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Here’s What You Need to Know about the Honeywell Lyric Thermostat

March 22, 2016 by itadmin

Those days when you used to argue with the rest of your family about the temperature in the house are over and done with. You don’t even have to get up off the couch or be at home anymore, because Honeywell have introduced their brand new super ‘smart’ line of thermostats, specifically designed for you to control via your smartphone. The Lyric thermostat is so smart that it will actually sense when you come home or when you leave and it will set the temperature in every room according to that. It’s a revolutionary product and here are all the details you need to know about it.

The Honeywell Lyric’s Design

The Lyric thermostat is a round device, with a white interface and chrome trimmings. It has a rather small round touch pad in the center that normally displays the temperature. On top of this brand new smart thermostat you will find a screen shaped like an arc, which is there to tell you if the Lyric is cooling or heating up. You also have a weather icon to the left which, upon touch, will tell you the local weather. On the right you have the ‘Away’ button, which will allow you to set your preferences for when you are not at home.

The way in which you can operate the device, meaning turning the temperature up or down is by gently turning its outer ring. As far as the design goes, the Lyric thermostat also comes equipped with a white plastic shield that you can use or not, if you wish to cover up any holes in the wall.

Installing Honeywell’s Lyric Thermostat

Fortunately for all home users out there, installing this super smart thermostat is actually very easy, thanks to the people over at Honeywell. First of all, you need to download the Lyric app on your smartphone, because you will receive all the instructions there.

Then you need to shut down the system’s power. After you’re done with that, mount the thermostat’s baseplate on to your desired wall, cable in all the required wires and then strap on the top half to the baseplate. This piece will complete the set up and hide all the wiring.

You can then connect to the Lyric thermostat through your phone, as long as you have Wi-Fi. While connected, you need to configure the device to the hot and cold temperatures your desire, tell it the type of system you have and let it know your location. Reviews report that, on average, installing a Honeywell Lyric thermostat takes somewhere between 20 to 25 minutes and it doesn’t require a pro to come in and do it for you. You can do it yourself. Make sure it’s well wired before you turn it on.

In order for the Lyric thermostat to work, it will need one lithium AAA battery, which you will need to change every year. Something that you need to know about the installation process is that, after you have put the battery in, you have to let the heating mode run for 5 minutes, then the cooling mode for another 5 minutes, so that the smart thermostat can determine what are your HVAC system’s power requirements.

The Lyric’s App

Reviews show that the app as well, just like the thermostat in itself, is very easy to use and will become your best friend when it comes to acclimatizing your house. When you open it, a small circle placed at the top of your screen will show you the exact temperature in your house, even if you are away from home. The background will be either blue, for when the thermostat is in cooling mode or amber for when it’s in heating mode.

Below this, your entire interface will show your event settings, which you can configure according to your preferences, like “I’m leaving”, during the day or “I’m going to sleep”, during the evening. You can even set the Lyric thermostat to go into Eco mode, for night time and you will find that this particular feature will save you a lot of money when it comes to your heat and electricity bills.

The app itself allows you to virtually control the device from anywhere you are, as long as you have a smartphone, a tablet, or an Apple watch. It has the Geofencing function that uses your location to control all your settings in an automatic way. For example, if you set it up correctly, the programmable Lyric via the Geofencing function will know to start heating up your home right before you come home so that you don’t walk into a freezing house.

Another great app that comes with the Lyric thermostat is the Fine Tune one, which will make slight changes in the inside temperature according to outside weather conditions. So, you really don’t have to worry about anything, just sit back and let the Lyric take care of everything.

It also has a Smart Cues alert which will notify you when your Lyric requires attention, like replacing one of its filters, its battery, or some service. You can use whatever Apple device you own and link it to the thermostat, even your Apple watch, and you can use Siri as well in order to give it commands. However, Siri requires you to install the Apple HomeKit first.

