In brief
Smart control does not automatically reduce the amount of heat a storage heater or electric storage floor needs. It mainly determines when and at what power the system charges. This can avoid large simultaneous peaks, increase direct use of solar power and, with a suitable energy contract, charge during cheaper hours. The outcome depends on your installation, home, energy contract and consumption profile.
A storage heater and storage floor are not the same
A storage heater stores heat in ceramic blocks and releases it later. With electric storage underfloor heating, heating cables sit in a sufficiently substantial floor build-up that stores heat. A separate heater can often be controlled by appliance or room. A floor responds more slowly and is usually controlled by circuit or zone. Ordinary thin electric underfloor heating without useful heat storage is direct electric heating and requires a different control approach.
How is existing storage heating controlled intelligently?
First, the appliances, circuits, power ratings, protective devices and existing control contacts are checked. A controller or energy management system can then use information from the digital meter, solar panels, outdoor temperature, room controls, hourly prices or the weather forecast. Suitable contactors or power relays switch the charging circuits. The control system staggers heaters or floor zones and ensures that comfort and safety limits remain in place.
How do you control storage heaters sensibly?
With several heaters, it is usually unfavourable to start every appliance at full power at the same time. Smart control can account for heat demand and remaining stored heat in each room and then stagger charging times. An appliance’s fan or heat output cannot always be controlled in the same way as its charging element. The brand, model and electrical diagram must therefore be checked first.
How do you control electric storage underfloor heating?
A storage floor responds slowly: heat charged now only becomes usefully available later. The control system must therefore look ahead to outdoor temperature, sunshine, the required room temperature and the thermal inertia of the floor. Circuits can charge in stages so that the entire floor does not cause a high quarter-hour peak at once. Floor and room temperature limits remain necessary; a smart relay must never replace the original protection.
How much can smart control save?
Savings can have three components: lower energy costs by shifting consumption to cheaper hours, lower network costs by flattening quarter-hour peaks, and greater self-consumption of solar power. A simple example: shifting 3,000 kWh with an average price difference of 5 cents gives about 150 euros gross per year; at 10 cents, about 300 euros. Avoided peak costs or additional self-consumption may add to this. These are scenarios, not guarantees: reduced comfort, heat loss and an unsuitable contract can reduce the benefit.
How much does smart control cost?
According to Flemish consumer information, solutions range from free monitoring to about 1,000 euros for many energy management systems; more sophisticated systems can cost more. That amount does not automatically include the complete installation. Additional metering, multiple zones, contactors, distribution-board alterations, cabling and commissioning determine the final price. The former Fluvius grant for new final invoices was discontinued from 1 January 2025. Wattra therefore provides a specific quotation only after checking the circuits.
When should you keep, control or replace the system?
Keeping the system and adding smart control can be worthwhile when the storage units are technically sound, the home is sufficiently comfortable and the electrical installation is suitable. Replacement deserves investigation when appliances are defective or difficult to control, consumption remains structurally high, or renovation already makes insulation and another heating system possible. Also compare air-to-air and air-to-water heat pumps, hybrid solutions and room-by-room changes. Consider investment, annual consumption, domestic hot water and comfort as one whole.
Which information enables an honest calculation?
Activate quarter-hour values in My Fluvius and collect at least one complete heating season, your annual statement, contract type and solar-panel data. Record the brand, model and power of every heater or heating circuit and provide photos of the distribution board, meters and controls. Wattra can then assess how much power is used simultaneously, which consumption can be shifted and whether simple control, a complete EMS or replacement is most appropriate.
Sources & further reading
Official background for the technical explanation. Consulted on 24 September 2026. A manufacturer source does not confirm that we supply that brand.
- Flanders — options as the exclusive night tariff is phased out
- Fluvius — capacity tariff and storage-heating peaks
- Fluvius — connecting a digital meter to smart applications through the P1 port
- Make Your Meter Smart — adding EMS control to storage heating
- Flanders — options and indicative costs of smart energy control
- Flanders — control-device grant discontinued for final invoices from 2025
General decision guidance, not a technical inspection report or a personal return calculation. Your installation or garden requires a separate assessment.
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