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How Home Thermostats Work

A programmable thermostat is but one option for your heating and cooling needs.
If you have specific heating and cooling needs in order to be comfortable then you've
probably spent a little time looking at and operating your home thermostat. This handy
little device controls the heating and conditioning systems in your house -- the two pieces
of equipment that use the most energy, and the ones that have the biggest impact on
your comfort and quality of life. In these days of rising energy prices, you might be
interested to see how your thermostat works. Believe it or not, it's surprisingly simple
and contains some pretty cool technology.
In this article, we'll take apart a household thermostat and learn how it works. We'll also
learn a little about digital thermostats, talking thermostats, telephone thermostats and
system zoning.
Modern thermostats are almost exclusively digital, but before we get to those, let's take
a trip down memory lane and look at the parts of a non-digital thermostat that you might
still find in older homes and motels. Let's start with the mercury switch -- a glass vial
with a small amount of actual mercury inside. Mercury is a liquid metal -- it
conducts electricity and flows like water. Inside the glass vial are three wires. One wire
goes all the way across the bottom of the vial, so the mercury is always in contact with
it. One wire ends on the left side of the vial, so when the vial tilts to the left, the mercury
contacts it -- making contact between this wire and the one on the bottom of the vial.
The third wire ends on the right side of the vial, so when the vial tilts to the right, the
mercury makes contact between this wire and the bottom wire.

There are two thermometers in this kind of thermostat. The one in the cover displays the
temperature. The other, in the top layer of the thermostat, controls the heating and
cooling systems. These thermometers are nothing more than coiled bimetallic strips.
And what's that, you ask? We'll find out on the next page.
Thermometers and Switches
A bimetallic strip is a piece of metal made by laminating two different types of metal
together. The metals that make up the strip expand and contract when they're heated or
cooled. Each type of metal has its own particular rate of expansion, and the two metals
that make up the strip are chosen so that the rates of expansion and contraction are
different. When this coiled strip is heated, the metal on the inside of the coil expands
more and the strip tends to unwind.
The center of the coil is connected to the temperature-adjustment lever, and the
mercury switch is mounted to the end of the coil so that when the coil winds or unwinds,
it tips the mercury switch one way or the other.
In non-digital thermostats there are two switches. These switches move small metal
balls that make contact between different traces on the circuit card inside the
thermostat. One of the switches controls the mode (heat or cool), while the other switch
controls the circulation fan. On the next page, we'll see how these parts work together
to make the thermostat work.

Thermostat wiring consists of wires that connect the transformer to the system
relays.
Inner Workings

When you move the lever on the thermostat to turn up the heat, this rotates
the thermometer coil and mercury switch, tipping them to the left.
As soon as the switch tips to the left, current flows through the mercury in the mercury
switch. This current energizes a relay that starts the heater and circulation fan in your
home. As the room gradually heats up, the thermometer coil gradually unwinds until it
tips the mercury switch back to the right, breaking the circuit and turning off the heat.
When the mercury switch tips to the right, a relay starts the air conditioner. As the room
cools, the thermometer coil winds up until the mercury switch tips back to the left.
Thermostats have another cool device called a heat anticipator. The heat anticipator
shuts off the heater before the air inside the thermostat actually reaches the set
temperature. Sometimes, parts of a house will reach the set temperature before the part
of the house containing the thermostat does. In this case, the anticipator shuts the
heater off a little early to give the heat time to reach the thermostat.
The loop of wire above is a kind of resistor. When the heater is running, the current that
controls the heater travels from the mercury switch, through the yellow wire to the
resistive loop. It travels around the loop until it gets to the wiper, and from there it
travels through the hub of the anticipator ring and down to the circuit board on the
bottom layer of the thermostat. The farther the wiper is positioned (moving clockwise)
from the yellow wire, the more of the resistive wire the current has to pass through. Like
any resistor, this one generates heat when current passes through it. The farther around
the loop the wiper is placed, the more heat is generated by the resistor. This heat
warms the thermometer coil, causing it to unwind and tip the mercury switch to the right
so that the heater shuts off.
Next, we'll take a more detailed look at the electrical circuits in the thermostat.
Wired
This thermostat is designed for a system with five wires -- the wire terminations are
marked as follows:

RH - This wire comes from the 24VAC transformer on the heating system.