Apple’s HomeKit works like an intranet, which takes control of all your home products via its apps and enables them to interconnect. Privacy is a given with this Apple add-on, so you needn’t worry, because all your personal data is encrypted at all times. This means that when you program your lights to turn off or your thermostat to turn on, for example, the only people who will be aware of these changes and of your settings are the ones who are actually inside the house at that given moment.

As far as the app and programming goes, it will also send you signals or notifications when a person enters or leaves your house, but some users reported that it actually took a few weeks before this feature kicked-in properly and started notifying them about human transit through their house.

On the cons list, users also added one problem that Honeywell seems to be aware of and working on as we speak. The thermostat is not compatible, unfortunately, with every kind of wireless router. So, make sure that you check what kind of router you have before purchasing and installing the Lyric, at least until the mother company takes care of this issue.

Users have also found the Lyric to be a major update in the thermostat world from Honeywell’s older digital models, such as the DT90E, the DT92E, the Honeywell Electric TL8230a1003, the TH8110u1003, FocusPRO® 5000 Honeywell digital thermostat or the VisionPRO 8000. Therefore, when it comes to replacement, the Lyric is the way to go.

Key Elements to Be Aware of Before Installing

Here are some technical facts you need to know about the digital Lyric thermostat, so that you can make sure it’s completely compatible with your house.

As far as third party products go, the Lyric works with Apple devices, Samsung SmartThings, and the Apple HomeKit. Apart from that, even if you do have Apple products, you need to set them properly in order for them to work with the Lyric. You can find the instructions on Honeywell’s website.
The Lyric app works with Android as well, versions 4.2 and above, which means starting with Jelly Bean, but Apple is preferable. It’s not supported, however, by Blackberry or the Microsoft technology.

There are a number of third party apps that can hook into the Lyric and which you can use in order to make it work even better, but you need to check their website to see exactly what those apps are, what they do and how you can install them.
The Lyric Honeywell thermostat can also control your dehumidifier. If you don’t have one, it’s capable of dehumidifying your home via your air conditioner.
In order for all the Lyric’s apps to work you need to have Wi-Fi in your home at all times. If you don’t, the apps won’t work, but you can still use it as a basic thermostat and make the changes manually. Be aware that, in this case, the thermostat will be non-programmable remotely.
The Lyric comes equipped, right out of the box, with a wallplate, a trim ring which is optional, two screws that you will need for mounting, its wall anchors, and a Quick Start Guide that is basically a manual and which will show you how to install and use the thermostat.
If you have troubleshooting problems, you can visit Honeywell’s website, where you will find all the help you need.

The Honeywell Lyric thermostat retails for $279 and it’s one of the best smart thermostats out there. It offers a variety of apps that will truly make your life easier and definitely more comfortable.

Image Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Improving Your House with the Nest Thermostat

February 29, 2016 by itadmin

Thermostats have always been difficult to work with, as most people will, probably, tell you. They are usually hard to program, requiring the user to press an endless number of arrows for their preferred temperature selection. Once it was selected, for a specific period of time, absolutely no adjustments are possible without going through the entire process all over again and ruining the programming. However, all that changed when Nest labs introduced to the world their programmable thermostat. The Nest Thermostat quickly won everybody’s hearts as a tool that is simple to use and definitely an improvement when it’s considered vs. the old solutions.

The Nest Thermostat – How It All began

The first key selling point of this ultimate generation gadget is the fact that it’s not just a thermostat, but a device that was originally the brainchild of two Apple engineers, Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers. Therefore, when they got on board, in 2010, and decided that all the other thermostats on the market were inadequate, the outcome was bound to be good.

As expected, the gadget saw huge success and was later on, in 2014, purchased by Google, along with the entire Nest Company. In the same year, the Nest thermostat became available in Canada and European countries as well, such as Belgium, Ireland, France, the UK, and the Netherlands, making the device a world-wide trend.

