Lux WIN100 Heating & Cooling Programmable Outlet Thermostat
by Lux Products
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List Price: Our Price: $37.97 You Save: $22.02 (37%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Category: Tools See more product details |
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Lux WIN100 Heating & Cooling Programmable Outlet Thermostat
Customer Review: Buy this! It makes the room temperature very stable!
Summary: 5 Stars
I installed 2 of these in bedrooms and plugged in electric heaters. They maintain the room temperature +- 1 degree even though I lower the central heating temperature to save money. Previously I used the thermostats built into Delongi oil filled electric radiators to control the room temperature. The best I could get was maybe +- 3 degrees. The WIN100 completely solved the temperature stability and targeting problems I was having!
The thermocouple and electronic thermostat in the WIN100 is much more accurate than the built in bi-metalic mechanical thermostats in most portable electric heaters. The bi-metalic thermostats had a scale of 1-6 and I had to set each heater to a different number to get the right room temperature. Also I had to bump the set point up and down depending on how cold it was outside. Probably something to do with varying thermal gradient inside the heater housing... anyway, inherent problem when the temperature sensor is next to the heater.
After installing the WIN100, the room temperature was completely stable!
Programming is straight forward. Typical for an electronic thermostat.
Heater set up suggestions:
1) Use oil filled radiator heaters for bedrooms. They are SAFE, QUIET and don't make drafts.
2) Set your heater for medium power, not high. Long, low heat input keeps the room temperature more stable. Lower power reduces the chance of overheating and fire if you have a slightly damaged wall receptacle. (If your receptacle is very warm to the touch, replace it with a new spec grade receptacle.)
3) Place the WIN100 on an outside wall. This is opposite what the user manual says, but it will give you a more stable room temperature. The apparent temperature for a person is a function of the air temperature (conduction & convection heating) and the wall temperature (thermal radiation heating). When it is really cold outside, the walls get colder and you need to bump up the air temperature to keep the room "feeling" the same temperature. Putting the temperature sensor on the cold wall gives you an automatic bump in air temperature as needed.
4) Put the heater away from the WIN100 temperature sensor. Put your hand by the WIN100. If you can feel the heat of the heater, it is too close.
5) Put the heater under a window. That's where most of the cold comes into the room.
Customer Review: The perfect portable thermostat
Summary: 5 Stars
The LUX WIN100 Heating & Cooling Programmable Outlet Thermostat is the perfect solution for heating or cooling one room. I purchased three (3) units: one for each bedroom hooked up to a small oil-filled radiator to heat the bedrooms in the winter. I don't like forced air heating because it dries out the air too much. This has not only allowed us to breath comfortably at night, but also cut my electric bill. Although we broke record lows this fall (avg of 30-40 degrees every night for the month of November), my electric bill was the no higher than an avg November. I was expecting a $200-$300 electric bill and it was only $150 for Nov. Not bad for an all-electric three bedroom home.
With the ability to program the temp for each day (four time settings for M-F, and four times for S-S) The Lux WIN100 Heating & Cooling Programmable Outlet Thermostat takes all the work out of remembering to turn on or off the heat (or air). For example, you could set the thermostat to 68 degrees at 9PM, 65 at 3AM, 72 at 6AM, and 60 at 8AM. This could be the M-F setting. You could set the temp for four different times for S-S as well.
Another nice feature is the ability to program the unit without having to be plugged in (armchair programming) thanks to the backup batteries, included. They are of the button cell type, and are supposed to be replaced every year, but I think I will just wait until they die. And last but not least is the "hold" button, which allows you to manually adjust the temp and keep it there, thus overriding the programmed temp settings. It will stay at that temp until you press hold again, thereafter returning to the programmed setting.
The thermostat is rated at 120VAC, 15A -- enough power to run most space heaters or A/C units. The unit will operate manually operated heaters (not digital) and manual or digital A/C units if the digital A/C unit has auto on capability after power failure. The thermostat works by cutting the power to the heater/AC unit once the desired temp has been reached.
Thanks, Lux, for a great product!
