Steam rated home thermostat - where?

Michael P. Bourque

I've read on these boards people talking about a steam rated home thermostat. Something that does 'CPH cycles per hour' and stuff.

I cannot find any info. Can someone recommend where and what to buy?

I have single pipe steam in New England.

Big Ed_4

Check the box

It will say steam systems on the box. You want a 3 cycle per hour thermostat.

nicholas bonham-carter

steam thermostat

start with honeywell/white rogers. if you do not need night setback, [many find that setback does not save fuel], then the h/well hockey puck,IF LISTED FOR STEAM on the box to be as good as any. a series of dip switches set the t-stat for various heating configurations. t-stat location deserves some consideration too.--nbc

Michael P. Bourque

I should also say that my current heating is either too cold or too hot. I have a new boiler with all the proper header piping and dry steam, new vents, new main vents, insulated, etc.

I am a software developer, so I can't help but think of the role of a thermostat could be such that it learns from the heating cycles and ensures that the house wont get too hot. Perhaps shutting off just before temp to account for carry over heat.

To allow me the most options, what thermostat is best to get?

nicholas bonham-carter

more thermostat thoughts

look at the tekmar 279, i think it has a moderate bit of intelligence. it's about time some manufacturer developed a thermostat which interfaces with a pc, instead of having poorly designed menu driven setup features.--nbc

Bob_121

is it me or do i see this thermostat costing 800 dollars?

nicholas bonham-carter

smarts ain't cheap!

download the user/installer manual, and you will see how sophisticated it is.

it's probaly overkill for a single family house. in mine i put the honeywell visionpro with remote indoor sensor [1/4 th the cost] in a cold room, and keep the temp at a constant 67 deg. the colder location acts a bit like the outdoor sensor of the tekmar.--nbc

Jamie Hall

nick's right...

I'm very happy with a single VisionPro (should be a LOT less pricey) -- net even a remote sensor or anything. I do use the programmable setbacks -- 5 degrees. I have mine set for 1 cycle per hour, and it works just fine, although location is important.

Kool Rod

Jamie/Nick- I've been looking at the Honeywell Vision Pro, Model #
TH8110U1003. Is that the model you are using? If so what do you think of it? For steam it says to set the cycles at 1 per hour though has optional settings. How many cycles an hour do you run yours at?

Thanks

- Rod

Frank_63

Honeywell VP

That is the model I use in my apt building with a remote wire sensor in one apt. I have mine set for one cycle per hour. Does the job well for use. White and Rodgers has a t-stat with a remote wireless sensor, but I haven't used it and have not read any reviews of it or testimonials about its effectiveness.

Jian

I have mine @ 2 CPH. The house seem to be more comfortable at 2 than 1.

Mark N

CPH

The thermostat I use for my steam system is set a 1 cph. How does the cph setting effect operation.

Mark

FJL

CPH

I think this is how it works. The t-stat causes the boiler to cycle one time per hour to reach the temp setting. For example, lets say your boiler cycles on at 7:05 a.m. and runs for 20 minutes and satisfies the t-stat setting of 70 degrees. During the next 30 minutes, the temp drops to below 70 degrees, say to 68. The heat will not cycle on immediately, but will wait until the next hour, 8:00 a.m. In the example above, you will have 10 minutes of time where the temp is below the setting before the t-stat calls for heat. If it were two CPH, the t-stat would immediately call for hear at 7:50 a.m.

Michael P. Bourque

But how is this any good? What does it give you other than a cold house for a bit of time?

One setting I am really hoping will work is setting #680 Heat Temp Control (1=Choose if room does not reach heat setting after recovery, 2=Standard, 3=Choose if room is warmer than heat setting after recovery

Unknown

It really depends on what type of radiators you have. If they are large high mass cast iron, they will continue emitting heat long after the thermostat is satisfied. In this case, one cycle per hour is fine. If you have low mass convectors, heat emission will stop almost immediately after the end of the cycle, in which case two or three cycles per hour may give more even temperatures.

It also depends on how good your venting is. Unless you are able to eliminate all the air during the short cycles you may wind up with uneven heating and poor efficiency.

Jamie Hall

Yes

that's the model, and it's set at one cycle per hour, and it works just fine. Good thermostat; the system holds a very even temperature in a remarkably difficult building to heat.

Michael P. Bourque

Thanks for the advice. I bought the Honeywell visionPro 8000 and have it running. Pretty easy to setup, and I will keep you posted how well it works.