comparing and switching energy suppliers every 12 months is always the quickest and surest way to save. Call our energy experts for free at (0)1 913 1771 to find the best offer and learn more about the Hive thermostat.
Hive Heating Thermostat FAQs
Is there a monthly fee for a Hive thermostat?
You do not need to pay monthly fees to use the Hive thermostat. There are extra features via Hive Heating Plus that may incur recurring monthly or yearly fees.
Can I install a Hive thermostat myself?
Although not quite as straightforward as other smart thermostats on the market, you can install the Hive thermostat yourself and save yourself the cost of an engineer.
Can I replace my thermostat with Hive?
Not only the Hive thermostat, but any smart thermostat can replace existing conventional programmers. These work with most oil, gas, and condensing boilers.
Where is the best place to put my Hive thermostat?
The thermostat unit can be wall-mounted or kept on a shelf within reach, as with the Google Nest. However, we’d strongly recommend you keep it in one of the most commonly occupied rooms, such as the sitting room, in order to better gauge the temperature that is most comfortable for you.
You’ll also need to keep it out of the path of any drafts or direct sunlight which could cause it to incorrectly read the temperature as too hot or too cold.
What is the Hive hub?The Hive Hub connects all your Hive products so you can remotely access light bulbs, cameras, door sensors, smart plugs, and the thermostat. It is an integral part of the Hive offering and normally ships with the Hive thermostat. New Hive purchases are now being shipped with the Hub upgrade, the Hive 360.
What is a Hive signal booster?
If you have a particularly large or long house, or maybe just some extra thick stone walls, you may have negated the idea of getting a smart thermostat due to signal issues. You will probably have already noticed signal problems with your Wifi when attempting to use your smartphone in different parts of the house.
Never fear, Hive has a neat solution in the form of a signal booster. The Hive signal booster is smaller and less obtrusive than traditional signal boosters, simply plug it into any socket and it will increase and spread the quality of your wifi signal, for only €29.
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