Why did you change your stat?

[Rotech]

Hey guys, I am going to take the plung in getting a stat installed in my setup and I just wanted to known what u all doing with your stat? Like what advanages ave you gaining having a automated one verse the one you previouly had?

Are you saving money on your bills? Your conveniences? Your cons?

Thanks in advance

[RBergquist]

I went with Z-wave to automatically set the temperature - kids/others forgot to set temperature down when leaving house - now it happens automatically when the house gets alarmed.

Also allows for remote control of vacation house - wife loves it that temperature can be set from iPhone via HSTouch and turned on remotely - house is warm when she arrives.

I know the temps are set correctly now, but I haven't measured it for savings.

[regm]

I'm in a similar situation as you Hector. I've thought about adding a thermostat to my HomeSeer configuration for a few years. My setup is 100% X10 and works great. I wasn't comfortable adding one of the X 10 thermostats because of the controller that connects at the HVAC system. The Z wave thermostat installation is easy, but I don't want the cost of adding a controller for another protocol, plus the Z wave devices are more expensive. I started following reidfo's development of the plugin for the 3M-50 WiFi thermostat which seems like a good fit for my situation. I already have a wireless router so there is no added expense other than the cost of the thermostat and plugin.

As for how I want to use it... I've added an "Away" button on my KeypadLinc switches. I want the "Away" button to adjust the lights when we leave the house as well as adjust the thermostat setting. I also want the ability to set more automatic temperature changes throughout the day. Controlling the thermostat remotely via HomeSeer could be handy at times. And lastly, because it sounds like a fun project. I've completed most of the items on my wife's honey-do list, so I need something to do.

[sonypoolplr]

Regm, adding the x10 thermostat to your system wouldn't be that hard if you have two available outlets close to your heating system. You need two because of the power and the powerline (x10) plugs. As for connecting it to the heater, you would just need a length of either 4 or 7 wire that you can run from the heater to the control box. The existing thermostat wire goes into the control box. Anyway, I had the x10 unit and I liked the fact that HS knew right away about any changes from the thermostat, with the zwve unit, I have to poll it. But I was having more and more problems getting the x10 to work reliably, and I was slowly changing my whole house to zwave, which I now like. I also adjust the setpoint based on leaving the house, going to bed, opening doors or windows, etc. It is also nice to be able to turn the heat on when we are away and have the house warm when we get home.

[Rotech]

Hey guys thks for your feed back. What r your criteria when you setback your stat when leaving home (Away)? How far back you set it up? When you return home will it return to its normal routine (HS control )?

I see that some of you have a protocol when a door or window is opened and closed, what do you do when this happens?

[drozwood90]

I bought and installed 2. One is my "floater" that is just on a 24VAC wall wart. The other controls my furnace.

I MOSTLY use them JUST for feedback, reading the temp in the house. Since I bought the cheapest model out there (WDT-20), they have MANUAL setback modes. I.e. they do not know what time it is, so I have to manually set them back/forward. So, I just use the Z-Wave to do that for me.

Besides mostly monitoring and performing the actual once daily setback and once daily set forward, I do not use it for anything special.

I also have a vacation mode, where the furnace is essentially disabled (AC) when we are away for longer than a day. However, this is set manually in HSTouch.

Until I can properly feed in the RIGHT information reliably, I do not want the furnace being setback/forward automatically. If it sets back and then forward too quickly it will actually COST you $$. It also depends on the temperature difference inside and outside as to how much a setback would help.

--Dan

[Steve Q]

I use my z-wave t-stat to set back the temperature by 10 degrees in the winter whenever we leave the house. Homeseer does this automatically based on the the status of the car RFID tags. I have a lot of data collected over the years that shows significant gas savings occur by setting back the t-stat by 10 degrees. I also sometimes call ahead to have Homeseer turn off the setback before we get home so the house is warm by the time we get home. My furnace rewarms the house fairly quickly.

I will use this same approach in the summer to setback the AC.

Steve Q

[reidfo]

I'm setting my events up now, so I don't have any cost/usage data, but I expect to save some money on cooling. One of the events uses a DS10a sensor on the master bedroom door so that the room is not cooled when that door is open (the cold air just dumps into the rest of the house causing the AC to run more than it should). I'm also planning on integrating a DSC alarm, so if doors or windows are open for an extended period the AC won't run.

[sonypoolplr]

I have the Elk alarm with the plugin into HS and I have the door and windows with sensors, so if say the front door is open for more than say 10 minutes then yurn off the heat/AC. Also, I usually set the heat or AC back about 10 degrees.

[pbibm]

I really need to do something with this door/window/Thermostat functionality. We have long springs and falls where the doors / windows get opened without follow up on both thermostats. Knowing the forecast and the trend of outside temperature will even help anticipate the need to shut the stats off. (I already turn the AC cooler/on based on a threshold temp in the attic so it gets a "running start" when the days heat up.)

I also have a 30" gable fan with louvers over the stair case. The fan speeds are automated, but also I want "Rube Goldberg" a solution for the louvers with a shade controller or something.

I think a couple window / door sensors are on my list for later this spring.

[Olbrit]

I've had a wired RCS TZ43 Z-Wave thermostat in my vacation home since August 2009 and it's been working great. I see the Forum has different views about whether thermostats should have schedules to run themselves, or whether HS should control them and I understand both sides of the discussion, but I fall into the latter category and have the TZ43 panel on hold and control it entirely from HS. For me it's absolutely been a money saver and I've been able to reduce my air conditioning use to a minimum when I'm away - I just enter my flight arrival and departure days/times weeks in advance and HS handles the rest. I use Events to control all temperature schedules and also use the HVAC for dehumidification cycles when the temperature is below the HS away setpoint (86 degrees). I get further savings when there by having set backs of a couple of degrees apply overnight. I poll every 6 minutes and find that's fine for my needs. I really like Jon00's graphing utility and run a continuous 32 hour graph for the HVAC temperature readings, on/off cycles and 6 temp/humid sensors scattered around the home and outside. I have a wholehouse dehumidier being installed soon that has a controlled fresh air inlet and so I'm looking forward to amending my Events to monitor that and also to control fresh air introduction according to temp/humid comparisons inside and outside that I expect will help reduce my HVAC and Dehumidifier usage even more - why pay for conditioned air when Mother Nature has already provided it! This thermostat is by far my best investment in HA.

[Steve Q]

I have thought about using my door/window sensors as conditions for controlling the AC but I don't have sensors on all the windows (no need to have them on the second story) and these are the windows that are most frequently opened. So instead, I use the outside temperature as a condition for the AC and the attic fan. If the outside temperature is below the setpoint and the outside humidity is <60% then Homeseer turns off the AC and turns ON the furnace fan. This approach seems to work fairly well but I don't have much experience with it yet.

Steve Q

[reidfo]

Olbrit, I'd be interested in knowing which dehumidifier you're installing and what you use to enter your flight times.

[drozwood90]

I have thought about using my door/window sensors as conditions for controlling the AC but I don't have sensors on all the windows (no need to have them on the second story) and these are the windows that are most frequently opened. So instead, I use the outside temperature as a condition for the AC and the attic fan. If the outside temperature is below the setpoint and the outside humidity is <60% then Homeseer turns off the AC and turns ON the furnace fan. This approach seems to work fairly well but I don't have much experience with it yet.

Steve Q

Steve, what do you use to read the outside temperature?

[Rotech]

I have DCS alarm panel connected thru BLDCS plug, so HS know the status of all doors. And windows this gives me more control when I install the stat. I need to undertand the relativity between humidity and temputre so that I can setup events according To outside temperature.