Furnace problem

[Mike B]

I'm having a problem with my heating system. I don't want to have to take a personal day to wait for a repairman to come. The problem is as follows. My heat doesn't turn off. I have it set for 68 but in the middle of the night it will shoot up to 78 and still be going strong. I turn the thermostat to "off" and wait for the furnace to turn off then turn it back to "heat" and most of the time it works for a few days. It might be coincidence but this has only happened at night. Is there anything I can try (as a non professional without the hardcore tools)? Do I need to provide you w/ more info? Pleases ket me knoe!

TIA

Mike B

[Eric Houkal]

[Dick Smyth]

I'm no expert but my guess is the problem is with the thermostat and not the furnace. Buy a new one --- they're not that expensive or difficult to install --- and see if it fixes the problem ds

[CBhvac]

And let me guess, you have a Hunter or Lux thermostat on the thing....or, you have replaced it with one of those over the counter Honeywells that Homey Depot carries and you didnt check the sub-base? If you cant get a company out there in the evenings, you are dealing with the wrong companies.

More info? Sure:

Do you have a heat pump oil, or gas, or even hydronic? Do you have a outdoor sensor? What brand and model and serial? Brand and age of thermostat?

I still think its a Hunter, Lux or other Chinese made thermostat on the unit now...since thats one of the #1 problems with those POS stats....

[Alexander Litvin]

What would be a good one then?

I'm just contemplating replacing our old Lux with something fancier. Where do I go?

[CBhvac]

Depends...do you have a heat pump, oil, gas, hydronics?????

A good stat, believe it or not, will not be cheap.

[Alexander Litvin]

Gas (and A/C), forced air.

Sure, I believe (though I don't know your definition for "cheap" in this case).

[Chris Hill]

If you have an electronic thermostat, it may be going south. We had one do this last year, but we didn't give it a second chance after it stuck on the first time. These are fairly simple to replace, just follow the instructions and don't take wires loose before you're sure of what you're doing; the labels on the terminals mean more than the wire colors.

[CBhvac]

Ok..I would look at the Honeywell line, CT8601.

Or the T8000 The 8601 is the Chronotherm line, and perhaps the best one out there. Figure around $190 for a real, honest to God one, and not the copycat that is offered at Home Depot and Lowes, as it it NOT the same stat. The consumer line is not the same at all as the contractor line. the T8000 line is a bit cheaper. Does not have all the bells and whistles and runs about $80, give or take...not installed.

There are a couple of other ones I like, but prices top out at about $200 for them. I have personally used both the Honeywells I listed, and they both do exactly what they should as they should and do it in a manner that can when set up correctly, actually save you money.

and yes...if you cant find one, let me know. We can and sometimes do sell em direct.

[Nate B]

"CBhvac"

You can buy these model #'s from various places on the net for about $100-125. Google.

If you can figure out which 86xx model you need without help, you're probably competent enough to put it in yourself.

- Nate

[CBhvac]

What sub-base genius? Better yet, tell ME where to get them since my supplier is charging about $185 for the complete setup...of course, there is also MORE THAN ONE model of 8601...DUH. What I would love to be able to do, is get Honeywell to drop the price on the fully automated one, with phone connection to under $500.. And yes...we sell those very often as well...(and no, never direct since you need a laptop to program the thing)

Agreed.

[Alexander Litvin]

Try, for example, here:

They don't have T8601, only 8600 and 8602, but as far as I understand from what I read on Honeywell site, the difference is only in power supply (8600 is "power stealing" from the existing wires, 8602 requires batteries, and 8601 needs external power supply).

[Nate B]

"Alexander Litvin"

What he said. I thought I paid less than 100 for mine, but maybe not...

Match single vs 2 stage, A/C, 24 V vs Battery vs 750mV, etc. and you're pretty much there.

Also - "MORE THAN ONE model of 8601", I'm pretty sure, will be of little to no concern to the average home owner. The differences in the suffex (8601T,

8601whatever) are in firmware and part revision (they'll all be the same everywhere over a particular period of time), packaging (bulk vs blister, whatever), included accessories (that you pay for...), etc. Pretty certain there is little to no difference in the base units otherwise. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Not too intersted in calling my thermostat over a phone line. Just me, though.

- Nate