Precise Climate Control without the Fuss
I recently wanted to find a new thermostat for my home because (unlike my parents) I was fed-up of having to press a button and wait for my home to heat up or cool down. But when I started my research, I was utterly amazed at just how many different thermostats there are on the market.
I thought it would just be a case of typing the model of system I have and bam! I would be presented with a model of thermostat designed to work with it. Well, I couldn’t have been more wrong and that’s why you see this website before you today (in the hope that your research doesn’t take as long as mine).
So, for this review I’m going to tell you about the Honeywell RTH7600D Touchscreen 7-Day Programmable Thermostat. Now, what I will say before I get going is that if you have no time for “bells and whistles”, this unit probably isn’t for you (instead, you can take a look at a non-programmable unit I recently reviewed: The Honeywell Focuspro 5000).
Convenience and Ease of Use
Of course, as the name suggests this thermostat has a touchscreen which gives the overall panel a clean look. Plus it means you get a larger screen so big fingers shouldn’t have too much trouble operating it. There is also a green back-light, however, this doesn’t stay on all the time and when you first install it you need to physically press the screen to get it to work.
Now for the good stuff – temperature control! The reason Honeywell has named this the 7-day thermostat is because you have the ability to set different programs across the whole week (as opposed to 5-1-1 or 5-2 models), and in each day you can choose from 4 different periods. This is what Honeywell like to call the “wake, leave, return and sleep” settings.
You also have the benefit of the Honeywell Smart Response technology. What this means is if you want the temperature in your home at 70 degrees when you get up at say, 7am the unit will sense this and make sure the desired temperature is at 70 when you wake up.
It will also cleverly change from heating to cooling automatically (if you enable the function), and unlike many other models there will only ever be about 1 degree Fahrenheit difference to the temperature displayed.
A Thermostat That Can Save You Money
We’re all conscious about the amount of energy we use these days, and if you use this thermostat as directed you can save as much as 33% on your energy bills over the course of 12 months (a figure often used and bragged about by thermostat manufacturers). It is also worth mentioning it comes pre-programmed to make life even easier and it will still help save on energy.
Other Important Features
If you happen to lose power, this Honeywell model will maintain the time and date settings which means you won’t have to pre-program. And if you fancy having a go at the advanced setting option, you can set this unit to automatically adjust to daylight saving plus it will tell you when it’s time to change the filter.
You can use this thermostat with a wide range of heating or cooling systems including single and multi-stage, gas fires, heat pumps that work with or without auxiliary heat and cooling or heating only systems. However, do bear in mind these must be 24 volt because it doesn’t support heating systems that run from 120-140 volt electric baseboards.
Installation quite frankly couldn’t be easier. One little touch I really like is that you get individual labels so you know which wire goes where prior to installing the new thermostat. Simply hook it up, place the panel over the top and you’re ready to go.
One point I will make is the advanced programming section with this model uses numbered codes as oppose to words, so be prepared to have the manual handy.
Overall
If you like the idea of not spending a fortune but still want intuitive climate control around your home, I think this thermostat is definitely worth looking into. There are some great prices to be had here at Amazon.
If you don’t like the idea of a touchscreen but still want all the features I’ve mentioned here, you can also take a look at the Honeywell RTH7500D which has push buttons instead. It’s also slightly less expensive than the 7600D model.
Further Information