Negative Commentaries and Parody towards Google

Not everybody was pleased, though, when Google decided to purchase Nest and continue manufacturing the Nest thermostat themselves. There were voices that actually accused the giant corporation of using the smart thermostat in its never ending campaign of personal data collection. There was a German activist group, called Peng Collective, which, in 2014, initiated a parody website called Google Nest, which they used as a satire against Google, “releasing” fake products that imitated the Google ones, such as Google Trust, Google Hug, Google Bee, and Google Bye. Needless to say, the very next day lawyers representing Google issued a cease-and-desist letter to Peng.

Nest Learning Thermostat’s Technical Features

Before you run out and buy the smart thermostat, there are certain features it has, regarding both hardware and software, which you must be aware of, seeing as it’s a smart device. Here they are.

Hardware details – as far as compatibility goes, the Nest thermostat does have a wide wireless compatibility network, comprising most standard HVAC systems which use central heating or cooling pumps. With regards to the thermostat controlling them, it uses standard connections.

The device has two main pieces of hardware: the display, which holds the circuit board and the rotating ring and the base, which contains the connection terminals, the bubble level, and the holes that one uses to anchor it to the wall. Neither one of these hardware pieces can function without the other, so it’s a good idea not to disassemble the device. Also, the Nest thermostat is coupled with a “Heat Link” piece that holds all the circuits needed to control the main voltage heating system. For people living in Europe, Nest sells a special edition of the thermostat there, which can control heating systems between 120 and 240 V.

Software details – The Nest thermostat is equipped with a piece of software that is mainly controlled by spinning and clicking the control wheel. This motion brings up option menus that allow you to switch from heating to cooling, to access the settings, their history, and the scheduling made. You can also control it with a touch screen. Apart from that, given that the gadget is linked to the Internet, the producers can use this path to introduce updates or additional features and fix bugs remotely. But, for that, the thermostat needs to be connected to your Wi-Fi network permanently and its battery has to have at least 3.7 V. This is the minimum power required so that the thermostat can download and install the necessary updates or any app it might require. And it has had quite a few so far. For the tech aficionados who really want to go in depth with their thermostat, you should know that it’s based on the Linux 2.6 37 version, which means it’s open to free updates.

As far as software goes, although not technical facts, but still good to know about, are the following features:

the thermostat’s amazing ability to learn. Users have delightedly reported that the appliance actually remembers your settings after you’ve done them a couple of times. So, let’s say that you wake up in the morning and go to the thermostat to crank up the heat, so that you warm up the house. After a few days of doing it, the Nest will remember your choice and do it for you.
the possibility of controlling it using your phone. Another great feature as far as software goes, you can actually change the temperature from your phone, as long as you’re in the house. It doesn’t even matter if it’s Android or iOS.
adding a PIN to the device so that you can lock down a certain temperature, in order for others not to be able to change it. This is great for making sure children don’t get around to toying with the device.

Nest Thermostat Installation

Before you will actually receive your own unit and start installing it, the people at Nest will advise you to use a compatibility widget you can find on their website. It’s actually a series of multiple questions you have to answer, in order to make sure your current heating system won’t experience any problems while you install the Nest.

After you’ve completed this step, as far as the actual manual installation goes, you can either install it yourself or call a professional for help, which the website will gladly assist you with as well. It will immediately locate those nearest to you and provide their contact details. But, if you want to install it on your own, you have to shut off power to the furnace and strip four wires (in average, because your mileage could vary), insert them in the holes in the base and then screw the base very tightly to the wall. Use the base’s level, which is built in, to make sure you got it on straight.

A great thing when it comes to installation is that, if you don’t have any tools around the house, you needn’t worry, as the Nest thermostat comes with a small, but very reliable screwdriver, which is worth its money.

The next steps are to plug it in and power it up, as far as hardware goes. For the software part, you need to setup your Nest account, which means entering your WiFi info and some details about your home, which your device will provide, if you don’t know them. After that, simply wait for it to learn your house’s particularities, which it will do in a matter of days.