RC - This wire comes from the 24VAC transformer on the air-conditioning

system.

W - This wire comes from the relay that turns on the heating system.

Y - This wire comes from the relay that turns on the cooling system.

G - This wire comes from the relay that turns on the fan.

The two transformers provide the power the thermostat uses to switch on the
various relays. The relays in turn switch on the power to the fan and the air
conditioner or furnace. Let's see how this power flows through the thermostat when the
air conditioner is running.
Power from the air-conditioning transformer comes into the terminal labeled RC. The
ball controlled by the mode switch jumps the current onto a trace that leads to the
terminal in the lower-right corner of the circuit board.
This terminal connects to the top layer of the thermostat through a screw. It connects to
the pink wire, which leads to the bottom wire in the mercury switch. If the switch is tilted
to the right (as it would be if the air conditioning were on), the current travels through the
mercury into the blue wire.
Through a screw, the blue wire (see above) connects to a lug in the lower-left corner of
the circuit card.
From there, it goes through a trace on the circuit card to the other branch of the mode
switch. The ball in the mode switch jumps the current onto a trace that connects to the
terminal marked G, which energizes the fan, and the terminal marked Y, which
energizes the air conditioning.
Digital thermostats use a simple device called a thermistor to measure temperature.
This is a resistor which allows electrical resistance changes with temperature.
The microcontroller in a digital thermostat can measure the resistance and convert that
number to an actual temperature reading.
A digital thermostat can do a few things that a regular mechanical thermostat cannot.
One of the most useful features of a digital thermostat is programmable settings. In the
winter, you can program it to automatically turn up the heat for an hour or two in the
morning while you get ready for work, turn down the heat until you get home, turn up the
heat in the evening and then turn down the heat while you sleep. This is a great moneysaving feature because you can simply turn down the heat when it isn't needed.
System Zoning
A lot of times, there are rooms in your house that are always warmer or colder than
others are. There can be many explanations for this. For one, heat rises, so rooms on
second or third floors are often too warm. In turn, basement rooms are typically too cold.
Rooms with vaulted ceilings have a difficult time retaining heat, while rooms that receive
long hours of sunlight are often difficult to cool down. These are just a few reasons, but
regardless of why a room's temperature is uncomfortable, there's only one surefire way
to even out your house's temperature: system zoning.

System zoning is pretty simple. It involves multiple thermostats that are wired to a
control panel, which operates dampers within the ductwork of your forced-air system.
The thermostats constantly read the temperature of their specific zone, then open or
close the dampers within the ductwork according to the thermostat's settings. Not only is
system zoning helpful for houses with inconsistent room temperatures, but it's also great
for heating or cooling individual bedrooms based on the desired temperature setting. If
you have a usually empty guest room, just shut the door and close the damper.
If used properly, system zoning can help you save money on your energy bills.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, system zoning can save homeowners up
to 30 percent on a typical heating and cooling bill. Those savings can add up to quite a
sum -- the Department of Energy also estimates that heating and cooling account for 40
percent of the average household's utility costs. Because guest rooms and other
seldom-used rooms don't require constant heating or cooling, system zoning allows you
to save money by running temperature-controlled air to those rooms only when it is
necessary.
Many homeowners are hesitant or unwilling to make the transition to programmable
thermostats and system zoning because of the initial cost of installation. This is an
understandable concern for anyone who's not building a new home or replacing an old
HVAC system, but there are other options available. Even though installing a typical
zoned system is not a do-it-yourself project, the Department of Energy's Inventions and
Innovation Program funded the development of a damper system that can be retrofitted
to existing ductwork. The system combines Retro Zones flex damper air control inserts
with an electronic controller and air pumping system. There are no
heavy motors involved, so existing ductwork does not need to be altered or supported.
The flex dampers, which come in circular and square duct models, fill with air to
constrict or block the airflow within the duct. They're resistant to heat, aging, moisture,
airborne chemicals and ozone, and even if they're punctured, which is unlikely, most
holes will not affect the performance. Flex dampers should be installed in steel or
flexible ducts. The dampers can be serviced easily by gaining access through a register.
Flex dampers also work with most brands of zone-control panels.
If you're planning to install a retrofitted zone-control system, here's what you'll need to
put on your shopping list:

thermostat for each zone

solenoid pump

solenoid panel

zone control panel

plenum tubing

transformer

fire rated tape

control limit switch

flex dampers

The number of zones your home needs will affect the way you set up the system. In a
two-zone system, with the zones being fairly equal in size, each zone's ductwork must
be capable of handling up to 70 percent of the total CFM (cubic feet per minute) of air
produced by your HVAC system. In a three-zone system, the zones need to be as close
in total area as possible. In this case, each zone's ductwork should be able to handle up
to 50 percent of the total CFM. Installing a four-zone system requires a bit more work.
The ducts need to be enlarged by one inch, and they require a static pressure relief
damper and high- and low-limit protection. To avoid major damage, be sure not to
completely cut off the airflow over the heat exchanger or coil of your HVAC system.

Talking Thermostats
Talking thermostats may seem like one of those unnecessary futuristic inventions
straight out of an episode of "The Jetsons," but they're actually quite practical for senior
citizens, people who are visually impaired or blind, and other people with special needs.
Talking thermostats announce the time, day, temperature setting and room
temperature, plus they have audio instructions for setup.
Even though talking thermostats are most helpful to people with vision impairments,
they can also be useful to the general population.
It's often difficult to know when there's a problem in your heating and cooling system,
and major problems can cost thousands of dollars to repair. Even minor problem can
lead to far more serious and costly repairs if not diagnosed in a timely manner. Talking
thermostats can end up saving you lots of time, money and stress because they alert
you when you need to have your system serviced. They also let you know when you
need to change the system filter. Promptly replacing the filter lowers the cost of heating
and cooling your home and also helps people control allergies and asthma.
Some talking thermostats even recognize and respond to voice commands. You simply
say an activation word, such as "thermostat," followed by a command like "raise" or

"lower," and the rest is automated. Talking thermostats are able to do this because they
use DSP, or digital signal processors, to process audio and speech. First, the DSP
filters out real-world analog signals. Then, the microprocessor changes them into digital
signals. After the signals have been converted, they're sent through applicationspecific integrated circuits, or ASICS, and the thermostat reacts in real time.
Because talking thermostats are high-end, cutting-edge accessories to heating and
cooling systems, they come equipped with all of the user-friendly functions that other
quality thermostats boast. A built-in time-delay function keeps your system from
immediately starting or stopping if it's accidentally adjusted. Stopping and starting HVAC
systems puts a lot of wear and tear on the compressor, which is the most expensive
part of the system, so the delay function is quite important. Talking thermostats are also
programmable, which allows you to heat or cool your home only when it's necessary.
Telephone Thermostats
You're pretty fortunate if you're able to own a vacation home, but it also means you'll be
paying to heat and cool two houses. Programmable home thermostats can actually
allow you to keep the heat or air turned off until the day you arrive, but it requires
precise planning of your comings and goings in order to get the desired result.
Telephone thermostats, on the other hand, allow you to heat or cool your home with a
simple phone call.
Telephone thermostats replace your existing home thermostats. They connect to both
the heating and cooling system and to your phone line. You simply have to call your
property and enter a password on a touch-tone phone to access the controls. Then, you
can adjust not only the temperature setting but the entire system mode as well.
Telephone thermostats can handle these functions because they use
digital microprocessors as well as a touch-tone detector and telephone interface
module. Essentially, you can "talk" to your home thermostat via telephone thanks to the
internal telephone access module. A separate phone line isn't necessary, and the
telephone thermostat can even coexist with answering machines or voice mail.
However, if you have a DSL high-speed Internet connection, you will need a DSL filter
on the telephone line that connects to your talking thermostat.
With the advent of the smart phone and their handy applications, or apps, you can
bypass the land line altogether to control your home's temperature. Wi-fi based smart
thermostats are available now and allow users to control their home's thermostat with
the help of a touch-screen smart phone. There are quite a few apps already available,
and like most smart phone apps, they aren't very expensive, with a range of free to a
few dollars.

As technological advancements make their way to simple devices like thermostats,

consumers benefit greatly from the combination of features.