What is a Thermostatic Radiator Valve?

You can place a thermostatic radiator valve, or TRV, on a radiator within a hot-water or steam heating system. A thermostatic radiator valve enables you to control the temperature of that specific radiator, thus giving you greater control of the temperature and comfort of that room or space.

Thermostatic radiator valves also improve your heating system’s efficiency. For instance, if you have a radiator in your kitchen, you may want to include a thermostatic radiator valve on it. If your thermostat is set to 72 degrees F in your living room and you’ve got the oven on in the kitchen, chances are you are not going to need your kitchen radiator to pump out more heat. You can use your thermostatic radiator valve to turn down the heat for the kitchen radiator while you are cooking. You can also turn the thermostatic radiator valves down in rooms that you use less often to conserve energy. Programmable thermostatic radiator valves can work on your schedule.

How does a thermostatic radiator valve work?

The thermostatic radiator valve controls the flow of hot water (or steam) going into the radiator. It will sense the temperature of the room and open and close accordingly. The TRV has two parts. The part that attaches to the pipe is a normally open, spring-loaded valve (with a pressure drop). You attach to this the other part of the TRV, which is an operator that contains either a fluid or a wax that is very sensitive to changes in air temperature. As the air temperature rises or falls, the fluid or the wax inside the operator will expand and contract, moving the spring-loaded valve open or closed. Control the flow and you’ll control the heat. You can adjust a TRV to whatever temperature you’d like in the room it serves.