Do most of the Wifi thermometers (NOT thermostats) have the ability to access them from WAY for away. I am looking for a (relatively) cheap way to keep tabs on the temp in my house while I am traveling. Can't tell from just the descriptions on Amazon if they work like that and whether I need to have a computer handy or if they can be accessed directly from the router/modem.
Get one which uses an app for your smartphone, um, that is, if you use a smartphone, otherwise, you will need a computer. I do believe most, if not all, do use apps, but double check the one you purchase. The name brands will have apps.
I have a Lennox furnace/ac system which came with it's own touch screen wifi thermostat/thermometer. I am able to control the temp and program from ANYWHERE I can get connection.
Sure, just open a port on your router and use RDP or VPN to gain access to your home network. If it is visible on your computer, then you can make it visible to yourself as a remote client.
Jon
Take a look at this one
"Use a smartphone, tablet or computer to receive alerts and remotely monitor temperature and humidity levels"
Thanks. I'll check into it.
Hi, That is through the Internet. WiFi is connected to your router.
No, it's connected via WiFi. The same as my garage door opener and some lighting in my house. Technically, WiFi uses the internet to gain remote access but it's still WiFi. All WiFi can be accessed by anyone if they know the code/password via the internet.
Not so. The code/password/key/etc. authenticates the WiFi device to the access point (AP), often part of the router, but not necessarily. The internet side of the access point is reached by an IP address, which has no password. There may be, however, something else BETWEEN the AP and the internet that restricts access in some other way. Usually, this is the router and most home routers don't allow anything outside to initiate a connection.
But all can still be accessed via internet if the capability arises.
No. IF the router doesn't block the access (as most DO) and IF the device is capable of responding to such attempts, only then can you access the device from outside the LAN.
Hi, Between thermostat and router is not a problem. Accessing the info on temp. and humidity from any where in the world. Ideally best to have a domain own name registered via DDNS. I can even see my house inside out thru surveillance cameras from any where. When looking for one make sure supplier [rovide DDNS for your use. c
Your router has been changed from the default to allow these connections to be initiated from the outside. That's a bit different from the blanket statement that your "WiFi" can be accessed from the internet anytime.
Hopefully, you have also had installed appropriate security to keep out the
Hi, Of course, my router is enterprise class UTM router. Do you have your own Domain name? WiFi connection only between thermostat or cameras and router.
I installed a Nest thermostat a few months ago. Its app allows me to monitor and adjust the furnace and set scheduling from anywhere. Installation was fairly painless but you MAY need atleast a three-conductor thermostat cable depending on the brand you buy. The Nest thermostat is a computer so it needs two power wires, and then the extra heat wire going back to the furnace. My old thermostat was a typical old school two-wire mercury switch type so I had to run a new
3 conductor cable through a couple walls.Something you may not have even thought about are the extra possibilities that a modern thermostat might give you such as monitoring energy and /or gas consumption. I had heard that Nest supposedly provided some daily data but I quickly found they DO NOT currently give you detailed start and runtime data. The bloody thermostat sends this data to Nest and all they give out is a monthly email telling me how many stupid green leafs I've earned. There is a daily bargraph showing approximate start times (but no runtime), and a daily total to the nearest quarter-hour.Inaccurate data is useless data to me.
To interface my furnace to my existing smarthome system I ended up installing a relay on the gas valve to signal to the smarthome stuff that the furnace is on or off. I get an email now from my furnace on each event! I'm able to enter this into a spreadsheet which gives me total daily runtime and other nerdy stuff that most people probably aren't interested in.
Sooooo, shop around and see which ones come with a phone app and then do some further reading to find out what other features it may offer you. The Nest thermostat has many advanced features, most of which I've turned off, and it's very pricey. You will have to balance the options against what you're willing to shell out.
Keep us informed.
Hi, Does Nest have emergency fall back setting? Like when RTA temp. on your furnace is falling below dangerous freezing point for some malfunction, can it fall back to safe temp setting automatically? In another word, does it have RTA temp sensor signal into the 'stat? My Honeywell WiFi 'stat has that as an option and it was a matter of drilling little hole on the RTA plenum and install sensor and run a wire to the interface control module.
Measuring stuff is as good a hobby as any. I'm sure you can come up with situations where it might be important to monitor remotely in real time.
But for most of us, it's just a potentially expensive hobby.
IMHO, the only reason to have data is if you're gonna use it to make tomorrow better by changing something.
Most of us live uneventful/predictable lives. What happens today is gonna be very much like what happened yesterday. On average, our existence is average.
You probably have dials on your gas meter and your electric meter that you can watch go around. If you've done the math and have installed the cost-effective weatherization, what more can you do?
You don't need real-time monitoring to know that taking shorter and colder showers costs less money. You don't need real-time monitoring to know that turning down the thermostat saves heating $$$.
So, use less to the greatest extent you can stand. Not much more to be done.
I programmed a PALM Pilot to watch the flashing light on the smart electric utility meter. I can see a graph of usage history. It was fun for about a week to watch the water heater go on and off. And see every time I ran the microwave to heat up coffee. But it hasn't changed my coffee habits one bit. Twice, when I bothered to look at the readout, I went searching for unintended power use and found the attic lights on. Saved me nowhere near the cost of the monitoring system.
I programmed another PALM to monitor the furnace fan. I can graph gas usage (the translation from fan to gas is straightforward math) in real time. Once, I could tell that the furnace was malfunctioning, but only after I felt cold and went to check.
One interesting thing I found was that the thermal time constant of the house was very long. Temperature setback for a few hours at a time saved almost nothing. Took damn near as many BTU's to reheat the house as were saved by the setback. YMMV if everybody in the house stays away for long periods of time.
Bottom line is that people should reduce ALL their energy usage to the minimum they can tolerate. If checking the consumption of the fridge causes you to buy a new fridge...it did for me...then do it. Further monitoring is not helpful.
Most of us already have all the monitoring tools we need sitting right outside the house on the utility meters.
Don't monitor anything if the result won't change the future.
But it can be a fun hobby...till you get bored and move on.
Hmmm, Of course. Also my router is enterprise class
On 11-10-2013 15:40, Tony Hwang wrote: > Of course, my router is enterprise class UTM router. Do you have your
Apparently you understand something about routers and WiFi. So why do you take exception to my trying to educate someone who doesn't?
OK, I can see that a thermostat that allows me to monitor the temperature in my house from anywhere in the world will save me a few sleepless nights not knowing if I'm going to come home to a frozen house because the furnace died while I was away. Ditto if I had hot water heat and the house froze because the circulating pump stopped circulating.
But, what on this Good Earth would anyone use an internet ready thermostat for besides that?
That is, once you find out that the temperature in your house is 75 degrees F, so that you're confident that nothing is wrong, what more would you do with an internet ready thermostat?
I just never had anything like that, and I expect the reason I never took interest in it was that I could never see the point in it.
I think I found a cheaper solution to my desire to monitor temperature. I have an older MacBook with a cracked screen but functioning camera. I think I'll just set it up with a program that lets it function as an always-on security program and point the camera at the thermometer on the thermostat.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.