One of the most important factors in making a living space comfortable is temperature control.
Out of all the smart gadgets that I discuss on this blog, discussions on thermostats have been the most “heated” ones.
And for good reasons. In this article let me address one of the most frequently popping questions in thermostat discussions.
Are thermostats interchangeable?
The answer is no, thermostats are not exactly interchangeable or universal for that matter. The type of thermostat that you require depends primarily upon the type of HVAC system that you have currently installed in your house among other secondary factors.
Now, I think for anyone enquiring whether are thermostats interchangeable or universal, you need more data on thermostats to be able to make an informed decision.
That is precisely what you are going to get throughout the course of this brief article.
By the time you have read it, you will be able to clearly know how to go about choosing the best thermostat replacement for your home.
As I said this isn’t the first-time thermostats have been discussed on this site.
Here are a few more articles of value,
- Top 7 Alexa Compatible Smart Thermostats
- Top 7 Ring Compatible Thermostats
- Do smart thermostats work without Wi-Fi?
- Is Thermostat a Sensor?
- Is a thermostat necessary in a car?
Finding Compatible Thermostats
Thermostats are gadgets that allow you to change your home temperature.
This happens because thermostats give you control of your HVAC system.
Suffice to say, in order for you to engage with your HVAC system, your thermostat should be able to properly engage with your HVAC system.
Choosing a thermostat without proper research is a sure-fire way to create problems of complicated nature.
So, why not do the preliminary steps properly?
Prevention is so much better than cure, right?
So, the type of thermostat you are gonna pick up will depend upon the type of HVAC system, right? Here are 3 primary types of HVAC systems.
- Low Voltage HVAC systems
The low voltage HVAC system or the 24V power system is the most common type of HVAC system that is deployed in most modern households
In your browsing, these are the thermostats that you will usually find for obvious reasons.
These types of systems require 3-5 wires to attain full control over heating and cooling mechanisms.
- High Voltage/Line Voltage HVAC system
These kinds of HVAC systems operate on 110V or 240V and are primarily used on electric baseboard systems. Additionally, these types of HVAC systems are quickly becoming a thing of the past.
They were used in older HVAC systems like boilers, ACs, and furnaces.
In all likelihood, it’s rare that you will have line voltage HVAC but one can’t eliminate the odds completely.
- 24-millivolt HVAC system
This third type of HVAC system is deployed where oil and gas furnaces are used. These mechanisms can power up without using electricity but not many thermostats make use of this system.
You may also find them in the floor and wall heaters and chances of you having this system is pretty rare.
The thermostats designed for these use cases also have very different construction and use 2 wires.
Finding HVAC System Type Using Thermostat
As I said, the highest likelihood is that your home has a 24V HVAC system.
But just so that you can be sure about it, here is a way to figure out exactly what kind of HVAC system you have.
And by the way, this method isn’t applicable to people who are installing a thermostat for the first time.
If you are indeed installing a thermostat for the first time in a new home, the likelihood of you knowing the HVAC system type is high.
For people, who ask are thermostats interchangeable or universal, this method is magic.
Follow these steps,
- First off, close down your furnace by taking the power off for safety. This is a very important step. Don’t ignore it.
- Now, remove the cover of your thermostat with care.
- Most thermostat manufacturers leave a label on their products. See if you can find an indicator that says, HV (high voltage) or LV (low-voltage) on the body.
- If the label is there that’s great you now know your HVAC system. If not that’s fine. We need to go a bit deeper so to speak.
- Get a compatible screwdriver and unscrew the thermostat from the wall. Once again do this very carefully.
- Check the wires behind your thermostat. If the wires are thick, the thermostat is a high voltage thermostat. If the wires on the other hand are thin, you have a low voltage HVAC.
The C-Wire Conundrum – Some thermostats need an additional wire called C-wire to power thermostats. Your original thermostat may or may not have one. There are C-wire adapters available if you need one. If your HVAC system doesn’t have it, pick a thermostat that doesn’t require it.
Types of Thermostats
In the introduction part, I said the type of thermostat that you pick will primarily depend on your HVAC system among other ‘secondary things’.
In this part let’s discuss those other ‘secondary things’.
Once you have established what HVAC system is there in your home, it’s time to look into, what specific type of thermostat should you choose.
Here are the different types of thermostats that you will come across in your research.
- Non-Programmable Thermostat
The simplest one is as indicated by the name a non-programmable thermostat. But don’t get away thinking these things are worthless.
On the contrary, if you are well versed with what your needs are these types of thermostats are actually quite good.
Not to mention how easy they will be on your wallet.
With these manual thermostats, you will have to do the thinking and the work.
You can adjust the settings to your preference and for most people who aren’t on the path of making their home smart home right away, these thermostats should be effective, budget-friendly, and enough.
They require 2-3 wires and are ideal for homes that don’t have a large number of devices to control.
- Programmable Thermostat
A step up from basic thermostats are the programmable thermostats. You can adjust the basic and advanced settings even after they are installed in your home.
They are much more modern and most come with an interactive LCD display that you can use to adjust said settings.
Because they are programmable you can set how the devices will behave given the environment in advance.
You won’t have to go again and again and manually adjust the thermostat at different times of the day, month, or even year. They are pretty much set it and forget it type of devices.
- Smart Thermostats
So, if programmable thermostats are already cool, what kind of magic are smart thermostats capable of?
Well, they can help save on your electric bills for one, they can study your temperature control patterns too and if that isn’t enough you can control them using your voice.
Technology han?
Oh, how the world has changed.
You get LCD screens, an interactive touch interface, temperature scheduling, monitoring, the ability to control your device with a dedicated app, and all that good stuff.
Conclusion
Alright, then I hope I was able to comprehensively relay the necessary knowledge surrounding thermostat replacements.
As much as I like talking about control technology, I think the write-up should suffice. You can always shoot me additional questions in the comments.
If need be, I will append the article to include more info. But I like to keep things precise and to the topic. Swaying too much from the core topic rarely does anyone any benefit.
To conclude, no thermostats are not interchangeable and if you are looking to replace yours, you need to know what HVAC system you have and what kind of thermostat you want.
You also need to weigh the budget constraints and what level of control/automation you want.
Once you have this research in place, I feel you are well on your way to changing or buying a new thermostat.
I hope you enjoyed the article as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Stick around alright, I love meeting people like you, who are into technology.
Take care of yourselves and I will see you in the next one!
Bye!
