programable thermostat question

[gabagoo]

I have a programmable thermostat for my back shop and have it timed to lick down to 60 degrees at 5pm and then back to 68 at 8 am... Came in this morning early (7:30) and the heat is on and running at 68. I went through all the programming and everything looks fine. It has a secondary time that can be set for leaving and coming back and I set it but leave the temp at 60 as well so basically it should only be running at 68 from 8 am till 5pm

I then changed the turn on time to 9 am and turned the system off and then back to auto, and the heater started up again. What the heck? It is making sense why my last gas bill was rather high. Any ideas on how to fix this? it is a Honeywell thermostat

 

[phototec]

Mine does this two, I forget what it's called, but it is a function built-in the program, to turn on the heat way before you need it so that it will actually be 68° by 8:00am.

You see the system can't just start up at 8:00am and be at 68°, it takes a while to get there, so the thermostat has a internal program to figure out what the current tem is and then it knows how far in advance to come on so it will be at 68° at 8:00AM.

I know what you are thinking, I thought the same this, I don't want mine to start until 8:00am, but I can't override the internal setting that makes it com eon early. The colder it is in the shop over night, the sooner the system will com e on because it takes it a good while to get to the 68°.

Anyway that's what it is doing, I just forgot what it is called.....

 

[TonyC]

Smart Response...

Phototec is correct. Your thermostat has a feature called "Smart Response." It will learn how long it takes to raise the temperature from the set-back point to the desired set point for comfort. The thermostat will start raising the temperature at an earlier time so you comfort set point will be reached by the time you have set.

There should be a way to turn off that feature. It will be in the programming or sometimes features can be turned on/off with dip switches located on the back of the thermostat. For the programming or dip switch settings you should be able to google the model number and find owners/installer's manual.

I was in the HVAC biz for 25 years. I much prefer signs.

 

[Mr. Sign Pro]

You should just get one of these! https://nest.com/ca/thermostat/life-with-nest-thermostat/

I have one at home and it's the smartest feature in the whole house. Get the app on your phone and just bump it up on your way home. (or when you know someone is home and you feel like messing with them:ROFLMAO

It also has a motion sensor so it knows when you walk in the door and the "auto away" turns off and it goes back to normal. It also learns your habits and adjusts accordingly based on what you set your max high/low temperatures at. You can drag around the settings on your smartphone and adjust hour by hour what temperature it is throughout the day/night.

I know it doesn't answer your question and I sound like a Nest salesman but it's honestly the coolest tech "toy" I've ever had!

+1

I have a couple Nest thermostats in my house and they are awesome. You have endless options for scheduling and remote control from your phone is great too. Once again, doesn't answer your question but I had to agree with Pat!

 

[gabagoo]

it may indeed have this feature, but I have one of these to control the rooftop for the front of the unit and it is programmed to come on at the same time, yet because I came in early it had not kicked in yet...so either I have one with the feature and one without, or I am just losing my mind! as a test I am going to advance the turn on time 45 minutes and see tomorrow when I get in if it is running or not

 

[TonyC]

If you have a Heat Pump....

Programmable thermostats are great and fine if you have gas or oil fired heat. If you have a heat pump, be careful with turning it up and down a lot. A heat pump is not made to heat an area. It is made to maintain the heat level. Varying the thermostat setting too much will bring in the auxiliary heat and your power bill will be higher than if you just left it at one setting.