Thank you.
I just noticed that you can get the full version Ecobee with one sensor for $200 on AMZ warehouse deals. The extra $30 might be worth it as insurance in case ST dies out. . . .
where did you find that deal?
On Amazon. Look under the used buying options. Amazon warehouse deals has lots of them. They have several āused - very goodā for around $200. Some of them are closer to $210.
They have some for a little cheaper that might have scratches. I didnāt want a scratched one.
I got my car stereo (Pioneer DEH-80PRS - a budget audiophile deck [=talk about a time suck . . .]) from warehouse deals as well as a cheap kindle. I think itās stuff that people have returned to Amazon. Iām not sure. My receiver was about $50 cheaper because it had a small scratch.
TOTALLY agree. To get a standalone functionality and no dependence on ST is a big plus.
[quote=āasmuts, post:19, topic:60279ā]
Iām trying to decide between a Ecobee 3, an Ecobee 3 Lite, and a simple z-wave programmable with no smarts.
[/quote] A great benefit with ecobee over other smart stats is the online history function that nobody else can touch today. It helped me troubleshoot a problem when I was out of town on travel when the pilot light on my furnace went out.
OK, I think using the ecobee lite would be fine for this application. I would put the ecobee lite on the system that gives you the more comfortable control with your current thermostats. That way the more complex control of the ecobee3 using remote sensors could do a better job of making things more comfortable for you on the tougher system. In theory using a smartapp could give you similar control for lite version but speaking from experience, you just canāt get the same control reliability from ST comparing it to standalone control of a thermostat.
1 Like
Hi @vitamincm,
One thing about my smartapps that you need to be aware of:
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My smartapps donāt rely on the ST scheduling at all; they rely on the ecobee scheduling (which is more reliable than ST) for any program change.
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So, even if ST is down for a while, it will not impede ecobeeās normal operations. Itās a important consideration especially in the Northeast where winters are harsh and summers are quite hot.
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This is not the behavior that you would get with a dumb z-wave or zigbee thermostats (and even the Nest as it does not expose its scheduled setpoints) as they need to be āscheduledā by ST.
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So, if ST is down for a day or more (which has never happened so far), the only drawback is that my smartapps will not be able to adjust the thermostat setpoints based on the average temp calculated from the ST sensors.
Thatās why I still recommend the ecobee lite over the ecobee3 as the remote sensors are proprietary (unlike the z-wave or zigbee sensors) and less reliable.
Regards.
EDIT: For a summary of the benefits of the ecobee thermostat vs. dumb thermostats, see my explanations here:
2 Likes
I agree on that. Unfortunately, mine arrived a few days before the Lite was announced. Iām having some renovations done on my house, so Iām going to have my electrician do the hookup. I have a 2 wire system. I donāt feel like messing with it myself. The reason I ask about the Lite, is that Iāll get that for my 2nd system. Also I have a few Aeon multisensors to augment the Ecobee3 for temp control.
One more thing, I live in Montreal (Canada) where there are huge temperature swings between seasons (-40F in the winter, +90F and humid in the summer), so Iāve always coded my smartapps and devices with reliability in mind.
I donāt exclusively rely on ST for any critical operations such as heating/cooling my home or anything related to security.
And, this has been working very well for me so far.
P.S. Thatās why I would never use a dumb z-wave or zigbee (or even a Nest or Honeywell Lyric) thermostat as the master thermostat to heat/cool my home, as these thermostats cannot work in conjunction with SmartThings. ST needs to take over their scheduling when connected to the home automation platform. ST scheduling is not reliable enough for these tasks.
Regards.
I second this point! ST just seems to be funny this way. ST keeps trying but still fall short.
I was looking into this, but since itās sold as used I believe it doesnāt have any warranty.
At this point, Iām hoping for a black Friday deal. the nest is gonna be on sale for 199 at most retailers including kohlās plus $60 kohlās cash. this leads me to believe ecobee will have something similar. I read that last year they ran a black Friday deal on their website for 249 for system plus 3 sensors.
Mine had 4 lines of dead pixels. Sending it back. I have another coming tomorrow.
You are wise to wait for a BF sale. I wish I could wait, but I have to get the heating situation worked out now in my house (that I bought this summer).
It seems like we have some thermostat experts on this thread. Iām trying to figure out replacement thermostat(s) for my system, and all my research so far hasnāt resulted in any concrete answers.
Each thermostat controls a single hydronic heater. Each hydronic heater is mounted in the wall, and has a fan and a hot water feed.
The current thermostats are King HW120 - āIntended for use as a 2 circuit thermostat controlling a circulation pump and fan on a hydronic coil heating systemā. From looking at the specs, I presume it does two things when calling for heat:
- Tell the pump to start pumping hot water to all the radiators
- Tell the individual radiator to start its fan
there is a delay between the above two operations (to let the hot water make it to the radiator before turning on the fan).
What are the chances any 21st century Wi-Fi thermostat would support this?
Thanks.
Hi @wenglish,
You can start by checking if ecobee is compatible with your configuration by using this tool:
https://www.ecobee.com/compatibility/
Usually, ecobee is compatible with more than 90% of HVACs.
You can also send an email to ecobee@support.com
Regards.
So I fail to see what benefits I get over the stock ST device settings other than control over the accessory sensor. Can you explain this to me? Maybe I missed it somewhere.
The Home IQ reports are proving to be pretty useful. Having had the E3 and 3 sensors for a couple weeks, Iām glad I didnāt buy the light. I want to be able to use the Home IQ reports to see the temperature history and the follow me history. If you buy the light and use the Software to mimic follow me, you wonāt get and accurate temperature history report and you wonāt get any follow me reports from Ecobee. (Thatās worth $30 to me.) There are other more important reports though, such as weather impact and you can still get the basic runtime data.
*I havenāt got the grovestreams reports up and running yet. This might get you even more with Yves software. . . .
The old Ecobee web page has a little more information, I think. Login and then go to this URL:
https://www.ecobee.com/home/secure/heatingAndCooling.jsf
As nice as the Ecobee reports are, Iām finding that the Wireless Sensor Tag reports are more useful. I can get a great sense of how fast some rooms are heating and others are loosing heat. The WST site is extremely fast and very detailed. If I could only somehow get the heater runtimes in the reports. . . . I really wish that I had bought WST from the start.
Hi,
For the Holidays, Iām bundling My Ecobee device and the EcobeeSetZoneWithSchedule smartapp for $30.
The combination of MyEcobee device and the Zoned Heating/Cooling Solution specially designed smartapp for ecobee is really a powerful bundle: SmartThings and ecobee working together for more comfort inside your home.
For more details about MyEcobee device and the ecobeeSetZoneWithSchedule smartapp refer to
http://thingsthataresmart.wiki/index.php?title=My_Ecobee_Device
http://thingsthataresmart.wiki/index.php?title=EcobeeSetZoneWithSchedule
You can download MyEcobee Bundle at my store:
http://www.ecomatiqhomes.com/store
Regards.
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Interestingā¦ I havenāt tried out Wireless Sensor Tags yet but I do like their longer range, increased accuracy and beep to find feature.
Hi Mike,
I donāt think any of the well known would work as you have a line voltage thermostat and 2 circuits. All of them either run off batteries or the C wire.
I think the newer version of the King have built in schedules.
Try contacting these guys and see what they may offer.
http://www.king-electric.com/product-line-voltage-thermostats.php
Also found this but not sure about itā¦ Maybe you can contact Leviton and see. Good luck though.