Mini split questions?

[Sigarms]

I'm well beyond 50 - will be retirement age this year and I have no issue with the controls!

My dad was in his early 60's back in 92 when I put a T86 on his wall. He loved that thermostat as it worked well with his new (back then) V7 Burnham boiler. I have a pretty simple older 8000 vision pro tstat in his basement now living with us. He HATES that t-stat even though I have no problems with it,

I of course am probably wrong, but applying the KISS method works wonders with the general public.

You wife is more like the general public IMO. Keep it simple with up and down arrows. Even I like that the best.

 

[Sigarms]

Does there need to be a base unit wired to the air handler to communicate with the MHK2 unit?

Yes, that is what is called the wireless receiver (which I'm assuming you're referring to as a "base unit") . Generally, you won't even notice the receiver on the indoor unit as it's not big by any means.

 

[npalen]

The way I see it, when you're dealing with someone over 50 years old, which controller would YOU want?

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I'm just getting old. For residential use, I still scratch my head on why someone would want to control their residential HVAC system with their phone.

I still scratch my head on why someone would want to control their residential HVAC system with their phone.

It's simple. Don't have to get up out of the recliner to change the temp.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

I still scratch my head on why someone would want to control their residential HVAC system with their phone.

It's simple. Don't have to get up out of the recliner to change the temp.

Yes, I love changing mine with my phone app.

 

[IXLR8]

No phone app changing my T-stat. If I can change it, any hacker can change it. Not for me thank you, security on T-stats, garage doors etc is poor at best and generally no way to update the security in these devices.

 

[Sigarms]

It's simple. Don't have to get up out of the recliner to change the temp.

With a decent insulated house and a good HVAC system, you shouldn't have to change your temp.

I've just got single stage compressors (let alone an inverter compressor) and 7 day programable stats on ever floor level. If I touch the 3 thermostats more than 6 times a year total, I'm lucky.

 

[Sigarms]

No phone app changing my T-stat. If I can change it, any hacker can change it. Not for me thank you, security on T-stats, garage doors etc is poor at best and generally no way to update the security in these devices.

What, wait... you mean to say you don't want to control your HVAC system with Alexia?

 

[kenmac]

My dad was in his early 60's back in 92 when I put a T86 on his wall.

Good ole Honeywell T86 T.stat I must have installed thousands of these back in the day !

Now with this controller I have for the VRF. You just let it do it's thing.
No set back, time delay, smart phone changes nothing.

Like Ron Popeil would say. ''Set it, and forget it''

 

[IXLR8]

What, wait... you mean to say you don't want to control your HVAC system with Alexia?

Kinda hard to control my HVAC, or anything else, with Google or Alexa since I won't have either of them in my house. Nor will I have a "Ring" or "Blink" or any other 'cloud' system in my house.

 

[Sigarms]

View attachment 730991
Good ole Honeywell T86 T.stat I must have installed thousands of these back in the day !

Now with this controller I have for the VRF. You just let it do it's thing.
No set back, time delay, smart phone changes nothing.

Like Ron Popeil would say. ''Set it, and forget it''

Up North, generally it was only heat on the T-86 LOL

Then again, my dad was the type of guy that if anyone tried to sell him something he didn't need, out the door you went LOL After mom passed in 2002, I tried to talk him into letting me install some mini splits for AC in his home, as taking the window shaker in and out for the summer was becoming a chore for him as he got older, but he would have none of that.

I just find it amazing that people will spend money on efficient inverter compressor systems with variable speed blowers, only to muck it up because they like to play with the temps on their phone or they like to feel "in control".

 

[kenmac]

Up North, generally it was only heat on the T-86 LOL

Then again, my dad was the type of guy that if anyone tried to sell him something he didn't need, out the door you went LOL After mom passed in 2002, I tried to talk him into letting me install some mini splits for AC in his home, as taking the window shaker in and out for the summer was becoming a chore for him as he got older, but he would have none of that.

I just find it amazing that people will spend money on efficient inverter compressor systems with variable speed blowers, only to muck it up because they like to play with the temps on their phone or they like to feel "in control".

Used a different subbase for heat only.
They also made one like the T86 (can't remember the number) used on Millivolt Floor Furnaces. The difference being, the millivolt T stat. didn't have the heat anticipator, as it used up some of millivolts required to operate the F.F.

I probably still have a couple still laying around.
Don't let the Mercury Gods know that, or they'll come looking for that mercury

Yeah, I have no idea why someone would want to control their inverter system, with the variable motors.
Set your desired temp. and Just let it do what it does

 

[mikester]

I still scratch my head on why someone would want to control their residential HVAC system with their phone.

It's simple. Don't have to get up out of the recliner to change the temp.

We have time of use electricity pricing and I need to be able to shut the units off on peak pricing times.

