purchase advice on a living room thermostat

[abc]

should i go with ol' honeywell? which model, how do i shop?

 

[FoBoT]

got to home depot or lowes and buy one that does the stuff you want

 

[abc]

i did go to lowes... should i stay away from a certain model because it sucks or what.. there's a 70buck honey well ct3500? something like that...

 

[amdskip]

Do they even sell non digital anymore? Just get one with the features that you want.

 

[fredtam]

I just put an "Ace Hardware" digital in my living room for $27 bucks. Programmable enough for me (weekday/weekend schedules) and cheap. Honeywell is good just get the one with the features you need.

 

[Ornery]

Why not ask the guy who installed the HVAC? The guy who installed mine insisted on Robertshaw/Maple Chase, so that's what I got. He specifically dissed Honeywell, because so many were failing after only a few years.

 

[dirtboy]

Spend $100 and get the backlight touch screen one!!

 

I asked the guy who checked out my A/C unit last year which one he recommended. He said the only ones he'd put in his own house were Honeywell and Robertshaw. I installed a digital Honeywell (basic model - workweek, weekend, wake, leave, return, sleep programs) and it's been outstanding. I should have done it when I first moved in.

The only problem I had changing the thermostat was that when I took the old one off and began to install the new one, I discovered that the wires from the wall were about 1 inch too short to go onto the back of the new thermo.

The problem was solved with some little metal crushable tubes to extend the wires and a bit of electrical tape, and a trip to Ace Hardware 🙂.

Be prepared for a setback such as that one, but it's definitely a project that a beginner can do, and it'll save a TON of money.

 

[fredtam]

Originally posted by: Ornery
Why not ask the guy who installed the HVAC? The guy who installed mine insisted on Robertshaw/Maple Chase, so that's what I got. He specifically dissed Honeywell, because so many were failing after only a few years.

Robertshaw is good but I haven't seen a whole lot of problems out of Honeywell.

 

[Ornery]

This was two years ago, that I bought mine, so the Honeywells he was referring to were purchased about five years ago. These things change from year to year, so who knows what's best this season? He specifically mentioned the Honeywells were way too expensive for only a few years use. He was pretty disgusted by the situation.

 

[The Stigenator]

do they have two zone thermostats..


our ac is upstairs and it cools faster than below. Though our ac isnt dual zone, i was wondering if one could have a remote thermostat.. that can be set to shut of when the upstairs temp is reached or when the lower temp is reached (depending if we are sleeping upstairs or downstairs watching tv).

THe problem in the summer, it can get cold running it at night, or get too warm in teh winter, it would be nice if it would shut off when teh upstairs temp reaches.. and then we are downstiars, it looks at downstairs temp.. ofcourse upstairs has to be ignored because upstairs wil be 10-20F cooler than downstairs.

 

[Ornery]

That's the exact thing my HVAC guy does for a living. He does commercial air handling. He only moonlights installing furnaces and AC. He told me about installing thermostat controlled actuators for opening and closing ducts to different areas. He says you can do anything you want, but it involves time and money for devices not sold generally for residential use. I believe you need electrically operated dampers.

 

[Thegonagle]

Originally posted by: The_good_guy
do they have two zone thermostats..


our ac is upstairs and it cools faster than below. Though our ac isnt dual zone, i was wondering if one could have a remote thermostat.. that can be set to shut of when the upstairs temp is reached or when the lower temp is reached (depending if we are sleeping upstairs or downstairs watching tv).

THe problem in the summer, it can get cold running it at night, or get too warm in teh winter, it would be nice if it would shut off when teh upstairs temp reaches.. and then we are downstiars, it looks at downstairs temp.. ofcourse upstairs has to be ignored because upstairs wil be 10-20F cooler than downstairs.

A "dual-zone" T-stat like you describe would merely be a band-aid to the real problem, which is improper system set-up. You need to adjust the dampeners in the duct work to balance the airflow a little bit better. Unfortunately, it's not always easy to find them, and once you do, it's a long trial-and-error process. (Have you experimented with closing off individual vents upstairs as a temporary fix?)

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

Originally posted by: Thegonagle

Originally posted by: The_good_guy
do they have two zone thermostats..


our ac is upstairs and it cools faster than below. Though our ac isnt dual zone, i was wondering if one could have a remote thermostat.. that can be set to shut of when the upstairs temp is reached or when the lower temp is reached (depending if we are sleeping upstairs or downstairs watching tv).

THe problem in the summer, it can get cold running it at night, or get too warm in teh winter, it would be nice if it would shut off when teh upstairs temp reaches.. and then we are downstiars, it looks at downstairs temp.. ofcourse upstairs has to be ignored because upstairs wil be 10-20F cooler than downstairs.

A "dual-zone" T-stat like you describe would merely be a band-aid to the real problem, which is improper system set-up. You need to adjust the dampeners in the duct work to balance the airflow a little bit better. Unfortunately, it's not always easy to find them, and once you do, it's a long trial-and-error process. (Have you experimented with closing off individual vents upstairs as a temporary fix?)

my house is screwed up b/c they put the furnace in a corner of the basement, and the airflow can only be dampened so much. anyways, my next try will be to put the Tstat in the hallway instead of the dining room (near the garage and away from the bedrooms; well regulated heat in more important than AC)

 

[DaveJ]

Originally posted by: Ornery
Why not ask the guy who installed the HVAC? The guy who installed mine insisted on Robertshaw/Maple Chase, so that's what I got. He specifically dissed Honeywell, because so many were failing after only a few years.

I've got a Honeywell that's been going strong for the last 14 years, I can't imagine owning a house without a programmable thermostat now... 🙂

Dave