Suggest a home thermostat with a remote sensor

[pendragon1998]

Our rental has a conventional system with an electric furnace. Currently, we've got a sucky thermostat that lets you basically set either the heat to come on if it goes below X degrees, or the A/C to come on if it gets above, but not both.

We would like to replace the thermostat with one that would let us set a temp range and have it automatically maintain it with the heat or A/C as needed. Also, we want to set up a remote sensor in the baby's room that would send the temperature info to the master thermostat (i.e., we want the temperature in that room to always stay within the desired range, and are less concerned about where the rest of the house ends up). Bonus points for (1) cheap, (2) remote override of the thermostat from another room, or (3) if there's an android app for that ;-)

Any suggestions?

 

[48Classic]

Check out http://www.smarthome.com/_/Thermostats_HVAC_Controls/_/J/land.aspx SmartHome has alot of cool options. Best of luck!!!

 

[philjafo]

Honeywells prestige thermostat does all that and more, no bonus points for cheap though, on the plus side there is no monthly subscription for the internet features.

 

[ezover]

you mite look into this model. not sure about it switching between ac/heat as needed. i plan i getting one in a few weeks.

http://www.nest.com

 

[BoostAddiction]

These are not cheap, but I really like them, and there is an app for that...

http://www.ecobee.com/

They require a wifi network, but there is no monthly charge, you can access the thermostat from the web, the display is clear and easy to read, and has a touch interface that is easy to use.

 

[gpalmer77]

+1 on the Prestige from honeywell. Does exactly what you're looking for.

 

[RKA]

you mite look into this model. not sure about it switching between ac/heat as needed. i plan i getting one in a few weeks.

http://www.nest.com

There is an auto feature aside from the regular heat and cool that will keep the temp between the desired end points you have programmed. The version 1 also has that feature. Only two things it doesn't do is remote temp monitoring (you have to put the thermostat in that room) and it's not cheap. Best price I've seen on the version 1 is $200 @ Lowes on black friday...minus a 10% movers coupon, plus tax...so just under $200 all told depending on how greedy your state govt is.

 

[roc_on_the_rocks]

The Hunter Auto$aver® 7 Day Programmable Auto Changeover Model 44660 meets all your requirements, but reliability is a concern. I installed it in my house about five years ago, bought at Sam's Club. The first unit was defective and Sam's replaced it. Then the second one used to reset a lot, but it suddenly got stable in the last couple years. I can only guess the Sony Baby Monitor could have been interfering with it (it was a remote sensor).

Here's the website, make sure to read the reviews:

http://www.hunterfan.com/Products/Thermostats/AutoSaver-7-Day-Programmable-Auto-Changeover-44660/

PS.: Menards had this model on sale for $25 a while ago.
PPS.: This is funny, but real: This model accepts up to two remote sensors, so one could be placed outside the house. The funny part is that the packaging also contains Spanish descriptions, (mis)stating that the Outside Remote Sensor can control the temperature. GLOBAL WARMING IS SOLVED!