How to test a wall thermostat to see if it's actually working?

Hmmm, Now you are leading him to another disaster programming new 'stst?, LOL! Simple mind learns better and quick I observed it all the time during my days as voluteer instructor for apprenticeship board. I used to teach would be journeyman mechanics electric/electronic basics.

Hmmm, I wonder if you were anything like my Iranian instructor... :-)

Was he teaching you? What was he teaching?

$50 bucks or so would do it. I would recommend my model, but it is discontinued.

Checking around gives you primarily Honeywell. Hmmm, their high end stuff is good, but...$$$

I have never used their cheapostats.

I could offer you a good deal on my spare Honeywell, but I don't think you need multi-zones/damper controls. :-)

I would wager that all of the knocking and stuff was not necessary.

T-stat, reset all limits, and replace access cover. You really do need to ask "first". :-)

Though, doing a once over every year is a good thing. Now, you have some experience.

Yes. Electronic repair. That was eons ago (for me), back in high-school.

Good ol' Ali Heshmati. I ran into him a few times after I graduated, and all he did was complain about his wife. :-)

Most electronic replacement thermostats are very versatile and will operate on most systems except for the oddball proprietary systems. You can get a programmable thermostat at any of the big box stores that operate on either batteries or the 24vac from the furnace. If you like, get a cheap one and experiment with it. ^_^

Programmable thermostats usually have automatic setback and run based on time of day. I would recommend you do some reading and choose one with a program you can easily understand. ^_^

I know guys who've installed them in a closet and left the old one on the wall. My roommate wouldn't quit screwing with the thermostat on the small window unit we have in the living room so I jumpered the connections to the darn thing the last time we removed t from the window for cleaning and repair. I couldn't get him to understand that the little unit would not cool the house like the central AC system and that the little unit would work as a dehumidifier if it was left on with the compressor running. With the compressor off, it was just a noise maker. Some folks are hard headed. ^_^

TDD

Hey, let the kid learn by doing. A famous man said something to the effect, "Experience is a fool's best teacher." I'm a fool because I learned by burning up a lot of equipment. ^_^

TDD

Well, I *did* ask, once I saw what the thermostat looked like unscrewed! :)

I think, for me, this was the biggest bonus. For you guys, somehow, inherently, you knew the red goes to the white, but, to me, I didn't know that.

Also, I didn't know about the limit switch, fuse, countdown timer, etc., and I didn't realize there was even a 120V plug in the wall for the heater.

Plus, I didn't really know how the thermostat worked (we almost never need heat or A/C where I live anyway).

So, for me, it was a tremendous learning experience. Now, when I look at the heater with the doors off, all the parts at least make sense.

That's a good point that I never thought of before. And now that I think about it, you would think they would just have put the delay into the HVAC eqpt to begin with. I guess the other side of the argument is that if it was so bad for the compressors, you would think a lot of them would have failed in the days of old. I wonder what they actually did? Did they manage to start anyway or did they have an overload that kicked out and recycled like refrigerators had?

Hi, My guess is in old days equipment was more crude and pressure in the system was not as high as now. Many programmable 'stats have settings regarding this in their service mode menu. Also they have AI logic as well. That is why set up menu first asks what kinda system it is connected to. Electrical, NG, forced air, heap pump, how many stages, etc. Need to answer all this to run the system properly.

One of my store is in a new LEED spec. building. They installed fancy high efficiency roof top unit by Lennox. The guy who installed it was having difficulty setting up the 'stat to match the system saying first time he installed this type system. I told him don't worry. I set it up and programmed set back times for heating/cooling every day of the week. Honeywell made ;stat has some unique features added to it for Lennox.

On 12/14/2013 8:55 AM, snipped-for-privacy@optonline.net wrote:

The contractor grade HVAC systems are made as cheaply as possible and often lack all the bells and whistles of the more expensive units. I've added anti short cycle timers, surge arresters, low pressure switches and high pressure manual reset switches. The low pressure switch cuts the control circuit power if the freon leaks out to protect the compressor and the high pressure switch cuts control voltage if the high side pressure goes too high like when the condenser fan fails or if the condenser coil becomes obstructed because it's clogged with dirt, animal hair or trash that gets sucked up against it. The expensive units usually have everything except the surge arresters which I add to the AC systems in rural areas because they are more likely to get power surges. The AC system compressors have an internal automatic overload which pops if the the compressor gets too hot or draws too much current because of a locked rotor due to high pressure from the compressor being stopped or slammed on and off by power blinks or someone playing with the thermostat. With the anti short cycle timer, the system won't cut on and off with power blinks or thermostat fiddling because every time the control voltages goes off, the timer keeps the contactor from pulling in until 3 to 5 minutes pass. I use the adjustable timers but potted preset timer modules are also available with a 5 minute delay. On all of the commercial AC condensers, I will also add a fan cycle control because the AC systems are often run in the middle of winter. When the high side pressure drops too low, the system will not operate properly because there is no proper pressure differential. The fan control will not turn on the condenser fan until the high side comes up to a proper pressure. You will see the condenser fan turn on and off as the high side pressure goes up and down. In very cold weather and a slight breeze, the compressor is happy without the condenser fan ever coming on. ^_^

TDD

It's certainly not cheap, but I have a Nest (need another one). The instructions (online) are very good and if you need help, they're very responsive.

On 12/13/2013 11:12 PM, The Daring Dufas wrote: You could install a thermostat inside the return air duct but

Best advice I've heard in years. I remember Earl Proulx (the Yankee Handyman) did that. I read in his book, a couple decades ago. I've long since misplaced the book. He put the working Tstat behind the sofa on the baseboard.

When my sister and her boyfriend lived in a house, we discussed run a second Tstat wire. The guy next door had the stat, and he'd turn it way down before going to work. They asked him many times not to do that, but to no avail.

I had never heard of "Nest"; but their stuff looks neat!

Yep! I bought mine when after we left our other house. It was empty all last Winter so wanted to keep tabs on the house. We left the Internet connected so I could monitor the house temperature and bump up on the really cold[*] nights.

After using one, the thing that sold me on the Nest was the ability to control the second-stage heat. Since no one was living there, I didn't care about recovery time so turned off the second stage unless it took more than two hours to recover. If it's that cold, the second stage was needed. This control (and WiFi remote) completely sold me on the Nest. However, I haven't sprung for the second one for the main floor, here.

When I first got out of college we sublet the bottom floor of an old house from the people living upstairs. They were paying the heat bills but the t'stat was downstairs in our apartment. They didn't like the heating bills but it was on *old* house.

Wow. It learns. You just use it like you do the regular thermostat, and, it learns what to do.

It seems too good to be true.