Nest Thermostat Reviews

Being such a widespread device nowadays, as well as a real pioneer in its niche, the Nest has received many reviews in the past couple of years. You can find them in magazines or on dedicated websites, if you’re looking for a specialized opinion. If you’re more interested in actual user’s opinions, you can find commentaries and home-made reviews mostly on the sites that sell the gadget, such as Ebay, Home Depot, Lowes, Amazon, or the Nest site itself. Also, this is the place where you can buy the thermostat and work on your savings as well. As far as buying is concerned, the resellers have it up all year round, they provide discounts, allow you to use coupons, put them on sale in certain periods, and organize Black Friday.

If you were wondering how much money you need to spend, the price differs from store to store and it depends on the generation you want to buy. The Nest thermostat has had three generations so far, all with a different cost range: the 1^st generation appeared in 2011, it’s smaller and has a thicker profile, the 2^nd generation was launched in 2012, and the 3^rd generation in 2015. 2^nd and the 3^rd are superior to the first, as far as both hardware and software go.

According to most reviews online, here are the pros and cons of the Nest thermostat:

Pros:

it has a very industrial and modern design, which everybody loves;
it’s intuitive in usage and setup;
it’s user friendly, even to those who are not best friends with technology;
it has a very fast learning trajectory;
it comes with excellent software support.

Cons:

it requires constant power connection, as well as powerful batteries;
it needs to be connected to WiFi at all times;
it has less granular control than its main competitor, Honeywell Evohome;
it cannot control hot water.

All in all, the Nest thermostat is a much loved and widely used device around the world. It literally changed the game and improved the way in which we set up the temperature in our homes, making it a lot easier to control and allowing us to save money on heating.

Image Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4

Furnace Troubleshooting 101

November 18, 2015 by itadmin

We owe the comfortable temperature and air quality within our houses to HVAC equipment. They do all the heavy lifting in the winter to keep us warm, while keeping us cool during torrid months. But none of these systems are immortal. Their life span varies depending on their quality and level of maintenance they’ve been receiving. You can take small steps in order to take care of your appliances’ longevity. High quality filters will not only make sure the air you’re breathing is bacteria and dust free, it will also keep the motor of your system clean and gunk free.

Nothing is more expensive than replacing your whole HVAC unit. So make sure to clean out any leaves or grass that can obstruct your air conditioning pipes. Stick to the two feet clearance rule and don’t place anything that close around your outdoor appliances. Another thing that’s worth remembering is to regularly check the filters. Replace them when they start looking shabby, and don’t use them for longer than three months. You should also keep an eye out for the refrigerant lines and on the carbon monoxide detector battery that might need changing every now and then.

Furnace not working?

If you’re unpleasantly surprised one morning by your furnace which broke down, there are some steps you can take in order to avoid spending a couple hundred dollars on a plumber’s bill. Don’t be intimidated by that big appliance in your basement. Chances are you’ll be able to save the day by trying out these quick suggestions:

The first step is to check the thermostat and make sure it’s not wrongly set on “cool” but on “heat”. Turn the heat up to see if the furnace starts working. If nothing happens, take a look at the thermostat’s wires. Is anything broken? You might also want to consider replacing the battery, opening the thermostat for a gentle cleaning and ultimately resetting it.
Make sure your furnace is actually switched on. There should be a wall switch next to your furnace. Also make sure to look at the circuit breaker for any tripped fuses.
When’s the last time when you changed your filter? A clogged filter is one of the main causes why furnaces shut off. Because air isn’t able to pass through the ducts, the furnace breaks down. All you have to do is replace the filters regularly, following the instructions in the manual.
Is the gas on? If the gas valve was turned off, your furnace will do the same. Check to see if the handle is perpendicular to the gas pipe. This way, you’ll know what the issue was.
The exhaust flue attracts birds because it’s warm. You should check to see if it’s clear or clogged with debris from birds. You can dismantle the duct to clean it thoroughly, but make sure to put it all back together in the correct order.

How does a thermostat work?

