A new version of the online calculator tool ecoProCAL has been released to support heating engineers and installers when fitting electric storage heaters in people’s homes under ECO regulations.
Elnur developed the ecoProCAL to enable installers, fitters and retrofit assessors to calculate which heater, and how many heaters, are needed to heat a home – ensuring the customer is getting the most efficient heating solution for their money.
Elnur first developed the ProCAL in 2016. The new incarnation – version 4 – now takes into account new ECO regulations.
Using measurements relating to the property’s insulation, number of windows, walls and rooms, the calculator will display the model of storage heater required. It will also give running cost information so customers can make informed decisions about the work taking place in their homes, and enables installers to be fully prepared when attending a job.
Overall ecoProCAL helps to improve the quality and installation standards across the energy industry and enables heating firms to ensure they have enough products in the supply chain, helping to create a stable service.
Andrew Molyneux, Technical Director at Elnur, said: “There are thousands of properties around the UK with old storage heaters that need replacing, with some older than 20 years. These are extremely inefficient by today’s ‘next generation’ electric storage heater standards. The enhanced version of the ecoProCAL gives the installer the technical evidence of which new heater should be used, giving better efficiency for the property owner, and helps take the guesswork out of the installer’s job. It also helps companies plan more effectively, which at the moment, is really important when supply chains are under pressure.
“At Elnur, we are committed to ensuring the people who use our products have the technical evidence to support their recommendations. There are too many examples of poor service when it comes to heating and insulation, but this tool gives protection to the customer and the installer by accurately calculating which heater and how many are required for that specific property.”
Prism Property Maintenance Ltd has completed more than 200 installations under the ECO3 scheme where the specification has been created utilising the Elnur ecoProCAL software. Derek Millar, Director of Prism Property Maintenance, said: “The system automatically takes into consideration the principles of thermal dynamics and applies them using DOM8. This creates an economic system in terms of type of products selected, no. of appliances installed, increased user functionality and gives the best probability of the user to benefit from lower running costs. The additional feature showing the POPT (percentage of property treated) figure throughout the specification process allows the versatility of any property layout to be considered, maximising the potential to convert qualifying properties ensuring the best outcome.”
The new version of the ecoProCAL is available at www.elnur.co.uk/ecoprocal with a user guide and video walkthrough
