Thermostats

[fan-of-fans]

What kind of thermostat do you have in your home?

Originally my house had a rectangular Honeywell heat/cool thermostat which was a gold metallic color. It had a circular dial which showed the room temp. I've seen these branded Rheem, Tappan and other names but most I saw had a linear room temp scale whereas this one was circular.

That got replaced about 2002 with a "Simple Comfort 2000" digital thermostat. It didn't seem particularly sensitive to me, it was also not backlit so it was difficult to read the temperature in the hallway.

That one got replaced about two years ago with a Honeywell digital thermostat. It seems more accurate and also has a blue backlight which is nice.

My favorite thermostats were the round Honeywells. The model is actually called "The Round." My grandmother's house used to have a gold heat/cool one. I see these are still made, but in plastic. They also make the Lyric WiFi thermostat which is also circular, which I am guessing is meant to mimic the old ones.

 

[wayupnorth]

I have round Hunneywells in my home up and down and they work fine. I also have a gas Hearthstone stove that has a wall thermostat. I had replaced that thermostat twice before before I was told a regular furnace thermostat is 24V and since my Hearthstone has no electricity needed, it would only work with a 750MV. Got a Hunneywell 750 MV thermostat and it works just fine.

 

[repairguy]

Honeywell 8000 series touch screen

 

[mattl]

Depends on your tech level. No tech the sandard stuff is still out there. If you wamt wifi control or learning there are lots of options.. Which way do you want to go?

 

[appnut]

I have a Trane digital for my heat pump system.

 

[imperial70]

Sensi WIFI enabled. Can control from my phone app.  Very handy in the middle of the night. No getting out of bed.

 

[philcobendixduo]

I have a Sensi....

....as well. The "original" model (WiFi) - not the newer touch screen model. It works great for my heating/cooling system and Emerson frequently updates features and functionality.

Before that, I had a Sears 7 day programable digital thermostat. It could do heating and cooling but I only had heating at that time.

The original thermostat that came with the house was that "generic" square one branded "Fraser/Johnston" to match the furnace.

 

[DADoES]

 
House has a 16yo 7-day programmable Carrier with the system at the time.  I promptly upon moving in had an outdoor temp sensor added.

Work has four Sensi WiFi.  A useful feature is locking the buttons so control is only via the app ... circumvents the possibility of customers breaking the security covers and futzing with them, which has happened a couple times in the past.  The lobby 'stat doesn't have a cover.  A drawback of locking the buttons is there's no control if the local Internet or Emerson's network goes down (unless a reset/wipeout is done in which case all the programming would be gone).  A problem is that the app now hugely sucks.  It didn't at first but a succession of revisions has fouled it up, at least for my purposes.  So I primarily use the web access portal for weekly programming revisions.  No one has access except me.

 

[tolivac]

A simple Lennox one!No digital dials or timers.I like to keep it simple.My Lennox works as either an AC or a heat pump.The unit is going on 30yrs old-have money in savings in case it dies.The company that services my HVAC suggests York-they say they have the least trouble with those and still made in York,PA!And at work---the new chillers are York with 4 scroll compressors each!Being installed now.

 

[chachp]

Vivint Element Thermostats

 

<span style="font-family: helvetica;">We have a Trane Zoned system.  We have been with Vivint for about 15 years for our Home Automation.  These thermostats come with their package and work very well.  We can adjust from the thermostats, a phone app or the security system panel.  </span>

 

[dustin92]

We have a mid-priced 7 day programmable Honeywell that I installed a few years ago and I will be replacing it soon. The thermostat functions fine, but it's a major pain in the ass to set (no touch screen) and the display is hard to see, partially because of the green backlight being splotchy. I came home a couple weeks ago and the house was freezing- my mom couldn't see the display and had switched the a/c on, cooling to 66 (with the a/c system that we haven't used in 5 years because it doesn't work properly) when it was in the 40's outside and the heat should have been on. I'm going to install a smart thermostat but haven't decided which one. Probably going to go with whichever is the most user friendly!

 

[DADoES]

 
The parents have a Lennox 2-speed heat pump with iComfort S30 'stat.  They don't have it connected for WiFi access.

It has seemingly thousands of settings/adjustments.  The installer company apparently doesn't have much clue about it.  Told dad to never set heat and cool closer than 7°F apart.  There's a setting to control the Auto changeover deadzone, 3°F to 9°F.  It's impossible to set the temps closer than that difference, which was set to 7°F.  I changed it to 4°F, although that won't make any difference in usage since they never try to set both temps for Auto.  It has a Single Setpoint Mode (not enabled), which displays only one setpoint and Auto-switches to maintain it.

Something I noticed in poking through the settings ... auxiliary heat is flagged as disabled.  I didn't change it for not knowing if it's supposed to be as such for some reason.  Presumably the heat strips still function during defrost.