Used to control heating or cooling settings, thermostats have been one of mankind’s worst enemies since time immemorial. The more buttons they have, the more complicated they seem to be. To understand how they work, you should first know there are two types of thermostats. Mechanical thermostats will use physical ways to determine the temperature of the air and turn on a switch which activates a heating or cooling system. For example, a bimetallic strip made out of copper and iron will expand according to the room temperature. When the strip will bend and touch the electrical contact, the heating will be turned on. Digital thermostats have electronic sensors which detect the temperature and adjust the system accordingly.

One of the most popular Emerson thermostat is the White Rogers. As one of the leads in the industry, the multinational corporation offers a wide range of thermostats, varying from wifi devices with touchscreens to the traditional 80 series. If you’re having a hard time with the White Rodgers thermostat troubleshooting, you’re not the only one. A few things you can do before calling up a professional is to check the power supply for tripped breakers. You should also toy around with the heat setting and listen up for a clicking sound. If you can’t hear it, try resetting the thermostat. You might also want to open the cover of your thermostat and check the wires – nothing should be broken or sticking out.

Heater not working?

If all of a sudden you’re left with no hot water, the first thing you have to check is the circuit breaker, where a fuse might’ve tripped. Check the gas line. Someone might’ve accidentally switched it off. If the handle is parallel to the gas line, it means you have to keep looking for the issue. Another common cause is the emergency shutoff button. You can turn it off without noticing, which in turn switches off your heater.

If that’s not the case, head over to the thermostat. Keep an eye out for loose wires, old batteries and try to reset the thermostat according to the manual. If resetting the thermostat doesn’t prove successful, make sure the chimney exhaust flute is not clogged with debris. The flue’s warmth attracts birds in the autumn which could be the reason why the pipe is clotted and you heater broke down. You should also check the drain lines. These can easily get clogged with mold or sediment. To clean it up you’ll need a mixture of three parts water and one part bleach. Exhaust vents shouldn’t be blocked by anything. Make sure they’re clear and not clogged with ice or screen mesh.

Image sources: 1, 2, 3.

All about Lyric Thermostat & the Other Top 4 Best Programmable Thermostats

March 29, 2015 by itadmin

Home automation is the latest trend and it makes perfect sense that it should be. After all, this is the year 2015, when online connections and Wi-Fi networks are readily available to most middle income earners. And since most such people are busy professionals, it is absolutely reasonable for them to want to come back home to a perfectly heated home. However, as is the case with most other electronic gadgets out there, sometimes the range of choices can get a bit overwhelming. This is why today’s post is a guide meant to help you sail through the options and decide which smart thermostat is the right one for you. We’ve ranked the best of the best below, based on temperature control, energy management, design, setup, and support.

1. Honeywell Lyric Thermostat [$229]

The Honeywell Lyric thermostat is probably your best bet, when it comes to finding the right programmable device. It’s averagely priced and comes with great customer support feature. In fact, Honeywell lives up to its name in this sense, since they’ve been acknowledged for this quality for quite a while now. It’s impeccably designed (another Honeywell staple), and does a great job at managing your home’s energy resources and controlling temperature. It supports up to three stages of heating and works well with most HVAC units available on the market at the moment. It also has a feature that determines the optimal temperature based on humidity and the weather outside. The only negative aspect to the Lyric Thermostat is that its app may prove a bit difficult to use, especially for those who are not exactly technology literate.

2. Nest Learning Thermostat [$249]

The Nest Learning Thermostat was actually one of the first products in its category to emerge on the market, as early as the end of 2011. Here was a product that combined home security with automation, all with environmental protection in mind. By far the most unique aspect about this thermostat, which actually comes with a higher price than the Lyric Thermostat, is that it will come to learn your preferences in time – hence its straightforward name. It’s well designed and comes with a great help and support team; there’s really just one snag to it, which detracts from its potential and has it pegged at number 2 on our list. It has a two year warranty, which is shorter than the industry average.