Customer Review: WIN100 Thermostat
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased the Lux WIN100 thermostat pretty close to a month or so ago, I think, from Amazon.com. I'm using it with a 20 inch box fan which I'm using in my bedroom currently.
First thing before plugging it in, is to make sure the backup batteries are installed in it, and the temperature sensor on top of the unit is pulled out as straight as possible to obtain the most accurate room temperature. I should mention the instructions that come with the WIN100 are very straightforward and easy to follow.
After plugging the fan into the thermostat's outlet, I can make the appropriate time/day of week settings, scheduling settings, etc. via the mode selector dial, and the Up/Down buttons on the unit.
I also make sure the Heat/Cool selector switch is set to Cool, as well as set the mode dial to RUN, when finished setting everything up.
I keep the thermostat set to around 72 or 73 degrees, using the default calibration offset value of +1 degrees F, and the default temperature swing adjustment value of 1.
Since I'm not using the scheduling mode for the fan, I use the HOLD button to permanently maintain my set temperature.
After everything is all setup, I can then switch the thermostat power switch to ON.
Overall, the Lux WIN100 works great with my fan, and with the default calibration and temperature swing adjustment settings, will turn the fan off if the room temperature drops to around 1 degree or so below my programmed temperature setting, and will kick the fan back on if the room temperature then rises to my programmed temperature setting or above it. It does seem to maintain a pretty tight temperature this way, which is great.
I'll try to use it with my mechanically controlled electric space heater in the winter, for which the scheduling mode could come in quite handy, and hopefully save a little bit of money on the electric bill in the process.
Customer Review: Work's Great!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought 3 of these programmable outlet thermostats last summer and I just bought 2 more for this summer. I use them to control 5 room air conditioners have built into the walls. Each of the a/c's did not have an economy setting. Once the room was cool, the fan on the a/c stayed on all the time. The temperature controls on the a/c's were also unreliable and inconsistent. I got these thermostats to control the a/c's, make the temperature more consistent and keep my electric bills down.
The WIN100's were very easy to program and work perfectly. When the room reaches the programmed temperature, the outlet shuts the a/c off and it kicks back on when needed. Before, the fan on the a/c ran all the time. I can also program what times I want the a/c's to run and what temperatures I want during those times. There's settings for morning, midday, evening and nightime. Keeps my 14 year old daughter from leaving her a/c on all day at 68 degrees!!! When I want to open the windows, I just use the on/off button the side of the WIN100. When its in the off position, the ac doesn't come on at all. There is a battery backup so if you lose power, you don't have to reprogram the unit. This also makes it easier to program, since you can enter your programming when the WIN100 is out of the electrical outlet where it's easier to see, and then you can plug it in after. (keeps you from crawling on the floor to program it!!). And the WIN100 has an override feature. If you want the room temporarily cooler or warmer without changing the programs, you can just use the arrow keys to raise or lower the temperature on the outlet.
I highly recommend this outlet thermostat. It also works the heaters too but I only use it for my airconditioners.
Customer Review: Handy for Basic Air Conditioner with Mechanical Controls
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought the WIN100 Heating & Cooling Programmable Outlet Thermostat to use with my cheap window A/C that has manual controls. It won't work with units that have electronic controls unless the unit can be set up to come on when plugged in, because this thermostat effectively unplugs the device to turn it off and plugs it back in to turn it on. (For example, my big window air conditioner has electronic controls that go into standby when plugged in, waiting for input from the remote or front panel buttons, so this thermostat could not turn it on.)
There are 4 programs for weekend (Sat/Sun, no choice) and 4 other programs for weekdays (Mon-Fri, no choice). (You also set the time of day and day of the week, so you could deliberately set the day or time different from reality to accomodate special programming needs.) Each program is a temperature setpoint and time of day at which it becomes effective. There is also a temporary override that lets you set a different temperature, which remains in effect until the time of the next program, at which point the program takes over. Unfortunately, you have to flip open the cover on the front of the unit to access the override (and other controls), which requires unplugging the bulky plug of the air conditioner.
The unit can be (manually) set to operate either heating or cooling appliances. I have not yet tried a heater, so can't comment on how it works.
As long as your unit will come on when power is applied to its plug, this thermostat will control it nicely.