I only want to be able to change the clock time on the unit without having to do a factory reset and complete reprogramming of the remote two times a year for DST. This is my biggest complaint with these remotes.

I have zero interest in allowing any of my appliances connect to the internet. Alexa/Siri is an invasion of privacy IMHO.

 

[mwemaxxowner]

The way I see it, when you're dealing with someone over 50 years old, which controller would YOU want?

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I'm just getting old. For residential use, I still scratch my head on why someone would want to control their residential HVAC system with their phone.

I have a smart thermostat that I can access via my phone. It's extremely convenient being able to make changes from the phone while I'm home, but it's VERY nice being able to check on it when I'm not at home. And make changes if I need to and forgot before I left.

 

[Sigarms]

I have a smart thermostat that I can access via my phone. It's extremely convenient being able to make changes from the phone while I'm home, but it's VERY nice being able to check on it when I'm not at home. And make changes if I need to and forgot before I left.

Understood. At the end of the day, it's all about what the customer wants.

May I ask exactly what do you accomplish when your not at home checking on the system remotely via your phone?

Generally, with a programable thermostat, the only changes you need to make is if you're going to be gone for days/weeks, not single hours for one day.

 

[mwemaxxowner]

I like to be able to check on the temperature in the house, and I like to be able to see how quickly the temperature rises and falls, and how much the system has to run. Now that I've had it a while I about know how it performs, but I liked watching it for the first few seasons to start with to see how long after we leave for work it takes for the heat or air to be triggered. I can see how much my heat strips are run, and I could monitor through the day and it helped me zero in on the best pre programmed schedules and temperatures for the best power bill.

When we leave for vacation 9 times out of 10 I have forgotten to reset our daily schedules, so it's awesome being able to log in to my app and change settings to something more suitable for time away.

 

[npalen]

One of the features of wifi/phone control of the controller/thermostat is called geofencing. It can automatically set your temp higher or lower, depending on the season, when you leave and then return to your home.

Also, you can reset the temp ahead of time before returning via phone.

 

[mwemaxxowner]

I would like to use that, except I work too close to home to get out of the fence!

Just changed a few settings actually. Due to this discussion I decided to pop in and have a look, and realized I haven't re programmed out away schedule since my wife and daughter went back to work from covid quarantine. I dropped the away temp back down a little.

I also realized a side benefit of using my phone is it's much easier to modify changes and program schedules on the phone screen vs the tstat screen. I didn't buy the stat for the phone capabilities but I do appreciate it.

 

[Sigarms]

Used a different subbase for heat only.

You're right, my mistake as I completely forgot about the subbases. Back then I was just getting started LOL

 

[swreeder]

I have a Mitsubishi two unit mini split in our guest house here in Texas, its an OK system, but not a huge fan.

What I like:

• They are efficient and don't cost a lot to run.
• They can heat or cool the room fast, so its very easy to move the room in any direction needed for comfort.

What I don't like:

• The remotes are IR powered. You have to point them at the unit and hear the verbal beep that the unit received the change from pushing the button. There is no thermometer in the remote, the thermometer is in the head unit and is adjusted there based on the air coming into the unit.
• The units are always on when active, meaning the fan is spinning, the condenser will turn on and off based on the temp setting. There is no way to set these up with a smart thermostat to have them shut off at night or when the rooms are vacant.
• They are a pain to clean. The filter system is not great and a lot of dirt / dust gets into the coils and squirrel cage fan. The fan is not easy to remove to clean. I spend a few hours a year cleaning mine.
• I've had some mold issues on mine on the fans when really humid. because the units do not turn off, the fans are always spinning, if you set the unit wrong (IE guest turns the temp all the way down and sets fans to high speed), you can end up with condensation on the fan and mold.

Given a choice, I would probably have the same system installed as I don't really see better options for what I needed to heat/cool this space.

 

[Sigarms]

• They are a pain to clean. The filter system is not great and a lot of dirt / dust gets into the coils and squirrel cage fan. The fan is not easy to remove to clean. I spend a few hours a year cleaning mine.

This is one thing contractors don't like to bring up. Take a multi 4 zone "whole house" system, that gives you 4 indoor units to clean. Technically speaking from the manufacturer, every indoor unit should have the blower wheel removed every year and cleaned, as well as the indoor coil (that doesn't come free from the contractors end). There are kits to clean indoor coils so you don't have to worry about the liquid cleaning issue with getting everything wet.

Sometimes you can let maintenance slide a couple of years, but given certain conditions inside homes per indoor air quality, even a high end "good unit" can get calls because it's not heating or cooling correct after a couple of years (and it happens), and generally it's found to be a dirty indoor blower wheel.

You're first point isn't exactly spot on IMO. Per point 2, end of day, it doesn't really matter how long they "run" for as they're made to "run".

They are great systems, but like anything else in life, there are pros and cons. When a contractor is selling, sometimes the "cons" really aren't brought up.