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A-1 Tech, Service Manager
Category: HVAC
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Satisfied Customers: 386
Experience: I have been in the HVAC business for over 35 years.
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i am installing a new honeywell thermostat rth111/rth221.

Resolved Question:

i am installing a new honeywell thermostat rth111/rth221. the new one has 5 terminals and the old one had 6. other than they, its the same one. the extra wire now that i only have 5 terminals is the blue one. but even with the other wires hooked in correctly, the a/c will still only blow out hot air

Submitted: 1 year ago.
Category: HVAC
Expert:  A-1 Tech replied 1 year ago.


A-1 Tech :

Hello, My name is XXX XXX I will assist you today

A-1 Tech :

what terminals on the old thermostat were used?

Customer :

Thank you Ron. the old thermostat has Y, R, C, G, O/B, AUX/E. The new one has Y, G, Rh, Rc, W

Customer :

The wires arent labeled but they are yellow, red, green, orange, white

Customer :

& blue.

A-1 Tech :

Is your unit a heat pump?

Customer :

I honestly am not sure. On the label it says Motor HP 1/4 (does that mean heat pump?) I know its electric, not gas.

A-1 Tech :

1/4 hp is the motor horse power

A-1 Tech :

do you know what wires went to what terminals on the old stat?

A-1 Tech :

the model number of the outside unit may also help, and brand

Customer :

Yes. It was Y (yellow), R (red), C (blue), and then on the right side G (green), O/B (orange) and AUX/E (white)

A-1 Tech :

o/b and aux/e was used on old stat?

Customer :

yes they all had a wire in them.

A-1 Tech :

okay, you have a heat pump with back up/emergency heat.

A-1 Tech :

the rth111 will work with heat pump, but you will not have back up or emergency heat. I would recommend a different stat.

Customer :

ok, good to know. i'll probably have to have somebody install a better one professionally. in the meantime, are we able to get this new one going for now?

A-1 Tech :

sure, I think you can install the new stat also. You just need the right one.

A-1 Tech :

there are stats that will match your old one, wire for wire.

Customer :

yeah i thought this one would since it looked exactly the same, but apparently not. as you can tell, i'm not very smart when it comes to this stuff.

A-1 Tech :

I show the RTH111 having more terminals than you stated, are you sure the ones you listed are all there is?

A-1 Tech :

I can assist you in getting the correct stat

Customer :

Yes. More specifically, the sticker on it says RTH111b1001/u if that means anything

Customer :

i really want to get this one working. i am not able to run to the store right now and its about 80 degrees in here and warming up outside. but if its absolutely impossible, then yes i'd be willing to know which one i should buy

A-1 Tech :

We can do that, I am looking over your wiring

Customer :

ok, thank you

Customer :

this is it right here i believe: http://www.honeywell-thermostat.com/honeywell/rth111b1001-thermostat.htm

A-1 Tech :

please give me a few minutes to review

Customer :

take your time. thank you.

A-1 Tech :

I looked at your link and it is a little different from mine , however, I saw no wire diagram. We will go by the terminals you listed for me.

A-1 Tech :

Connect as follows:

A-1 Tech :

red to R

A-1 Tech :

install a jumper wire from the R to the Rc

A-1 Tech :

yellow to Y

A-1 Tech :

green to G

A-1 Tech :

orange to W

A-1 Tech :

Then lets see what it does, we may need another jumper wire

Customer :

k, give me a couple minutes and we'll see!

A-1 Tech :

sure,

Customer :

quick question

A-1 Tech :

tape the unused wires individually and don't let them fall back into wall cavity

Customer :

im doing a jumper wire from rh-rc right? that doesnt leave any r spots for red

Customer :

the way i read it you gave me 6 connections but i only have 5 terminals

A-1 Tech :

Connect the Red to either the R or the RC

A-1 Tech :

R is hot for heat, Rc is hot for cooling, we are making both hot with just the red wire

Customer :

so the jumper wire, is that the little bracket shaped one that goes between the 2 R spots? so one of the r spots will have that jumper thing in it and the red wire?

A-1 Tech :

correct

Customer :

ok cool. stand by!

