Bulbs & Fittings Ideas

I was lucky enough to win 2 of these TH9320WF5003 thermostats at a builders trade show. I installed them in my own home, which has a 2-zone forced air HVAC system, using standard 4-wire RYGW thermostat wiring. There was no 5th common wire available, so I used Honeywell’s wire saver module THP9045A1023 as suggested in the installation instructions. Installation was very simple, although long-nose pliers are a must to insert the wires into the thermostat’s mounting plate.

The thermostat does a great job controlling temperature to within a degree. There is a setting buried deep in the menus that allows you to increase the cycle time, which may save energy at the expense of wider temperature range.

I like that the display shows all relevant data in one screen and I find this much preferable to the way the Nest works.

The user interface on both the thermostat itself, and on Honeywell’s web, iPhone and iPad apps, is intuitive and easy to use. However, I don’t like that many of the options (such as vacation hold) can only be controlled by the thermostat, not the with the web or apps.

The outdoor temperature reading is useless. According to Honeywell’s documentation, it is supposed to update once per hour using data from Accuweather. Once per hour is not often enough during the morning and evening when temperatures are changing rapidly. In practice, I find that the displayed outdoor temperature often lags the actual temperature by a few hours. I complained to Honeywell about this, and they said they are aware of the problem and are trying to solve it.

The Wi-Fi functionality seems to have some issues. One of my 2 thermostats stopped connecting to my router. I had to completely delete my Wi-Fi connection in the thermostat and re-enter it in order for the thermostat to reconnect. That problem only happened once, and did not reoccur. The Wi-Fi in the 2nd thermostat failed completely. It displayed the error message: "Thermostat’s internal Wi-Fi is no longer working". The good news is that Honeywell’s customer service is great! I called them and asked for a replacement. Even though my thermostat was a prize and I had no receipt, they replaced it for free. The replacement is working well so far.

This is the contractor model – 5yr warranty and advanced settings like adjustable swing temps. I recently had a new AC unit put in on 4/18/14 and wanted to control it with a Wi-Fi thermostat. This unit is incredible. Easy to install, program and control. Once I corrected the “C” wire issue below, it took 5 minutes. I am using my PC, Android phones and tablets and my iPhone and iPad without any issues. I also do not broadcast my SSID, not a problem as this unit allows you full manual setup. This model has some advanced setting that the retail model does not and it has the 5yr warranty. Also check your local power/gas company for rebates. This model qualifies for the rebate through 12/31/2014.

Installation was a breeze. Push wires into contacts and no screws needed to hold wires onto the base. My AC guys disconnected my “C” wire out of spite to my old thermostat, which had batteries to keep it’s digital memory, so they figured I would not notice…but I did. They wanted 0 to install this same unit (when I told them I could get it on Amazon for much less, they weren’t “happy-happy”). They tried to set me up for failure but I am not the average bear. Your AC compressor uses a 24v wire too, so I looked in the furnace cabinet for that wire, which was also labeled “C” and just reconnected the wire to the thermostat. The Common color for your 24v to your thermostat was historically Brown, but now many HVAC companies use the Blue wire. This may sound intimidating, but it was simple and if you do not have the skillset to do it yourself, any HVAC guy will install one for “off the clock”

Honeywell was also super to deal with. Great customer service and tech support if you need them. My only snag was I never received the email from their server to validate my email. A 5 minute call and they set it up manually for me. Apps are free, simple to use and control. I probably have “played” with the thermostat control a hundred times in 4 days. I need to stop but it is so easy.

I am very happy with my purchase of the Honeywell Wifi 9000 thermostat. The interface is very intuitive and easy to use, and it offers the convenient functionality of being able to control the thermostat from my mobile devices. Both the Honeywell app and the on-screen display of the thermostat use common, everyday language, which make it very easy to schedule how the thermostat should be set during the day. The thermostat allows users to change the temp four times during the day, which is more than sufficient for me. My wife and I both have the Honeywell app on our phone and we are scheduled to receive email alerts if specified thresholds are reached (e.g., temp is above 90 degrees), indicating a problem is present with the system. I chose this Honeywell model over the Honeywell Smart Wifi model, as the wifi 9000 has a five year warranty, but it includes very similar functionality to the popularly-rated Smart Wifi model, which only has a one year warranty. Also, the intuitive design of the Honeywell Wifi 9000 made it the right choice for me. I originally planned to buy the Nest, as it is such a popular model. Its features are appealing, but some Honeywell models have a better rating in recent CR ratings, which made me think twice with merely choosing what is popular. After all, I originally liked the Nest because it is all I had heard about for an automated thermostat. Also, we have a cat and I was concerned with the learning functionality of the Nest, given this reality. Also, our thermostat is not located in a highly trafficked area in our house, which also caused me to shy away from the Nest. I’m sure both are great thermostats, but I am very happy with the easy of use and convenience of the Honeywell wifi 9000. If you desire an easy to use thermostat that will allow you to check and control the temperature from anywhere with Internet connectivity (Mobile phone, tablet, website, etc.) then you can’t go wrong with this wifi 9000 model.

As a note of advice, if you want multiple users (e.g., husband and wife) to both have mobile access to the same thermostat, I would suggest completing the initial setup of the thermostat from a computer and not from a mobile device. Once one user account is created, that user can provide access to other users. This needs to be completed with the accounts tab, which is not currently visible from the mobile interface (to my knowledge).

The thermostat also offers some preset color choices, which helps the screen blend in more with your location. Also, the app and thermostat also display the current outside temperature, which is populated via the web-based connection. Product literature also says the device will continue to work even if wifi connectivity is lost, which is also a great benefit.

Overall, a great thermostat that I would highly recommend.