Low temp warning while on winter vacation

BrianB

BrianB

Recycles dryer sheets
Joined
Jul 21, 2011
Messages
359
Location
Minneapolis
We're planning a month long vacation this winter, and I'm looking for ways to warn us if the furnace goes out. Our daughter will be stopping by occasionally so we don't plan to do a full shut down, but we don't want to be worrying about this through the whole trip. Ideas so far:

1. We have close neighbors and know we could count on them to call us so a temperature controlled switch like this: https://www.amazon.com/Honeywell-CW200A1032-E1-CW200A-Watchman/dp/B00099DG8A/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1544038873&sr=8-3&keywords=Winter+Watchman+Temperature+Signal This was the only model I could find, and the reviews aren't reassuring.

2. A web camera, with a large dial thermometer in the view so we could see what was happening. Most seem to require a monthly monitoring fee and we would have to make a point of checking in regularly to see that all is OK.

3. A full security system with cameras and sensors. These seem expensive and I'm not sure we could justify the initial & on-going costs.

Any other ideas?
 
we have a honeywell thermostat connected to wifi. can control it from our phones. Mrs Scrapr especially likes it when I turn it up/down while she is in the house & I am out of town

no monitoring fee. if the power goes out the wifi & the heat go off. other than that...
 
Have you considered installing a wi-fi enabled thermostat? Ours has an app that shows the current temperature of the house. All you would need to do is set a reminder to check the app once a day or so.
 
MBAustin: What brand / model do you have? Any specific features you think are important?
 
Sunset: That's a really good idea we hadn't thought of. We live in an attached townhome so our next door neighbor is just a couple of feet away!
 
BrianB said:
MBAustin: What brand / model do you have? Any specific features you think are important?
Click to expand...

This is what we have Lennox iComfort. It was part of the package when we had our a/c-heatpump system replaced a few years ago. We have had no problems with it other than a stretch of a few days when it couldn't connect to wifi which eventually cleared up without us doing anything.

That said, I wouldn't recommend it unless you have a Lennox system that nothing else will work with. There are lots of wi-fi thermostats out there that are much cheaper. Here's what Consumer Reports recommends: https://www.consumerreports.org/products/smart-thermostats/recommendations/

The only function we really use is being able to change the temperature on the app (like if we forget to set it before we go on a trip, or to reset it to normal when we're on the way home).
 
OP - Be sure to turn off your water.

We do this now on all trips after coming home and finding in the Summer, a toilet valve broke, spraying water all over.
We turn ours off inside the house where it come into the basement. Then I open a sink tap for a few seconds to take the pressure off the system (probably not needed).
 
Thanks all for the comments. I figured that others have had simiilar situations and have some ideas.

I just ordered the Honeywell RTH9585 from Amazon for $148.97 less a $50 rebate from Centerpoint (Thanks for the tip CardsFan!) It has

I'll post a followup when we get it installed.
 
BrianB said:
Scrapr: Is the RTH 9585 the model you have?

https://www.honeywellstore.com/store/products/honeywell-wifi-smart-thermostat-rth9585wf1004.htm

This looks like a slick solution. Have you had any problems with the Android app?
Click to expand...

We have a bit older unit. No issues really. We changed out our wireless router & had to reconnect. That was a chore. Only because no one knows the log in.

Then we had an electronic air filter and somehow the thermostat got unconnected. The HVAC company came out & fixed it. We have had it for close to 10 years. This was our vacation home in a cold winter weather town. So it helped to check in. We could warm up the house (if we remembered) on the way over.

Our shows the outside temp. But I think that is from the local weather station, not right outside our home
 
Sunset said:
OP - Be sure to turn off your water.

We do this now on all trips after coming home and finding in the Summer, a toilet valve broke, spraying water all over.
We turn ours off inside the house where it come into the basement. Then I open a sink tap for a few seconds to take the pressure off the system (probably not needed).
Click to expand...

I was going to suggest that, myself. We are snowbirding for the first time, this year, and I am not only turning the main valve off, I'm having the water drained. I live on a lake, where 50-80 percent of the properties have this done, so it's not as crazy an idea as it sounds. One less thing to worry about.

