4 ms·

I really want to get one, but apparently there are issues when you don't have a C-wire. Basically a power wire from the furnace. I just finished my basement,

I really want to get one, but apparently there are issues when you don't have a C-wire. Basically a power wire from the furnace. I just finished my basement, and the house only came with 4 wire, and I didn't run 5+ wire before I finished the basement. Marco Arment documented it here: http://www.marco.org/2011/12/17/nest-incompatibility-without-c-wire http://www.marco.org/2011/12/17/nest-incompatibility-without... Although it may just be for boilers.

MrEnigma 15y ago
My furnace takes 2-3 minutes to turn on after shorting the wires, although the pulse method could potentially be bad for it as well. I would have ran the wire, but my wife was adamently opposed to getting a wifi thermostat, but I bet she'd like the nest.
- michaelcampbell 15y ago
  > was adamently opposed to getting a wifi thermostat Out of curiosity, why?
  - MrEnigma 15y ago
    Too much money, don't really need it, will never use the wifi portion, etc. Which is probably true. The nest on the other hand adjusts to outside temp, it's sensors, etc. She still thinks it's solving a problem we don't have...
    - michaelcampbell 15y ago
      I see. My wife is practical too, which offsets my gadget-whoreishness somewhat. Sometimes she wins, sometimes I do. Mostly she's right, though.
ydant 15y ago
It seems like it would be easy for them (or someone else) to make a module for the furnace end that buffers these pulses while supplying the 24V power through the existing wiring. Some relays and some timing logic to only close the circuit going to the furnace after a few seconds. It isn't ideal, but it seems better than cycling a unit which might not be prepared for it unnecessarily.
- MrEnigma 15y ago
  That is a really good idea, plug in something down by the furnace (or use the C-wire hookup there), make it handle communication over a couple of wires, power over another, and then the box converts it back to 'legacy' wiring on the other end.
lutorm 15y ago
I was interested in getting one, too, but it might be overkill for our steam boiler...

MrEnigma 15y ago

My furnace takes 2-3 minutes to turn on after shorting the wires, although the pulse method could potentially be bad for it as well. I would have ran the wire, but my wife was adamently opposed to getting a wifi thermostat, but I bet she'd like the nest.

michaelcampbell 15y ago
> was adamently opposed to getting a wifi thermostat Out of curiosity, why?
- MrEnigma 15y ago
  Too much money, don't really need it, will never use the wifi portion, etc. Which is probably true. The nest on the other hand adjusts to outside temp, it's sensors, etc. She still thinks it's solving a problem we don't have...
  - michaelcampbell 15y ago
    I see. My wife is practical too, which offsets my gadget-whoreishness somewhat. Sometimes she wins, sometimes I do. Mostly she's right, though.

ydant 15y ago

It seems like it would be easy for them (or someone else) to make a module for the furnace end that buffers these pulses while supplying the 24V power through the existing wiring. Some relays and some timing logic to only close the circuit going to the furnace after a few seconds. It isn't ideal, but it seems better than cycling a unit which might not be prepared for it unnecessarily.

MrEnigma 15y ago
That is a really good idea, plug in something down by the furnace (or use the C-wire hookup there), make it handle communication over a couple of wires, power over another, and then the box converts it back to 'legacy' wiring on the other end.

lutorm 15y ago

I was interested in getting one, too, but it might be overkill for our steam boiler...