How difficult is it to change a thermostat?

[slackerinabox]

Our gas boiler has been cutting on and off and a keyspan tech (we have a service plan) said that the issue is in fact not with the boiler but the thermostat - there's a short circuit somewhere.

He suggested calling an electrician and replacing the thermostat.

How difficult would it be to change it myself? I'm not especially handy, but is it as simple as say wiring some speakers?

 

[dmw16]

I did it once and found it pretty straight forward. I am sure there are write-ups on the net, but the one I bought came with directions.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

On a scale of 1 to 10. I'd give it a 3 only because you have to go through the manual and figure out how to set up a new one if it's digital.

If you can figure out how to set a VCR in the 80's, you'll be alright.

 

[Uppsala9496]

I haven't done it in a few years, but if I recall, it was no more difficult than hooking up speaker wires to a receiver.

 

[SearchMaster]

It's pretty simple, and is as simple as wiring speakers, assuming you don't have some messed up wiring scheme now. You might want to make sure to write down what letters each wire is attached to (R/C/Y/G/W1/W2/etc.) before you detach them just in case. The new thermostat may have jumper switches to set it to match what you have now so read the directions carefully.

 

[slackerinabox]

Thanks guys - I'll give it a go!

 

[Fritzo]

Our gas boiler has been cutting on and off and a keyspan tech (we have a service plan) said that the issue is in fact not with the boiler but the thermostat - there's a short circuit somewhere.

He suggested calling an electrician and replacing the thermostat.

How difficult would it be to change it myself? I'm not especially handy, but is it as simple as say wiring some speakers?

It's fairly easy, but it depends on how you're wired now. There are anywhere from 2 to 16 wires that have to be connected, but they are usually color coded. You screw the wires into a module and then stap the thermostat on top of the module. If you have an ancient thermostat with a pair of cloth covered aluminum wire, I'd let a pro handle it.

 

[slackerinabox]

It's fairly easy, but it depends on how you're wired now. There are anywhere from 2 to 16 wires that have to be connected, but they are usually color coded. You screw the wires into a module and then stap the thermostat on top of the module. If you have an ancient thermostat with a pair of cloth covered aluminum wire, I'd let a pro handle it.

The house is brand new but the thermostat looks like a dollar store special - circular (you move the red arrow to the heat that you want). Not a fancy digital one

 

[dullard]

Get a programmable thermostat while you are at it. They are not very expensive, and can be really nice to have. And in many cases, they can save you money.

For just a furnace or a boiler, it should be a very simple step. Unscrew a few screws or unsnap the old cover, write down the labels for each color wire, unhook the wires, put on the new thermostat, connect the wires to the same labels on the new thermostat, screw or snap on the cover.

For a furnace/boiler in combination with a heat pump, call a professional. There will be many, many more wires, often not labeled correctly. It is too easy to misconnect one of the wires. Things might seem to function at first, but in unusual situations if you slightly miswired it, you could very likely freeze up your heat pump and cause real damage.

 

[Fritzo]

The house is brand new but the thermostat looks like a dollar store special - circular (you move the red arrow to the heat that you want). Not a fancy digital one

In that case, it's no problem. You can get a really nice touch screen thermostat for $40 or less, or get a cheepee one for around $15.

I personally like programable ones---they make a HUGE difference in your heating bill. My winter gas bill went from $245 average to $160 average after I installed mine.

 

[skull]

One thing to watch out for is if the thermostat you have now uses batteries. If thats the case you probably don't have the blue common wire hooked up in the boiler. It will be easier to get another thermostat that runs on batteries.

 

[slackerinabox]

Silly question -since this short is taking place at the thermostat level, is it possible that the thing is wired incorrectly (bought the house in July, the inspector tested that the boiler fires up but didn't check the thermo wiring)... If so, is there a standard wiring diagram out there, so that I don't replicate the bad wiring when replacing the thermo?

 

[krunchykrome]

I attempted to change ours when we bought our house last year. I tried to install a programable thermostat, but I ended up blowing a fuse. I wasn't sure what had happened, but all I knew was that our heat stopped working. I ended up hiring a handyman to fix what I messed up and correctly install the thermostat.

 

[Rubycon]

Post a picture of the sub base if you can. That's the part that's mounted to the wall beneath the 'stat that will have all the screw terminals on it.

 

[amdskip]

You need to know if it's single stage or multi stage I believe. Not all thermostats are created equal.

 

[Fritzo]

I attempted to change ours when we bought our house last year. I tried to install a programable thermostat, but I ended up blowing a fuse. I wasn't sure what had happened, but all I knew was that our heat stopped working. I ended up hiring a handyman to fix what I messed up and correctly install the thermostat.

LOL- I think you messed up your wire assignments. The kits today come with stickers you put on the wires so you don't mess them up.

 

[clamum]

I'd like to replace our ancient shitty one with a programmable one, but I probably should call the landlord's handyman and have him do it. The one we have now is like one of those old school mercury ones with the coiled strip of metal.

 

[MotionMan]

Wrong forum. This belongs in Highly Technical.

MotionMan

 

[Rubycon]

Wrong forum. This belongs in Highly Technical.

MotionMan

Nah, a single stage T87F is hardly technical. Now if it's a thermostat that HISSES at you with Barber-Colman printed on it, watch out!

 

[krunchykrome]

LOL- I think you messed up your wire assignments. The kits today come with stickers you put on the wires so you don't mess them up.

Yea, I screwed it up. A $40 programable thermostat ended up costing me $160 (thermostat + handyman labor).

 

[Ausm]

Not long at all, most thermostats come with a conversion chart so you properly hook up the wires. It's really easy if it the replacement thermostat is the made by the same Company.

 

[DrawninwarD]

Look on Youtube, there are some decent videos there.

I replaced the one at home with a programmable digital thermostat. Took me like an hour or so, but I'm not a handy person at all.

 

[meltdown75]

if i can do it, you can. i replaced mine with a digital a few years ago. the builder rightfully should have went with digital in the first place, since the house was built in 2003.

but yeah, you can do it. all night long.