Remote Thermostat

[junquecol]

I posted this over at SMC, but will post it here also. If your shop is in a separate building, and has a low voltage thermostat, you can control the heat remotely. This means you can turn up or down the heat before going to shop. Connect two thermostats in parallel, with one set at desired residual temp, and the other set at "working temp." In the lead to the working temp one, add a relay with a 110V coil, which is connected to the unit from one of those Christmas tree remotes. In house, hit the on / off button, and heat / air responds accordingly. You might want to add a light bulb in parallel with the coil, so you can look out the window and check status of the heat / air. No more trudging out to a cold / hot shop to set the heat / air. For regular wall / window AC units, replace the relay with a contactor of the proper size for expected load. Connect contactor to control outlet into which AC is plugged.

 

[Glennbear]

Thanks for posting Bruce, my shop is a total of 6 steps from the house but gadget freak that I am I have mentally filed your idea until my funds improve :gar-La;

 

[NCGrimbo]

Or for those of us that are a little less mechanically gifted, http://www.proliphix.com/residential-thermostats-nt20e.htm. Just run a CAT-5 cable out to the shop then use the internet to control the thermostat. :gar-Bi

 

[Jim M.]

Great tip! My new mini-split has a timer built in that steps the temperature down (or up) according to how I set it up. So I bought a Digital Thermometer with wireless remote so I can see what the shop's temperature is without running outside. Jim

 

[TracyP]

Now that is a cool tip:notworthy: