Honeywell RTH7600D Touchscreen 7-Day Programmable Thermostat
by Honeywell
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Honeywell RTH7600D Touchscreen 7-Day Programmable Thermostat
Customer Review: Don't bee fooled by Honeywell!
Summary: 1 Stars
Let me setup the scenario to better illustrate my frustration with not only this unit but 2 other Honeywell models as well. I recently moved into a house that had two thermostats already installed. Both units were made by Honeywell (RTH230B1006 & RTH6300B). After 1 day in my new house I was forced to replace the upstairs thermostat (RTH230B1006) since the unit was no longer holding the desired temperature and would continue cooling as long as it was on (scared to see my electric bill!). I called Honeywell support and was told the unit was defective and no longer under warranty (past 1 year), so basically I was outta luck. Along with the upstairs t-stat being defective, the downstairs t-stat (RTH6300B) made the most annoying "click-click" noise everytime the A/C kicked on. After researching all I was able to find was that the clicking was "normal" and there was nothing wrong with my unit. I've NEVER heard a unit this loud in my life! Anyways, this finally leads me to the RTH7600B. Using this unit briefly in my previous residence, I decided to upgrade both t-stat's and spend a little more on Honeywell's highly rated touch screen model. I went to the local Home Depot and purchased 2 of these units. After attempting to install the first unit, I discovered that the down arrow on the touch screen was extrememly glitchy and rarely responsive (up arrow worked fine). I tried poking the button multiple ways to see if human error was involved, but I finally concluded the touch screen portion had an issue. Not wanting to unhook the wires and disassemble the back plate, I opened the second box and used the front face portion on the already installed back. While loading up the batteries I noticed that the connectors were loose and the batteries would actually move around in the track. I slightly bent the connectors in hoping to improve the connection, but that didn't help. The unit would cut on and off constantly with the slightest movement. So...after all of my troubles I was stuck with not one but TWO defective RTH7600's and no t-stat for my upstairs, ARGH! Although this unit is highly rated, I would stay away from this and other Honeywell t-stats. I researched and found a t-stat with similar functions AND w/ a touchscreen made by Lux that is sold at Lowe's. It has equally postive reviews and cost me almost $30 less, WOW! I purchased one Lux unit (TX9000TS), successfully tested it for a couple days, and have now ordered my second one on Amazon. Do yourself a favor and don't spend the better part of your Sunday fiddling with Honeywell's faulty thermostats. Go out and buy a Lux (if you want a touchscreen) and save some time while gaining peace of mind!Customer Review: Good so far
Summary: 4 Stars
Overall very nice, easy install, easy to read, nice backlight, looks nice, programming intuitive but a bit tedious.
I got this at my local HD last week. My system is a heat pump with gas furnace back-up. I had no actual problem with the install (see below for perceived problem), but my existing thermostat was relatively new and the terminals were labeled using the current standard. I suggest looking at the installation guide on Honeywell's site before buying and checking-out your existing wiring to make sure it make sense. Honeywell gives a sheet of stick-on letters to label your wires (nice touch). If you have a heat pump you have to know whether the control valve switches in heat mode or cooling mode ('O' wire is cooling mode switch and 'B' wire is heating mode switch). This thermostat gets programmed but my old one had a single terminal marked 'O/B'. After a little looking I found a jumper on the electronics board inside the existing thermostat so I could figure out which system I had. I have a Trane system and it was an 'O' for whatever that's worth. Tool note: you will need a very small (about 1/16" wide) flat blade screw driver for the terminals, but if you are contemplating a DIY thermostat change, you probably already have one.
The only install problem I had was that when I switched the heat pump back 'ON' at my breaker panel, I actually switched the dryer circuit 'OFF' (hey both switches were facing the same direction when I finished). After an hour of scratching my head and checking all the connections, my wife asked how come the dryer was dead; DO-AH!
Programming is my only small complaint and the reason for four stars instead of five. It is straight-forward but a little tedious. It comes with pre-programmed settings that actually are pretty good and you only have to make small changes, but there are a lot of items to scroll through (four separate times and temps for each day). Seems like there should be an option for grouping weekdays and/or weekends.
You can set it to switch automatically between heat and AC but I'm old-school and like that I can also set it so I have to make the switchover manually. Making temporary temperature setting changes is easy by just touching the up or down arrows and it will stay there until the next scheduled change. You can also lock it to stay there forever.
Customer Review: Definitely Worth the Purchase
Summary: 5 Stars
Great purchase at a reduced price. I previously priced this product at over $119 retail price, and then at $100 after receiving a HVAC Technician's discount before finding it on Amazon for $85.