Customer :

ok it's blowing, but i dont know - the air still feels pretty warm

Customer :

i had the circuit breaker cut off so i dont know if it takes time to cool back down?

A-1 Tech :

okay, we may need to add a jumper from the Y to the W

Customer :

uh oh..i dont have another one

A-1 Tech :

it is room temp air or hot air?

A-1 Tech :

another jumper?

Customer :

correct i dont have another jumper. it came with 1. it feels room temp

Customer :

well, hard to tell. feels pretty warm now.

A-1 Tech :

we can make another jumper

Customer :

ok sweet

A-1 Tech :

okay

A-1 Tech :

turn the stat off and lets make a jumper.

A-1 Tech :

are any of the wires long enough to cut about 3 inches off?

Customer :

yes

Customer :

and i could even use one of the unused wires, right? im not using blue or white right now

A-1 Tech :

yes, as long as we leave enough to use that wire later with the right thermostat

A-1 Tech :

otherwise, do you have a short piece of wire laying around?

Customer :

no problem. so basically ill cut enough off, bend it and then put it from Y to W? thats the top left to the bottom right so ill def need some wire... i dont have any extra so ill have to steal from the blue wire

Customer :

give me a moment and we'll give it a shot

A-1 Tech :

sure

Customer :

im a little nervous now. those terminals are so far apart i feel like if i cut off the extra wire it may not leave enough for it to use later. should i just wait and get some wire from the store?

A-1 Tech :

strip both ends back to expose bare wire and connect one end to the Y and the other to the W

Customer :

the more i look at it the more i feel like i dont have enough wire. i should probably wait

A-1 Tech :

lets try this then

A-1 Tech :

move the orange wire and put it on the Y terminal with the yellow.

A-1 Tech :

So the Y will have a yellow and orange wire

Customer :

ok so i have orange and yellow in Y. green in G. nothing in W. a jump from the 2 R spots. and red in either one of the R spots. correct?

A-1 Tech :

correct

A-1 Tech :

then lets try it

Customer :

ok lets give it a minute to be sure but so far it feels cooler than it was before so we might have it...

A-1 Tech :

great

A-1 Tech :

no problem

A-1 Tech :

please keep your notes on how original stat was connected for future use.

Customer :

yep i think its safe to say that you just saved the day. before i let you go, do you mind if i ask one other question - why would i need emergency heat?

Customer :

in other words, am i ok to keep this setup for a while or should i look for a new thermostat asap?

A-1 Tech :

back up and emergency heat is for when the outside unit has to defrost, it would actually blow cold air into the home, the heat will warm the air back up before it reaches the room.

A-1 Tech :

also, if the heat pump can't keep up with heating the home, electric elements would come on to help it out.

Customer :

gotcha. perfect. i really appreciate your help. i could not have fixed this myself and airtron wanted like $500 so you really saved me!

A-1 Tech :

another good feature of back up heat is if your heat pump breaks down, you can use the electric elements and still have heat.

A-1 Tech :

no problem

A-1 Tech :

I did some looking and the Honeywell TH5220D stat will work

Customer :

ok cool. well i will probably roll with this for a while and then replace it to one with backup heat in the near future.

Customer :

ok cool i'll write that down

A-1 Tech :

Also, you will not have heat the way we have it wired.

A-1 Tech :

If you need heat, you will need to move the orange wire back to the W terminal.

Customer :

ohh ok. well then this will hold me over until tomorrow when i can get to lowes or something. it was like 85 in here so im just glad the ac is working right now

A-1 Tech :

great, let me know if you need further assistance

A-1 Tech :

Thank you,

A-1 Tech :

Ron

A-1 Tech :

CUSTOMER NOTE: Expert is not compensated unless the "ACCEPT" button has been clicked. If you wish for the expert to receive their portion of deposit, you must click the "ACCEPT" button. Positive feedback is greatly appreciated. Bonus is appreciated also. You may contact me directly at: http://www.justanswer.com/hvac/expert-ron-m

A-1 Tech, Service Manager
Category: HVAC
Positive Feedback: 98.8 %
Satisfied Customers: 386
Experience: I have been in the HVAC business for over 35 years.
A-1 Tech and other HVAC Specialists are ready to help you

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