3. Ecobee3 [$249]

The Wi-Fi-ready Ecobee3 thermostat will give you a hint as to what its manufacturer’s priorities are. This is a company that is genuinely cares about protecting the environment and this is also easily noticeable from the design and features of its flagship programmable thermostat. The Ecobee3 comes with not 3, but 4 temperature control stages. It also has a remote sensor, which will allow you to better manage the energy expenditure of your home heating system. The central user interface has a slightly different design from that of most other products in the same category, but this is not to say that it is at all worse. It’s simply in a league of its own in this respect. The only problem with this otherwise great thermostat is that it does not provide geofencing support (i.e. changing the temperature in your home based on the location of your home).

4. Radio Thermostat CT-80 [$169.99]

Unlike the previous three entries on our list, this one comes from a less known brand. However, it performs so well in most respects that we just had to include it. With it, you have complete control over your home environment and the device is also Wi-Fi ready. It can also be programmed via the user-friendly interface and, although it comes with a lower number of thermostat sensors than the other contenders in this chart, it still provides great temperature control in three distinct stages. It also supports geofencing, which can be adjusted to best suit your needs. However, just like with the Nest Learning thermostat, there’s a problem in terms of warranties with this device. Its manufacturer only offers buyers a one year guarantee.

5. Ecobee Smart Si [$159.54]

Unlike the Lyric Thermostat from Honeywell and most of the other brands on our list, the Ecobee Smart Si comes with no light and motion sensors. In plain English, this means that the thermostat can only be used to adjust your heating and cooling system and does not, in fact, allow you to program other things in your house. Indeed, it does a very good job at this, by collecting data from your specific HVAC systems and adjusting its settings based on it. Also on the plus side, the Ecobee Smart Si thermostat has an awesome mobile app, which has been clearly designed with the consumer in mind. The app and the design of the thermostat’s user interface make this one of the friendliest and easiest to program thermostats out there.

Honeywell Lyric Thermostat

June 26, 2014 by HVAC Expert

Honeywell’s New Thermostat Lyric

By Betty Stephens

The Honeywell TH8732WF5018 Lyric thermostat allows you access to your thermostat from your phone while ensuring optimal comfort for you and your family. The Lyric by Honeywell thermostat comes with Geofencing technology which permits the thermostat to utilize the location of your smart phone to save energy and money while you are away and then provides comfort when you return. The geofencing technology has two settings that allows you to set a 500 ft. or 7 mile radius depending on your usage and travel plans. You can disable it if you need to. You may program the thermostat using the custom programming option on the smart phone. Fine Tune technology allows the Lyric thermostat to take humidity levels and temperature into consideration when satisfying the requested temperature listed on the thermostat.
Enabled with the Smart Cues technology your Honeywell TH8732WF5018 Lyric thermostat provides system updates directly to your smart phone. You are notified of air filter change reminders, upcoming maintenance, and any extreme changes in temperature that can harm your HVAC system. The Lyric thermostat by Honeywell it provides a visual indication of the mode of operation by changing the backlight color to Blue (Cooling), Red (Heating), and Green (Money Saving Mode). You can add a thermostat to every zone within the house and control them through the smart phone application. You can also control any thermostats that may be used in vacation homes, garages, or pool houses. The thermostat is easy to set up, it guides you through the set up process directly on the smart phone. No codes, just easy to understand directions allowing language choices of English, Spanish, or French. It is priced at about $270.00.