A programmable thermostat is great for homes when it is necessary for your A/C system to run while you're not home or asleep. Personally I have a pet, so I need for my home to remain cool while I'm at work or else I would just turn the system off until I come home. This product is great because I can set the temperature at a reasonable level without it constantly running, skyrocketing my electric bill, and having the house nice and cool right before I return home from work. The touch screen is a nice "touch", which lights up appropriately, even in the dark. The programming features allow you to set the temperature for several hours of the day and even raise or lower the temperature when you sleep, for everyday of the week.
Installation is not difficult, although it is very important to note and document the location of all wires on your old t-stat before removing them, so you can place them correspondingly on the new one. It is also important to know what type of system you have (heat pump, "straight cool", gas furnace, 1 stage, 2 stage...etc.) so you can program the t-stat to work with your system. Even as a HVAC Technician, I forgot to program the Honeywell to work with my heat pump system, so if you decide to do it yourself, remember that little piece of advice to save you some confusion as to why your system is running in heat instead of air conditioning.
If you are on the fence, I would encourage you to give it a try!
NOTE: If you decide installing the thermostat is too difficult for you, I would suggest NOT calling a A/C company unless you want to pay an exaggerated price because you did not buy it from them. For this type of thermostat companies may charge up to $400 or more for purchase and installation. Try talking to an individual A/C Technician that you feel comfortable with and explaining your problem and see if he or she would be interested in installing it on their own time, since it only takes about fifteen minutes to install. You would definitely come out spending less money working with an individual technician opposed to the A/C company itself should you require the assistance.
Customer Review: Much more efficient than prevous programmable
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this thermostat mostly for its modern appearance, as a replacement for my dated looking programmable thermostat. I also hoped that it would be able to regulate the temperature better than the old one, which struggled to keep the temperature correct on the schedule I programmed.
I'm not technically inclined, but installation was a breeze. The hardest part was separating the thermostat from its backplate, which there is no obvious way to do other than just pulling and hoping nothing breaks. That seemed to be the correct approach though, for both my old and new thermostats!
There is a helpful quick installation guide, which walks through the wiring in a very clear and simple way, from the point that I removed the wires from the old thermostat to when I placed them in the new. The whole installation took less than 15 minutes, including drilling one new hole in the drywall.
The width of the new thermostat is less than that of the old, resulting in some exposed wall painted in the previous color that the wall had. I will have to touch up some time soon.
Programming the thermostat was a little more challenging. It is not that it is hard, just not intuitive enough to do without reading over the manual. Once I got the hang of it, it took a few minutes to actually program. I was able to choose groups of days of the week, and specify typical settings for them. I have a schedule for Mon-Fri, and for Sat-Sun.
It is worth mentioning that there are default programming settings, based on Energy Star recommendations. I'm sure the summer settings would save energy, but they would not make for the house being very livable for us, as we prefer a summer temperature in the 70s, not 80s. I'll try the heating settings come winter, as they may be more realistic.
Once installed and working, the thermostat has a feature that ensures it reaches the right temperatures *at* the times I specified. It got it wrong the first day (it was a little warm when we came home), but by the second day it had adjusted itself to the conditions of our house, and now the temperature is very reliable, and very constant (does not swing at all). The thermostat does an EXCELLENT job of regulating temperature.
Customer Review: Perfect Thermostat!
Summary: 5 Stars
I just received my new RTH7600B about a week ago and I am very happy with the unit's performance and easy set-up it. The menu is easy to navigate and the settings are very intuitive. I read all the other reviews before ordering this model. I have not had any issues with programming the unit or with loud clicking sounds then the thermostat activates the heat or AC. I have a central air and heat pump set up at my home and simply love the auto Heat to Air changeover. The unit has a built in 3 degree buffer between the heat temp and air conditioning temp so your HVAC system will not get burned out from constant switching. I live in TN close to Memphis and in this area it is common to have to run both the Air and Heat on the same day. The auto switchover feature is really a great help.
I would also like to add that the thermostat keeps an exact consistent temperature. If you set the unit to 72 it will remain constant at 72! The thermostat also learns how long it takes to for the heat or air to raise or lower the temperature, so if you want it to be 74 when you get up for work at 8AM it will be exactly 74 at 8AM. The system will start heating or cooling prior to the set time so it's exactly the temp you want when you scheduled it. It's also possible to set multiple days for the same on-off schedule to save time when programming.
I guess it could use a backlight button so you can push the light on at night, but if you touch the screen the backlight will come on.
I also wanted to add something about the programming to save some frustration. The thermostat comes with two manuals. One is the installation manual and the other is for programming. The menu system has codes for each feature. To access the code menu you will touch the System & Fan button (screen) then hold down the Fan button for five second. Now you will be in the codes menu. The codes are listed in the operations manual and are very easy to set up by simple using up and down arrows to make your selections.
I have not had to purchase many thermostats in my days, but this one is great especially when you consider the cost. It's also very impressive looking. If you are looking to save money and have consistent temperatures in your home, look no further.