English · UK / Configuration guide
Should the thermostat room have a smart radiator valve? Check Hive and tado separately
A radiator valve in the same room as the main thermostat can be wrong for one heating setup and part of the intended arrangement for another. Before buying a valve, identify the thermostat, the valve and their exact system generation. Hive's placement advice and tado's room controls are different instructions.
UK radiator-heated households; documented Hive, tado V3+ and earlier, and tado X room arrangements. No universal TRV rule.
Published .
This guide covers the documented Hive and tado arrangements below for UK radiator-heated homes. It does not prescribe a configuration for an unidentified thermostat, mixed ecosystem or a heating installation whose design has not been checked.
Separate three jobs
Write down which device does each job:
- Measures the room: the temperature reading used to decide whether that room needs more heat.
- Controls the radiator: the valve that allows or limits flow through that radiator.
- Requests heat: the device or controller that passes a demand to the boiler or relevant heating zone.
“Thermostat” is not a complete description of those roles. A radiator-mounted sensor and a room sensor may measure different locations. The room's measuring device also need not be the device connected to the boiler.
Take the device names from the app or installation paperwork. For tado, record whether you have V3+ or earlier devices, or tado X. Do not copy an app setting from one generation simply because the product names look similar.
If you have Hive
Hive's thermostat-positioning instructions say that ordinary thermostatic radiator valves in the same room should be fully open, normally at number 5. Hive explains that a partly closed valve can limit the room's heating while its thermostat still wants more heat.
For Hive Radiator Valves, that same page recommends not fitting one in the room containing the main thermostat. Its stated concern is heating remaining on when the thermostat target is higher than the radiator valve target.
This is a documented Hive distinction between ordinary thermostatic valves and Hive's smart valves. If you already have a conflicting arrangement, show the setup to Hive support or your installer before adding another sensor or altering the heating system. The instruction is not to adjust a lockshield or bypass valve.
If you have tado V3+ or earlier
tado's V3+ and earlier guidance allows you to choose the Measuring Device when a room contains multiple tado heating devices. When a Smart Thermostat and Smart Radiator Thermostat share a room, it recommends the Smart Thermostat as the Measuring Device.
The documented app route is Settings → Rooms & Devices → the room → Measuring Device. Confirm which device is selected and whether its physical position represents the room. That is more useful than automatically removing the radiator thermostat or buying an extra sensor.
tado notes that a radiator behind furniture or a curtain may give a reading that differs from the wider room. Its guidance also describes temperature offsets and a separate Wireless Temperature Sensor. Those are options to assess after you have identified the measuring arrangement, rather than proof that every room needs another device.
If you have tado X
The tado X temperature-measurement guidance describes a different arrangement. With only Smart Radiator Thermostats X in a room, the app uses their average measurement. If a Wired Smart Thermostat X or Wireless Temperature Sensor X is in the room, that device acts as the measuring device.
Then check the room grouping and heating request separately. The tado X heating-zone instructions say to put physically co-located room-control devices in the same app room. The app allows only one reference device per room; it will not group both a Wired Smart Thermostat X and a Wireless Temperature Sensor X in that room.
A Zone Controller has a separate role in receiving heating demands. Eligible controllers include a Wired Smart Thermostat X and Wireless Receiver X. In a home with multiple controllers, new rooms are not automatically assigned to one. Use the documented configuration matching the actual heating zone; assigning every room to whichever device appears first is not a substitute for understanding the installation.
Use the matching path
On small screens, scroll the table sideways.
| Your identified setup | First documented check |
|---|---|
| Hive thermostat with ordinary TRVs in its room | Hive says fully open. |
| Hive thermostat with Hive Radiator Valve proposed for its room | Hive recommends against this placement. |
| tado V3+ or earlier with both Smart Thermostat and Smart Radiator Thermostat | Check the room's selected Measuring Device. |
| tado X room-control devices | Check physical room grouping, its measuring arrangement and its Zone Controller separately. |
| Different, mixed or unidentified equipment | Obtain its own supported configuration. |
Describe the symptom before changing hardware
Keep a short note for support: the exact devices and generation, room name, selected measuring device where applicable, target temperatures, displayed temperature, and what actually happens. For example, does the valve stop heating before the room feels warm, or does the boiler continue running after that room's valve closes?
Those observations help explain the problem; they do not establish its cause. Include which other rooms are requesting heat, because a boiler running does not by itself prove this room's thermostat is responsible.
Ask the installer to confirm any hydraulic requirement or configuration you cannot identify. Leave wiring, valve-body removal, lockshield adjustment and bypass changes to a qualified professional. Brand support instructions do not replace the design of your own system, and this guide makes no energy-saving promise.
Hive and tado official support pages checked on 10 October 2026. Everyday Sift has not operated or tested these heating configurations.