Compatibility Chart
The Lyric thermostat by Honeywell works with most heating, cooling, and heat pump systems. It does not currently operate baseboard heat. The product is compatible with the iPhone and Android phones. At this time it is not compatible with the Blackberry and Windows devices.
The Lyric is compatible with the following devices:
• Single Stage Heating & Cooling & Multistage Heating & Cooling
• Heating Only and Cooling Only
• Furnace (Warm Air)
• Central Air Conditioning
• Heat Pump with or without Auxiliary Heat
• Geothermal
• Hot Water
• Steam or Gravity
• Gas Fireplaces (24V)
• Humidifier, Dehumidifier, or Ventilator

Lowe’s Nest Learning Thermostat

October 20, 2013 by HVAC Expert

Lowes’ Nest Thermostat
By Betty Stephens

The Nest Learning Thermostat goes beyond this simple temperature detection to make a real impact in your HVAC energy consumption. A thermostat controls almost half one’s energy bill more than TVs, computers, appliances and lighting combined, but a lot of that energy is wasted. A properly programmed thermostat can cut your heating and cooling bills by 20%. The problem is 89% of thermostats are rarely or never programmed. Nest also makes it incredibly easy to adjust your schedule. You can add, edit or remove set points in seconds from the Nest thermostat or the web and mobile apps.

The Nest Learning Thermostat is simple. Nest works with its owners’ lives because Nest doesn’t need to be programmed: It remembers your temperature adjustments and programs itself. When you turn the temperature up or down, Nest remembers what you like and automatically creates a schedule for you. As your life or the weather changes, that schedule automatically adjusts as Nest learns your new preferences.

Features like Auto-Away and Airwave automatically save energy. The Nest thermostat tells you when you’re choosing an energy-efficient temperature or exactly how long it’ll take to reach the temperature you want. Most people can install it themselves in about 30 minutes.
Saves Energy
The Nest Thermostat saves energy by using the following tools:
Auto-Schedule: Turn it up when you’re cold, down when you’re hot. Nest will remember the temperatures you like and learn your schedule. And as your life changes, Nest’s schedule will automatically adapt.
Auto-Away: Nest senses when you’re gone and turns itself to an energy-saving temperature that you choose during setup.

Energy History and Energy Report: Nest shows you exactly when your system was on and what affects your bill the most.

Nest Leaf: The Nest Leaf appears when you turn Nest to an energy-saving temperature or make an efficient choice in Nest’s settings.

System Match: Nest uses SystemMatch to adapt to your system and activates features to maximize your comfort and savings.
Airwave: Airwave automatically turns off the air conditioner (A/C) a few minutes early, but keeps the fan running. The air stays cool, but you’re A/C runtime drops 30%.

Wi-Fi
You can connect the Nest thermostat to your home’s Wi-Fi network to control it from your iPhone, Android smartphone, iPad or computer. Software updates are loaded automatically as it stays connected to the Wi-Fi.
Who Is Behind the Nest Thermostat?
So, who is the brains behind Nest? Would you believe it’s the same brilliant mind behind the iPod and iPhone? Prior to 2008, Tony Fadell was a legend at Apple. Fadell is the father of the iPod, having led the Apple team that had developed the first 18 generations of the iPod and the first three generations of the iPhone.
After he retired in 2008, Fadell concentrated on building his new house in Lake Tahoe. It was during that time that Fadell, who owns more than 100 patents, had an innovative idea to improve the thermostat. He took that vision to his former colleague Matt Rogers, who was responsible for iPod software development. Seeing value in the idea, Rogers joined Fadell in nurturing it to fruition.

Texas House Bill 2294- Watch Out Contractors!

July 28, 2013 by HVAC Expert

New Thermostat Law – Pro and Con

By Betty Stephens

The Law

Burglar and fire alarm technology has evolved towards an integrated system model, whereby a consumer can use a burglar or fire alarm panel to adjust not only an alarm but also thermostats, lighting, locks, and window treatments. The thermostat component of this new technology has caused problems for burglar and fire alarm professionals in Texas because of the state’s current air conditioning and refrigeration licensing requirements.

