The Helios easyControls 3.0 is a building control system interface for Helios KWL ventilation units with heat recovery. It communicates with TapHome via Modbus RTU over RS-485, providing access to CO2 and humidity sensor readings, fan speed monitoring and configuration, ventilation mode switching (Home, Away, Boost, Fireplace), and timer management.
The system uses holding registers in the range H:4353 to H:21772. Temperature values are transmitted in centiKelvin (cK), where 0 degrees C equals 27315 cK.
Hardware connection
RS-485 wiring
The Helios KWL unit exposes an RS-485 Modbus RTU interface on its PCB terminal block. Multiple units can be daisy-chained on the same bus with a 120 ohm termination resistor on the last unit.

Connect using a 3-wire RS-485 connection to the KWL unit’s terminal block:
- MB_A (Data+) to A+/D+ on TapHome RS-485
- MB_B (Data-) to B-/D- on TapHome RS-485
- GND to GND on TapHome power supply
The last unit on the bus requires a 120 ohm termination resistor between MB_A and MB_B.
Important – Grounding
The GND wire must be connected between the Helios unit and the TapHome power supply. Without proper grounding, communication errors may occur.
Configuration
Enabling Modbus communication
The Modbus RTU default settings can be changed via the KWL-BE Touch panel or via the unit’s internal web server.

Default Modbus parameters:
| Parameter | Default value |
|---|---|
| Address | 1 |
| Baud rate | 19200 |
| Parity | Even |
| Stop bit | 1 |
Configure TapHome to match: Set the RS-485 bus to 19200 baud, even parity, 1 stop bit. Use Slave ID 1 (or the address configured on the unit).
Profile priority
If more than one profile is active simultaneously, the profile with higher priority overrides the lower-priority profile. The priority order (highest to lowest) is:
- Timer configurable input (assigned to digital inputs)
- Fireplace function
- Boost ventilation
- Home/Away
For example, if both the fireplace function and boost ventilation profiles are active at the same time, the fireplace function overrides the boost ventilation due to its higher priority.
Device capabilities
CO2 monitoring
CO2 Value (H:4364) reads the highest CO2 measurement across all connected CO2 sensors in PPM. If no CO2 sensor is connected, the value reads 0 and a warning is generated in TapHome.
The device exposes seven service attributes:
- CO2 Sensor 0 through CO2 Sensor 5 (H:4379 to H:4384) – individual sensor readings in PPM. A value of 65535 indicates no sensor connected at that position.
- CO2 Threshold (H:20491) – the current CO2 control threshold (range 500 to 2000 PPM).
A service action CO2 Threshold allows setting the CO2 threshold value for automatic ventilation adjustment.
Fan speed monitoring and profiles
Fan Speed (H:4353) displays the current fan speed as a percentage (0 to 100%). This represents the actual running speed of the ventilation unit.
Service attributes expose the configured fan speeds for each profile:
- Away Fan Speed (H:20501) – fan speed in Away profile
- Home Fan Speed (H:20507) – fan speed in Home profile
- Boost Fan Speed (H:20513) – fan speed in Boost profile
- Boost Air Target Temperature (H:20514) – supply air target temperature in Boost profile (centiKelvin to degrees C conversion)
- Boost CO2 Control and Boost RH Control (H:20512, H:20511) – enable/disable CO2 and humidity-based automatic adjustment in Boost mode
Two service actions allow configuring fan parameters:
- Fan Speed Setup – sets fan speed percentages for Home, Away and Boost profiles simultaneously
- Boost Set Up – configures the Boost profile including fan speed, supply air target temperature, and CO2/RH control toggles
Internal sensor (temperature and humidity)
Internal Sensor (H:4369/H:4370) reads temperature and relative humidity from the built-in multisensor. The temperature uses 12-bit internal encoding and the humidity is divided by 100 to get the percentage value.
This device exposes extensive service attributes for monitoring the ventilation system:
Air temperatures (all in centiKelvin, converted to degrees C):
- Extract Air Temperature (H:4354) – air entering the heat recovery cell from indoors
- Exhaust Air Temperature (H:4355) – air leaving the heat recovery cell to outdoors
- Outdoor Air Temperature (H:4356) – fresh air entering the unit from outside
- Supply Air Temperature (H:4358) – conditioned air delivered to rooms after the heater
Humidity sensors:
- RH Sensor 0 through RH Sensor 5 (H:4373 to H:4378) – individual relative humidity readings in percent. A value of 65535 indicates no sensor connected.
