Aube by Honeywell TI035/U Solar Time Table, Programmable Timer Switch, White
by Aube by Honeywell
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Aube by Honeywell TI035/U Solar Time Table, Programmable Timer Switch, White
Customer Review: Works well, but needs a setback option
Summary: 4 Stars
The timer works very well. I had an Intermatic before, but it didn't work with CFL bulbs. This worked perfectly. Make SURE you have a three wire box, and yes you need the third wire (it isn't just a ground wire)! The only complaint I have is that it doesn't have a setback option. On my old Intermatic, if you didn't want your lights to kick on at dusk, you could set back the time by any amount you wanted. So, if it gets dark 20 minutes after sundown, you could make the timer delay 20 minutes before turning on. This is not an option with the Aube. It goes of EXACTLY at sundown (although I understand a new version is now out which does have a setback feature - figures it would come out right after I bought the old one). However, you can fool it into delaying by picking coordinates that are further west than your actual location. Just note, if you go too far west and cross into a different time zone, the timer will adjust to the new time zone and set your timer off earlier instead of later. You can, of course, correct for this by using the one-hour offset feature (see the manual - for cities that don't follow daylight savings times), but it's starting to get complicated! The easier solution is to just set the timer's clock at the wrong time, so that the delay you want is the number of minutes by which you want the clock to be off. But then your clock will always be off and, personally, I don't like that even if I never look at it. Wouldn't it have just been easier to include a setback feature? :)Customer Review: Almost perfect
Summary: 5 Stars
As far as I know, there is nothing even close to this on the market.
I have had a few of these for many years. None have ever failed. Setup is straightforward and programming is reasonable.
Having the lights automatically adjust for sunrise/sunset is great. If we leave the house at 4pm and come back at 9pm, the front lights are on.
There is a little bug in the programming. It screws up if it is programmed to turn on before midnight and turn off after midnight. I forget now how it screws up, because I changed mine to turn off just before midnight.
I would like more flexible programming, but that usually comes with complexity. There isn't much space there for a display.
1. Be able to set an offset (sunset +/- nn minutes).
2. A random feature where it would vary the actual on/off times by +/- nn minutes.
3. Automatic adjustment for daylight savings. This may be a problem, becasue the politicians keep dork around with the the cutover day, so maybe it's better as it is. This also allows me to sych the clock twice a year. Maybe an upgraded model could include a received for the time sigbal from Colorado? :-)
The timer does not keep perfect time, which is surprising. I would think it could used the 60 Hz from the grid to stay perfectly in time.
This is one of my favorite gadgets. I am not sure why it is so hard to find.
Customer Review: Battery-free. Good customer service.
Summary: 5 Stars
I have used Intermatic timer switches for 10 years, with great deal of frustration. The switch dies way too easily. Then the new ones require expensive battery, and again they quit as well. But Intermatic is all I can find in the big box retailers. I am glad that I found this Honeywell Aube switch on the web. It offers the same features as the Intermatic, and hopefully lasts longer.
The installation is straight forward, if you have the instructions at hand. I feel that the Intermatic setup is more intuitive, and hope that the Aube product designer can improve on this point. Especially on the entry of time zone, you better keep the instructions for future reference. But hopefully I don't need to install another one as frequently as the Intermatic. So I do not deduct a star for it.
One thing I like about this switch is that it does not need backup battery. One less thing to maintain.
I had question about the 3-wire installation, and called the Aube customer service. I was skeptical because I could never talk to anyone at Intermatic. But, pleasant surprise. The Aube staff explained to me that as long as I ground the neutral wire, the switch will work, even though it is against the "code". It has been working fine for a month now. I am happy that I don't need to check every night whether the outdoor lights are on.
Customer Review: Amazing product
Summary: 5 Stars
Just the thing that I was looking for. Very easy programming. You enter the latitude and longitude, set up the current time and feed the time when you want to switch on and off. It takes care of the rest.
By default, after the initial settings (latitude, longitude & clock), it is set up to switch on at sunset and switch off at sunrise. But, you can easily change the programming to, say, switch on at sunset; switch off at 10pm and again switch on at 4am, switch off at sunrise. It allows two sets of switch on and off setting (ON1-OFF1-ON2-OFF2). If you leave OFF1 and ON2 as blank, it uses ON1 and OFF2. I have mine set up to switch on at sunset and switch off at 10pm. Works like a charm.
To make minor adjustments on the sunset/sunrise time, you can enter a slightly different longitude. For example, I wanted the unit to switch on about 10 minutes after sunset, so I entered a longitude 3 degrees west of where I am.
You can do a manual override any time by pressing the lid down. If you press it down for 3 seconds, the unit goes to manual mode.
There are a couple of notes:-
1. You need the black and white wires at the swich box to install it.
2. You have to manually switch the unit to daylight savings mode and back.
Customer Review: Good controller switch! Very happy so far!
Summary: 5 Stars
I installed the Aube TI035 a couple of weeks ago. I have had two Intermatic's in the past and was so frustrated with them that I junked them and have been using a wall switch for the past several years. I came across the Aube on Amazon and decided to give the Aube a try after reading the reviews. Installation was a snap. It went right int where the old wall switch was. Note that it is deeper then a wall switch and needs a standard full sized jbox. Setup was straight forward using the longitude and latitude configuration. Read all the instructions FIRST. The whole operation took around a half hour and it has been running like a charm.
Other features include:
o The ability to program it turn on and off at different times as well.
o A daylight savings setting.
o Solar battery recharging.
o Programmable for different on/off times.
o Also a manual mode to turn the lights on on the gray days of winter.
One thing I would note is that if you are going to purchase this unit is to make sure to get the right one. The one that I have requires to have both hot AND neutral connections available.
Also make sure the switch can get light to recharge.