Humidity control with adjustable setpoint, and a setting for how much overcooling is allowed.  They had humidity control on their previous 2-speed Lennox system with analog 'stat and separate humidity control.  This 'stat being digital, it's more apparent via the room temp display that overcooling is happening.  Mom asked a few months ago why does it cool to 74°F when set at 76°F (dad gets cold).  I explained about the humidity control (she said "I don't understand all of that").  I checked the humidity setting, it was 45% ... well, yeah, there's going to be constant overcooling to try maintaining that level at a location 30 mins from the TX coast.  I changed it to 52%, didn't change the overcooling allowance.  Haven't asked if they've noticed any difference.

Anyway ... their 'stat went kablooey a couple weeks ago.  Has a 5yr warranty so was replaced at no cost.  The installer advised that Lennox has had reliability trouble with that model so it'll be changed to something simpler if trouble happens again.

 

[mattl]

Just a note, check with your utility co. Many are offering free or near free wifi and programmable thermostats. Consumers energy here in MI offered me a $150 thermostat for free a few months ago due to the option for them to cut AC at peak times. Didn't take it as I have a smart thermostat I really like, plus I do not use my AC, I have no issues if they need to cut energy usage at peak times.

 

[sudsmaster]

I got a Lux 1500 programmable thermostat about 20 years ago and am quite satisfied with it.

It's no longer available, but there may be later versions out there, such as in the link below.

My home has just central forced air (gas), but the Lux can control both heating and cooling. Few homes in this area (SF Bay) have central A/C, since we do get adequate natural cooling overnight thanks to the ocean and bay breezes. I have a portable A/C unit for the few weeks per year when additional cooling might be needed.

https://www.amazon.com/LuxPRO-PSP511LC-Deluxe-Programmable-Thermostat/dp/B000BT0M9Y/ref=asc_df_B000BT0M9Y/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=198099432697&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=3342819371793861244&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocph

 

[gusherb]

The house originally started off with a couple of T87F's aka "The Round" and now I have a couple of Honeywell Prestige IAQ thermostats in place, that control humidity, dehumidification, and ventilation if I had that as well. I've had them awhile now and they work with no fuss, I can control them remotely on my phone. I have no interest in any "learning" thermostats that dictate what's best for you or spy on you so I haven't really kept up with the market since I settled on my Prestige's

I have a collection of vintage thermostats as well, some of them old electromechanical programmable models like the Honeywell "Chronotherm". Pretty cool units but hardly accurate by todays standards. The only old school thermostats that could rival a modern digital thermostat in accuracy is the T87F and T874 (the commercial version of the T87F basically)

 

[iowabear]

I have a Ritetemp 8050 7-day programmable that I bought many years ago.  I selected it because it was the same size as the White Rodgers it replaced, LOL.

 

I don't use the program function, it always stays on the "temp hold" setting.  I go to bed, I turn it down.  I get up, I turn it up.  I leave the house, I turn it down.  I come home, I turn it up.

 

I've been doing this for years so it's ingrained.  I never forget to do it.

 

[twintubdexter]

as usual, a little off-track from the topic...

<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">I recently replaced both my thermostats (2 HVAC systems) with units that were similar to what was originally here (house was built in 2000.) The reason I purchased new ones is that they're lighted and the display, at least the numbers, are larger. Since I'm retired and rarely away from home on a regular basis, they are not programmable. I don't need that feature. I keep them both set at a temperature that's comfortable for me and my dog 24/7. These new units will switch between air conditioning and heat by themselves. Old ones were heat or cool only. In my old age it's one of the luxuries I afford myself. When my partner and I lived our first home in the SF Bay Area our next-door neighbor and good friend was on the cheap side. These small 950 sq ft homes were heated by a double-sided gas wall furnace which kept the very poorly insulated house warm and toasty. Our neighbor would switch his furnace on, turn around in front of it like a rotisserie chicken at Costco and then turn it off. He passed away at age 57 and left his home, his retirement along with everything else to us. His thriftiness which was supposed to benefit his retirement never materialized. Very sad. That's why at age 70, hopefully on the other side of the cancer thing (reversal surgery scheduled for next Monday) and no dependents, I want the last check I write to bounce like a rubber ball.</span>

 

<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">PS...Having lived here in the desert for almost 20 years, my old bones have acclimated to warmer temperatures. A week & 1/2 or so ago it was 100 degrees, about 30 above normal. Now it's in the 70's with lows in the 50's. I am freezing. My thermostats are both set at 76.</span>

 

[DADoES]

 
This model was in our 1964 house.  It was a two-stage electric heat-only system.  System-Auto, System-Cool, and Fan-On did nothing.  I doubt the 2nd-stage ever ran under normal cycling operating ... only if the temp setpoint was raised more than 2°F.

 

[thomasortega]

I have a basic honeywell? milivolt whatever crap... I hope this year Santa Klaus gives me an Ecobee with two remote sensors so I won't freeze to death and be able to control the furnace and the three portable heaters synchronized with Alexa, only to create a routine "Alexa, incinerate me"