- RH Basic Level (H:20490) – the calculated or manually set RH basic level (65535 if not yet calculated)
- RH Level Mode (H:20543) – 0 for Automatic Level Update, 1 for Manual
System status:
- Cell State (H:4616) – heat recovery cell operation: 0 = Heat Recovery, 1 = Cool Recovery, 2 = Bypass, 3 = Defrosting
- Filter Change Date (H:20546 to H:20548) – last filter change date (day, month, year)
- Filter Change Interval (H:20537) – interval in days for the filter change indicator (30 to 365)
Service actions on the Internal Sensor device:
- Filter Change Date – records a new filter change date
- RH Basic Level – sets the humidity reference level (0 to 100%)
- RH Level Mode – selects automatic or manual humidity level control
Ventilation mode control
Mode (H:4609) is a multi-value switch controlling the ventilation profile with four states:
| Value | Mode | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Home | Normal ventilation with home profile settings |
| 1 | Away | Reduced ventilation for unoccupied periods |
| 2 | Boost | Intensive ventilation (timer-based via H:21766) |
| 3 | Fireplace | Positive-pressure mode for homes with a fireplace (timer-based via H:21767) |
The Mode device exposes twelve service attributes showing per-profile configuration:
- Away settings: fan speed, supply air target, RH control, CO2 control
- Home settings: fan speed, supply air target, RH control, CO2 control
- Fireplace fan speeds: separate extract and supply fan speed percentages
- Weekly Timer state (enabled/disabled) and WeekDay (1 = Monday through 7 = Sunday)
Five service actions allow full profile configuration:
- Away Set Up / Home Set Up – configures fan speed, supply air target temperature, RH and CO2 control for each profile
- Fan Speed Set Up – sets Home, Away, and Boost fan speed percentages simultaneously
- Fireplace Set Up – configures extract and supply fan speeds for fireplace mode
- Weekly Timer – enables or disables the weekly timer program
Module-level service diagnostics
The module exposes nine service attributes for system monitoring:
- Date and Time – current unit clock (day, month, year, hours, minutes)
- Fireplace Timer and Fireplace Time – fireplace mode timer state and duration in minutes
- Boost Timer and Boost Time – boost ventilation timer state and duration in minutes
- Extra Timer – configurable digital input timer state
- Weekly Timer – weekly program state (enabled/disabled)
- Filter Change Date – last filter change date
Four module-level service actions:
- Set Date and Time – sets the unit clock (year, month, day, hour, minute)
- Timers Control – toggles boost, fireplace, and extra timers on/off
- Timers Set Up – configures boost and fireplace timer durations (1 to 1440 minutes)
- Filter Change – records a filter change date
Additional capabilities
The Helios easyControls 3.0 also exposes registers for four individual air temperatures (outdoor, extract, exhaust, supply) as standalone sensor devices, a separate RH aggregate value, an optional external temperature sensor (H:4389), and boost/fireplace timer remaining time counters. These are currently available as service attributes on the Internal Sensor and Mode devices. They can be added as standalone TapHome devices in a future template update.
The four air temperature sensors (outdoor, extract, exhaust, supply) are accessible as service attributes on the Internal Sensor device. If standalone temperature devices are needed, they can be added as custom Modbus devices in TapHome using the corresponding register addresses with centiKelvin-to-Celsius conversion (subtract 27315, divide by 100).
Troubleshooting
No Modbus communication
- Check RS-485 cables:
- MB_A correctly connected to A+/D+ on TapHome
- MB_B correctly connected to B-/D- on TapHome
- GND connected to TapHome power supply ground – most common issue
- Verify the Modbus Slave address matches the unit configuration (default: 1)
- Check the 120 ohm termination resistor on the last unit
- Confirm TapHome is set to: 19200 baud, even parity, 1 stop bit
- Measure voltage between MB_A and MB_B – should be 1.5 to 5 V at idle
CO2 or RH sensor warnings
If TapHome shows “No CO2 sensor” or “No RH sensor” warnings:
- Verify the external CO2/RH sensors are physically connected to the KWL unit
- Check individual sensor readings in the service attributes (CO2 Sensor 0 through 5, RH Sensor 0 through 5) – a value of 65535 indicates no sensor at that position
- If all sensors show 65535, check the sensor wiring at the KWL terminal block
Temperature readings incorrect
Temperature values are transmitted in centiKelvin. If readings appear as large numbers (e.g., 29315 instead of 20 degrees C):
- Verify TapHome is applying the conversion correctly
- The correct formula is: Temperature in degrees C = (cK value - 27315) / 100
- Valid range for temperature registers is 21000 to 33224 cK (approximately -63 degrees C to +59 degrees C)
easyControls 2.0 compatibility
The easyControls 2.0 system uses a non-standard Modbus TCP/IP protocol with ASCII-encoded variable names. It is not compatible with this template or with standard TapHome Modbus integration. Only easyControls 3.0 units with Modbus RTU support can use this template.
