Smart thermostats can control two furnaces, which makes them beneficial for homeowners and apartment dwellers, alike.
Most houses or apartments have multiple spaces or zones that serve a different purpose for the people living in them. They usually have a kitchen, living room, bedroom, and maybe an office or a kid’s room.
All of these spaces need to be cooled or heated, but, maybe they don’t all need to be cooled or heated at the same time. For instance, when you get up early in the morning, you want your kitchen to be inviting and at a comfortable temperature, but you might want your bedroom to remain a bit cooler.
In a similar fashion, at night when you go to bed, you don’t need your living room or kitchen to be heated. We also spend a significant portion of our daily lives in our home, but many people treat their houses and apartments as one single cooling or heating zone, regardless of the setup of the heating.
Thermostats in zoned systems can control their own cooling and heating system, or each thermostat can control the same cooling and heating system. When using several thermostats to control one system, dampers are used in the ductwork throughout the house, and the house is divided into zones.
One Thermostat, Two Furnaces
When it comes to Google Nest thermostats, zoned systems that use multiple thermostats are compatible with them, including zoned systems with dampers. Something that isn’t compatible with Nest thermostats is some zoned systems that need thermostat damper control. There are also some systems that, in order to be compatible with a Nest thermostat, need the Nest Power Connector, or a C-wire power or common wire.
One of the popular methods to control two or more heating, ventilation, air conditioning units, or HVAC ,with one thermostat, is to install one large low voltage transformer in one HVAC unit and eliminate all of the transformers that are low voltage systems in all of the HVAC units.
Another method we would like to mention requires a service contractor for the HVAC. With a low voltage leg, interconnect all of the units together. All of the wires should be brought to a single box for the stat, and wire nut all of the leads together. The setting for the heat anticipator requirement of the thermostat can be measured by the contractor once all of this is done. You can turn on the power to the units and finally connect to the current thermostat.
Final Thoughts
Can a smart thermostat control two furnaces?
Yes! You have the possibility to individually heat or cool rooms to your preference by creating multiple zones in your home. It’s a possibility to not only create multiple heating zones, but also for those zones to be grouped together. With automation or single action, all of them can be heated simultaneously.
