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Two Stage Thermostats

Greg_11
Greg_11 Member Posts: 16
On a conventional Heat pump thermostat,say a T8411R,when does the second stage kick in? After a 3 or 4 degree drop in temp?I've read all the manuals and can't find the sequence of operation for the auxillary heat stage.I'm installing a hot water unit heater to back-up an existing in-floor radiant job, and i want to let the radiant handle the job when it can.Then bring on the unit heater when it's colder than normal outside (like it is right now!)Will this thermostat work for this or is there something better? Of course, this is a low budget job.The customer does'nt want to get to fancy

Comments

  • Kevin_12
    Kevin_12 Member Posts: 31
    t8411

    I beleive its a 2 degree differential but i could be wrong. i know that a mercury stat would be a 2 degree differantial. If you go with a t8411, set the cycle rate to 1. Its in the instructions on how to.
  • andy_5
    andy_5 Member Posts: 20


    I'm a little confuse,Why are you using a heat pump t-stat on a hydronic system?And as far as I know,the 2nd stage of heat kicks in when the t-stat is set at 2 degrees above room temp.or when the heater runs for more than a set time on single stage and can't satisfy.
  • Barry_2
    Barry_2 Member Posts: 35
    No set temperature differential

    The T8411R, two-stage heat pump thermostat does not operate on a fixed temperature diferential between the first and second heating stage. The thermostat will automatically adjust itself so that the first heating stage will cylcle on and off an average of 3 times per hour. You can adjust the second stage to cycle on and off anywhere from three to, I believe, nine times per hour. Setting a higher second stage cycling rate will reduce the temperature difference between the cut-ins of first and second stage heating. Similarly, reducing the cylce rate will increase the temperature differential between stage one and stage two cut-in temperatures.

    As mentioned by others, I too am wondering exactly why you are attempting to use a heat pump thermostat on this system. Decent quality, digital, programmable thermostats are not super expensive. Heat pump thermostats are also equipped with "Emergency Heat" switches that are intended to energize resistive-type electric strip heaters in the event that the reverse-cyle refrigeration system fails to operate. For your application, this would not be applicable.

    I think you would be doing the customer a service by installing a non heat pump stat on the system.
  • scrook_2
    scrook_2 Member Posts: 610
    I think he...

    meant he wants to use a 2 stage heat pump type t-stat to control two differant output devices radiant 1st then unit heater 2nd on a hydronic system.

    With some electronic 2 stage t-stats I suppose it is possible you could program the differential, but I never looked.
  • Greg_11
    Greg_11 Member Posts: 16
    yes

    Scrook is correct.That's what i want to do ,but i can't seam to find any 2-stage heating only stats.They all have cooling too.I just wasn't going to use the emergency or the cooling features.I guess i should'nt have said "Heat Pump" .I meant 2 stage heating only. If you have any part #'s you can throw at me i would appreciate it. Thanks,and sorry for the delayed response.
  • Bob Bona_4
    Bob Bona_4 Member Posts: 2,083
  • RichW
    RichW Member Posts: 28
    'stat

    Look at a White-Rodgers 1F95-371. I have one in my house. It's heat and cool- but it does what you want and more.
  • Greg_11
    Greg_11 Member Posts: 16
    Thanks everyone(nm)

This discussion has been closed.