The bill allows a licensed burglar or fire alarm professional to sell, design, or offer to sell or design integrated alarm products without obtaining an air conditioning and refrigeration contractor license, as long as the sale, design, or offer to sell or design does not include air conditioning and refrigeration installation work.
House Bill 2294, authored by State Rep. John Kuempel, Republican of Seguin, states that a person licensed or registered under the Occupations Code is not required to obtain an air conditioning and refrigeration contractor license to perform the very limited work of the installation, repair, replacement or modification of a thermostat or other temperature control devices.
Bill Supporters
The bill was supported by several large home security companies, including AT&T, ADT, and Comverge. This bill goes into effect September 1, once it is signed by the governor. Though ACCA Texas and others fought the legislation, it passed in both the House and Senate in late May and is currently awaiting Gov. Rick Perry’s signature.
The Problem as the HVAC Industry Sees It
The thermostat component of this new law created a challenge for various companies and professionals in Texas because of the state’s current air conditioning and refrigeration licensing requirements. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation has up to now required that anyone who installs or offers to install a thermostat must obtain an air conditioning and refrigeration contractor license.
The problem, defined by industry leaders, is that most of these alarm system installers don’t have the appropriate training or knowledge to properly install or replace a thermostat. They further state that this can lead to system inefficiency, HVAC equipment failure, and even fire hazards. There have been instances of fire damage in homes.

Dangerous to Customers
The biggest problem with the Texas legislation, Todd McAlister, executive director for ACCA Texas said, is that it puts consumers at risk. “This is bad for homeowners and this is not good for anybody,” he said. McAlister added that, should anything go wrong with the HVAC system because of the thermostat installation, an installer who is not HVAC certified may not notice right away, and if they do, they would be required to call in an HVAC technician to take care of it, anyway. “You would think that logic would win over, and if a telecom company wants to be in this industry, then they should go get an HVAC license so there’s at least some credibility in what they’re doing,” he said. “There are a number of companies that install thermostats that coordinate with the home security system package,” he said. “The alarm industry is sort of moving from putting in home alarms and building alarms to services that would encroach on energy use of the home.”

HB 2294
Thermostat installations have required a license in Texas since 1983. HVAC Contractor License Requirements are as follows:
• Licensing exam
• Annual criminal background check
• Annual continuing education
• Liability insurance
• Registered or certified technicians who also pass background check before entering a customer’s home.

HB 2294 reverses long-standing and sensible protections:

1. It allows ANYONE to replace a thermostat without a license and without a criminal background check.

2. An unlicensed fire alarm company improperly installed its home automation
thermostat in Longview, TX in April, 2013 causing a fire.

3. Installation of a third party thermostat renders the HVAC system manufacture’s
warranty voidable, even for future system failure.

4. Any work performed by an unlicensed contractor or technician also voids the
manufacturer’s warranty.
AT&T Pro the Law Responds
This bill was filed at the request of AT & T when they did not succeed in being exempted from SB 407.
Rossanna Salazar, spokesperson for AT&T Texas, said her company’s alarm system installers are more than capable of properly installing thermostats as part of AT&T’s new Digital Life wireless home management security system.
“Our authorized digital life technicians are licensed as Texas alarm system installers and must pass a state of Texas background check as a condition of receiving their license,” she said. Salazar said opponents of the legislation “have made many claims that have confused the policy debate,” especially when it comes to the manufacturer’s warranty on HVAC equipment.
The issue of licensing has nothing to do with the warranty issue. Just because a home owner or anyone installs a new thermostat does not mean that they will lose or even jeopardize the full warranty on their system. If there is something wrong with the indoor air handler or the outside compressor, it will still be under warranty.”
Salazar added that some manufacturers will not cover damage caused by a third-party component, including an after-market thermostat, regardless of who installed it. “If a person’s air conditioning system is under warranty, he or she should check to be sure that any new thermostat is compatible with that system,” she said.
Other Proponents
Some proponents of the bill think this law will help Texas modernize its licensing system to the benefit of consumers, giving them the advantages of smart home technology.
Now that Smart home technology has evolved several companies offer products that allow a consumer to use one panel and wireless technology to adjust a range of functions, like their burglar and fire alarms, thermostats, lighting, locks, and electrical outlet.