Pissed off at th thermostat

Dec 23, 2003 53 Replies

You mean one that will never, ever fail?

I doubt it. Even an old style totally mechanical one which uses no power at all can fail.

The water pipes could if it got cold enough which in turn could have caused them to burst. But s*it happens!

What would happen if the fan motor on your furnace failed while you were away instead of the thermostat? Same thing.

JMO

Dan O.

I've had the same batteries in my 3 thermostats for 6 years with no problem. Pretty amazing when I think about it. I know they still work because usually once every year, the float gets stuck in the condensation pump on one of them and that causes the safety to cut power to the furnace and the thermostat goes on battery till I fix it (clean out the algae). I have 3 separate HVAC systems. Wouldn't screw around if I only had 1.

replacements on

In most states, homeowner's insurance is regulated and they would not get away with crap like that but perhaps in some state they can....

running. If you

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started

battery

Read your policy -- you may find surprises.

At a higher price? - yes.

It's not so bad to find someone who can look in - we are on good terms with our neighbours. For longer periods, we get someone to stay over - nieces or nephews do it to be on their own for a while. No party disasters so far.

I don't live in a state and I don't think any legislators have dictated the terms of the home insurance I have. YMMV

Mike

Not likely, since read it periodically and just finished reading it. I might be surprised by the way they interpret some phrases. Insurance is primarily for fire and other destruction of the house, theft, and liability. So lots of things are not covered. And, Yes, if you have broken pipes and water ruins the house from freezing, it isn't covered. If you get freezing damage and the house was heated, they will pay. But my policy makes no demands on how often you check on the house, or how long you are gone.

I was surprised by a friend who showed me that the tries >

Yeah ... and I've been trying to get my wife to buy the line that my not wanting to do the dishes and dust furniture is "an act of God," seeing that no other hetero guy in history has ever been predisposed to do such things. But she ain't biting.

But Lord forbid that there be some big spider on the ceiling that needs squishing or someone has to drag their ass up a ladder to scoop out all the squishy, mucky leaves and whirlygigs out of the gutters wice a year.

Sigh.

AJS.

A. How long was the original battery in? B. You could change the battery at the start of each heating season.

ANYTHING "could" fail without warning.

But your thermostat DID NOT.

In fact, it didn't "fail" at all. Neither did it give no warning.

Instead, it warned you that it had a low battery. How long were you planning on going on vacation for? If it was only 2 weeks or so, it probably would have still been saying "low battery" when you got back.

Do you get this hysterical about everything?

BTW, I note that your original post said something like you "had to" go on vacation. Interesting passive aggressiv phrasing. Like to make sure everybody knows you did nothing voluntarily, so therefore nothing could possibly your "fault"?

-v.

I'm sure that someone from the alt.hvac could respond to this, but I have been in over 300 houses as a buyer of distressed property and also as a property manager, and I have yet to see a thermostat with a 9v battery. The only "power stealing" electronic ones I have seen are the Honeywell Chronotherm III (and now IV) which cost upwards of $150.

That said, a decent set of batteries usually lasts me 2-3 years in the thermostats in my rentals.

JK

Turn off the water, gas, and electricity before you leave, doofus.

If you're going to shut off the heat, the pipes should be drained.

Here is a tire surprise. If you buy a Chrysler extended warranty..... say for 7 years. You can include a tire option. The tire option only covers original tires.

can....

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Install an old electromechanical (bimetallic strip) thermostat in hidden location, such as inside an interior closet, and wire it in PARALLEL with existing thermostat. Set it to 55 degrees.

Is there an assurance that water will drain from all nooks of pipes, etc?

No.

For example.

I have a refrigerator with water cooler. Will water drain from there? No.

The proposed solution will not work.

i

i like that suggestion...

i

Draining the pipes before shutting off the heat in northern climates is pretty standard. If there are some things in need of individual attention, deal with them.

Well, obviously, if I wanted to shut off the heat for an extended period of time, I would drain pipes and whatever else I could think of. My concern is, rather, that even with such effort, something would be left forgotten and then water would freeze there.

i

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