Editors' note, June 10, 2016: This review has been updated with details on IFTTT, Amazon Alexa, and Apple HomeKit integrations. Editors' note, November 19, 2014: Ecobee recently released version 1.1.1 of its Ecobee3 app and adjusted the sensitivity of its touchscreen. I have since retested the thermostat and the text and overall score have been updated accordingly. Toronto-based Ecobee may not have the name recognition of Honeywell or Nest, but it was actually the first company to come out with an app-enabled thermostat. Its initial line of smart thermostats was funneled through dealers though, which limited the brand's ability to compete in the do-it-yourself arena. To satisfy this new market, the company has rolled out the $249 Ecobee3 (£155/AU$285), a DIY climate kit comprised of a Wi-Fi thermostat and a remote temperature sensor that work with IFTTT, Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit and more. It doesn't quite have the same design appeal as Nest, but the Ecobee3 is a thermostat I can wholeheartedly recommend.

Your installation success will vary a lot depending on your HVAC system and your level of electrical wiring savvy. The ideal will have a five-wire system, in which case you can literally just swap out your old thermostat for your new Ecobee3. If your HVAC unit only has four wires running to your thermostat, you're not out of luck, but you will have an extra step to deal with. The Ecobee3 requires a C (or Common) wire connection, which you won't find on a four-wire HVAC system. To get around this problem, Ecobee includes something called a Power Extender Kit with your purchase free of charge that does the work of the C wire without you actually having to add that pesky fifth wire yourself (or having to call an electrician to do it for you). You will need to know your way around your HVAC system to install the Extender Kit, since you need to connect it directly to the controller board on your HVAC unit, provided yours is new enough to have one. If not, you can still reconfigure the wiring, but budding DIYers will likely want to call in some experienced help.

Whether you use the Extender Kit or not, this all seems unnecessary given that the competing Honeywell Lyric and Nest Learning Thermostat will both work fine on a four-wire system. For my own installation, I had to go with the rewire option given my near 20-year old HVAC unit. I had help from Steve Conaway, one of our technical editors, who rewired my unit to give it a C wire. It worked, but it certainly wasn't convenient. daikin air conditioner heat pump outdoor unitOnce the Ecobee3 was installed, it recognized the wires I connected and walked me through the configuration process. ductless mini split systems multi zoneThis included adding my home Wi-Fi details, selecting Fahrenheit or Celsius -- all of the stuff you'd expect from an initial thermostat setup. car ac repair roseville ca

I also paired the included remote sensor to the thermostat, which took about a minute. The remote sensor is a handy extra that comes with the Ecobee3. It essentially acts as a standalone ambient indoor temperature monitor you can put in another room. It can also tell the thermostat whether you're home or away. Registration is the final hurdle between connecting your thermostat to the Web and mobile apps and enjoying the full functionality of your Ecobee3. The early production versions of both were extremely glitchy, but I revisited them about 6 weeks after the original review date. The displays looks the same, but the wonky usability issues are gone. That means that you can expect a much breezier registration process and interaction with the apps overall.Homeowners seeking a better way to control temperatures throughout the home should examine the benefits of a zoned heating system. A standard, non-zoned heating system controls the temperature of the entire house as a whole. A zoned heating system, in contrast, allows homeowners to control the temperature of each room or zone individually, thereby maximizing comfort and minimizing energy costs.

A zoned system can be adjusted for numerous factors, including room usage, personal preferences, and environmental conditions. Zoned systems help homeowners use their heating systems more effectively by distributing heat where and when it is needed.“If they are individually zoned, unoccupied or rarely used spaces do not have to be heated, and areas of the home that get colder than others can be adjusted directly for greater comfort. Furthermore, programmable thermostats can increase savings by dialing back heating usage when residents are out of the home or sleeping.” O’Brian explains that a typical zoned heating system treats the main floor of a house as one heating zone and the upstairs bedroom area as a separate heating zone. This allows heat to be directed to the main floor during the daytime and to the upstairs bedrooms at night, allowing unoccupied areas of the home to cool down when vacant. A zoned system can also let homeowners minimize the heat in seldom-used areas, such as guest rooms or storage spaces.

Zoning the heating system can save homeowners up to 30 percent on a typical heating and cooling bill, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Because heating and cooling accounts for more than 40 percent of an average household’s utility costs, the savings from a zoned system can really add up. The basic component of a zoned heating system is a zone valve, which controls the flow of water in a hydronic heating system. Inside the valve, an actuator opens and closes the valve based on the thermostat setting for that zone. Zone valves are available in two- or three-way valve configurations and in various connection types. They can be normally closed or normally open and can provide differing flow rates depending on valve size, allowing homeowners to customize the system for different floor plans and different-size zones. Zone valves can be used with a wide range of hydronic heating systems, including baseboards, radiators, heat pumps, and radiant applications. Leading brands include Honeywell, Taco, White-Rodgers, and Erie.

Homeowners with forced hot air heating systems also can create multiple zones by using two or more thermostats connected to a master control panel; the control panel opens and closes dampers that are installed within the ductwork. There are also a wide variety of thermostats available, including programmable versions, to control a zoned heating system. “Any thermostat can be used to zone a home, but not all thermostats are for the same application,” O’Brian notes. “Voltages, the heating/cooling system layout, and features on different thermostats can be geared more towards one or another application.” Related: How to Install a Programmable Thermostat Adding a zoned heating system to an existing home is a fairly complex project and typically requires the use of a professional installer. “Retroactively zoning a home is not really something that an average DIYer would be able to accomplish,” remarks O’Brian. “They would have to wire in controls and thermostats, hook them up to the pump(s) and boiler or furnace, and cut into either their hydronic lines or ductwork to install zone valves or dampers.