Next year I'll have a Generac whole house natural gas powered on demand generator. I would have had it done this year but I procrastinated to the point that the company doing it couldn't get it done before the weather got too cold for them to want to work on it. (Blow That Dough!!)
 
I started out with a LaCrosse temperature monitoring system. That worked well. Later I added some Blink security cameras and each camera measures temperature. Finally, we installed Sensi wifi thermostats.

The thing that I liked about Lacrosse was that you could program it to send an alert if the temperature declined below a certain point.

We turn the water off at the main as a safety precaution, not only from freezing but also from broken connections.

We recently had a heat outgage due to a power outage from a snowstorm and I knew right away... no need to panic as it takes a number of days for the house to cool down from 55F depending on the outside temperature. We have a neighbor friend who can monitor the temp if we had an extended outage and build a fire in the woodstove if necessary
 
Last edited:
pb4uski said:
I started out with a LaCrosse temperature monitoring system. That worked well. Later I added some Blink security cameras and each camera measures temperature. Finally, we installed Sensi wifi thermostats.

The thing that I liked about Lacrosse was that you could program it to send an alert if the temperature declined below a certain point.
Click to expand...


I also use the LaCrosse temp. monitoring system. The price was reasonable, and it has worked pretty well for us over the last several years. Their customer service needs some improvement, but overall the unit has been reliable. And as pb4uski says, for a few extra bucks, they will send you an alert (text or email or both) when the temp. or humidity in your house goes outside of a range that you have pre-set. It gives me peace of mind that all is okay with the house while we are gone for a while. I also have a neighbor check on the house occasionally, so that any other issues can be discovered and dealt with if necessary.
 
I have three of these Honeywell WiFi thermostats:
085267771955.jpg


I paid about $100, but I notice they're down to $70 now.

They are great, we find we use them SO much more than we ever thought we would.
 
MBAustin said:
Have you considered installing a wi-fi enabled thermostat? Ours has an app that shows the current temperature of the house. All you would need to do is set a reminder to check the app once a day or so.
Click to expand...
+1

BrianB said:
MBAustin: What brand / model do you have? Any specific features you think are important?
Click to expand...

I use Nest thermostat,with the iPhone app. We also have some Nest cameras.
 
Forgot to mention, the Honeywell WiFi stat allows you to set a low (or high) temperature alarm, via e-mail or text. You can change all that remotely. All for $70.

My beef with the Nest is you pay a premium for features I don't really want. I don't need a device to try to "learn" my behavior and set the temperature for me. I wasn't really all that keen on having a set schedule of changing temperature settings. But I found it's a nice starting point, and I can adjust as needed from my cell phone, wherever I am.
 
Wifi thermostats are great until you have an issue with your wifi. Usually not a big deal. But if you're in another state and no one to go to your house to power cycle the router...good luck.

Get a dumb thermostat, set it and forget it. Better things to worry about in life than adjusting the thermostat while you're away.
 
ecobee3 or ecobee4.

Costco had an ecobee4 bundle recently.

The phone app and/or browser has a lot of good information. Alerts if the temp or humidity hits thresholds you set.
 
ponyboy said:
Wifi thermostats are great until you have an issue with your wifi. Usually not a big deal. But if you're in another state and no one to go to your house to power cycle the router...good luck.
Click to expand...

Good point. I've been looking at two things; smart switches, which would allow me to power-cycle things (like security cameras) remotely when they fail, and timers which would power-cycle my router and cable modem on a schedule.

Turns out they have devices which will automatically detect if an external internet connection has failed, and power-cycle whatever you've got plugged into it. Even better.

Anyway, if you've ever had a pipe burst while on vacation, and had to rush home, you'll appreciate things like this.
 
CaptTom said:
Anyway, if you've ever had a pipe burst while on vacation, and had to rush home, you'll appreciate things like this.
Click to expand...

If I was going away for months during winter, I would set my thermostat around 50 or 55 and call it a day. Why would anyone want to access their thermostat while they were away for months? Are you going to tweak it every single day? Just pick a number and stick with it. Will save you a lot of headache.

Yes, there are things that will power cycle your devices. Good if you have security cameras as well.
 
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