Home Thermostat recommendation?

[MikeF]

We have a programmable Hunter brand thermostat that was installed by me after the last remodel, about 15 years ago. It was chosen at the time as being one of the few programmable set-back units (4 daily programmable settings) with auto-season changeover that was available at the local Home Depot.

Lately, it's starting to not remember the programming (batteries are fresh) -- like it's supposed to come on to 68F at 8 AM, but it stays at the overnight setting of 63F. And if you adjust it manually to be 68F (and even if the house is 65F) it doesn't come on (like it used to after a few seconds, now it takes a long time). And with it being around 40F overnight here in Southern California, we're freezing our buns off...

Recommendations for new makes and models? After 15 years, I figure we've gotten our money out of it (it was maybe ~$60 back then)...

It's a heat/AC combination system, no heat pump.

[Racer X]

Honeywell is a great brand. I like mine, and has been going strong for about 5 years. batteries good for well over a year. 2AA maybe?

[AlphaDog]

Another vote for Honeywell. I got this one about seven years ago at Lowe's, although I don't have AC, so there's no provision for seasonal adjustments. If I remember right, my employer put Honeywells in all the buildings with heat pumps or central AC.

[Mac1337]

Mike,

Precisely for the reasons you stated I gave up on programables. Too complicated even when they work and too hard to read. Now I have one with an up arrow and a down arrow. Before leaving house I dial down and then back up when I come back. I am also not so sure of any savings by making the furnace work longer to raise the temp as opposed to keeping it at a steady but moderate temp.

[deckeda]

Two biggest names today in aftermarket T-stats are probably Honeywell and White-Rogers. Carrier also sells a line that doesn't need to be used with their units and looks darn slick.

[Black Landlord]

I've been using one of these at home for about 5 years, and just installed a second in a tenant's apartment:
http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com/(cn3zyg...=905460037
(The image shows the flap open-- only need to get in there once or twice a year- looks clean with it closed).

I set it to kick up some heat for a few hours M-F in the before-work space, and otherwise simply to kick down to 45º 3 other times a day-- apart from weekday mornings it's basically "on demand" with an effective "off" timer should one forget to turn it down before leaving.

[GGD]

Make sure that the replacement is at least the same size as the old one.

http://forums.macresource.com/read.php?1...msg-611945

[Black Landlord]

GGD wrote:
Make sure that the replacement is at least the same size as the old one.

http://forums.macresource.com/read.php?1...msg-611945

I got amazingly lucky replacing the tenant's crusty old thermostat with the one I linked above. Not only was it the same size, but the screw holes even lined up. It almost made up for all the past little jobs that turned into nightmares.

[davester]

I used to have a top of the line Honeywell that was really nice, but a few years ago we put in radiant hydronic heating with four zones, so I bought three quite inexpensive Climate Technology thermostats and kept the existing Lux 9000 thermostats. All of them perform well so I'd say it doesn't matter too much. They also have A/C mode which we don't use. I also like that the Climate Technologys have Indiglo lights when you press any button. One decision you have to make is if you want a thermostat that has weekly+weekend scheduling, or individual daily schedules. I find the individual schedules to be a PITA when you need to change them.

Dakota, I can assure you that it is well proven that for most homes setting back the thermostat saves a significant amount of money and energy.

[Lee3]

I have a Ritetemp from Home Depot. It has worked well for 5 years. The reason I bought it is because you can adjust the "swing". This means I can tell it to go 1 degree over or under the set temp. I set the temp at 67, the heater wont come on until the temp goes below 66 and turns off just above 68. I think this saves wear and tear on the heating and cooling system as it doesn't go on and off as much. I don't notice the swing in temperature.