Y-Plan · wiring diagram

Y-Plan with a frost thermostat wiring diagram

In short

A Y-Plan is a fully pumped system with one 3-port mid-position valve. It rests at the hot water port, moves to mid-position when the room thermostat calls, and to the heating-only port when hot water is satisfied or timed off. The white and grey cores drive it; the orange core and the cylinder stat fire the boiler.

The wired Y-Plan with a frost thermostat added: a permanent live from block 1, its call to block 5 (the white), set at 4 °C. There is no pipe stat on this canvas: on site a pipe stat on the return is wired in series with it.

Y-Plan wired in the DrawWarm simulator

An Y-Plan wired in the simulator; this page’s circuit is listed wire by wire below. Wire colours as the lessons teach them. The meter reads what the circuit is doing.

The wiring centre, block by block

A block is a plain conductor: every wire landed on it is joined to every other, and to nothing else. The numbers are the habit the DrawWarm Method teaches, so the next engineer can read your work.

BlockAs the lessons teach itWired here
1Permanent live from the fused spurFused Spur L, Dual Channel Programmer L, Heat-Only Boiler L, Frost Thermostat L
2NeutralFused Spur N, Circulation Pump N, Room Thermostat N, Dual Channel Programmer N, Heat-Only Boiler N, 3-Port Valve N, Frost Thermostat N
3EarthFused Spur E, Circulation Pump E, Dual Channel Programmer E, Heat-Only Boiler E, 3-Port Valve E
4Heating demand from the programmer, out to the room thermostatDual Channel Programmer 4, Room Thermostat L
5The room thermostat’s call, out to the valve’s whiteRoom Thermostat SL, 3-Port Valve W, Frost Thermostat SL
6Hot water demand from the programmer, out to the cylinder thermostatDual Channel Programmer 3, Cylinder Thermostat C
7Hot water not wanted (the programmer’s hot water off and the cylinder thermostat satisfied), out to the valve’s greyDual Channel Programmer 1, 3-Port Valve G, Cylinder Thermostat 2
8Hot water wanted (the cylinder thermostat’s call) and the valve’s orange, out to the boiler’s switched liveCylinder Thermostat 1, Heat-Only Boiler SL, 3-Port Valve O

Every wire, terminal by terminal

FromTerminalToTerminalColour
Fused SpurLWiring Centre1Brown (live)
Fused SpurNWiring Centre2Blue (neutral)
Fused SpurEWiring Centre3Green/yellow (earth)
Circulation PumpEWiring Centre3Green/yellow (earth)
Dual Channel ProgrammerEWiring Centre3Green/yellow (earth)
Circulation PumpNWiring Centre2Blue (neutral)
Room ThermostatNWiring Centre2Blue (neutral)
Dual Channel ProgrammerNWiring Centre2Blue (neutral)
Wiring Centre1Dual Channel ProgrammerLBrown (live)
Dual Channel Programmer4Wiring Centre4Black
Wiring Centre4Room ThermostatLBlack
Room ThermostatSLWiring Centre5Brown (live)
Dual Channel Programmer3Wiring Centre6Grey
Cylinder ThermostatCWiring Centre6Grey
Dual Channel Programmer1Wiring Centre7Grey
Cylinder Thermostat1Wiring Centre8Brown (live)
Heat-Only BoilerLWiring Centre1Brown (live)
Heat-Only BoilerNWiring Centre2Blue (neutral)
Heat-Only BoilerEWiring Centre3Green/yellow (earth)
Wiring Centre8Heat-Only BoilerSLOrange
Heat-Only BoilerPLCirculation PumpLBrown (live)
3-Port ValveEWiring Centre3Green/yellow (earth)
3-Port ValveNWiring Centre2Blue (neutral)
3-Port ValveWWiring Centre5White
3-Port ValveGWiring Centre7Grey
3-Port ValveOWiring Centre8Orange
Cylinder Thermostat2Wiring Centre7Grey
Wiring Centre1Frost ThermostatLBrown (live)
Wiring Centre2Frost ThermostatNBlue (neutral)
Frost ThermostatSLWiring Centre5Brown (live)

The truth table

Commissioning proves the system does what each demand asks, row by row, before it is handed over. Polarity and earth continuity come first.

DemandWhat the system does
No demand: programmer hot water off and heating off (room stat calling, cylinder cold)Valve rests at B (hot water port); boiler off
Hot water only: programmer hot water on (room stat calling, cylinder cold)Valve stays at B (hot water port); boiler fires
Heating only, hot water timed off: programmer heating on (room stat calling, cylinder cold)Valve drives to A (heating port); boiler fires
Heating and hot water: programmer both on (room stat calling, cylinder cold)Valve at mid position; boiler fires
Heating and hot water, the cylinder now hot (room stat calling)Valve moves to A (heating port); boiler fires
Frost: programmer off, the frost thermostat callingValve drives to A (heating port); boiler fires

Where it connects

Back to every wiring diagram.

If this is your home: this page is written for heating engineers, and for learners under the supervision of one. It explains how the wiring works; it is not training to do the work. In England and Wales, electrical work in a home must meet the Building Regulations (Part P), and some of it must be notified to building control or done by a registered electrician; Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules. For the wiring, call a registered electrician or a heating engineer competent in controls. Work inside a gas boiler is for a Gas Safe registered engineer only. If you smell gas, leave the building and call the gas emergency number: 0800 111 999 in Great Britain, 0800 002 001 in Northern Ireland.

Practise it in the simulator.

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