It’s been a while since I’ve posted here mainly because Vera has been working flawlessly for almost a year =). am getting a new central heating system installed and naturally want to get a z-wave enabled thermostat to go with it.
After doing a quick search on the forum, here is what I am able ascertain as to what the main differences are between the two units.
Trane is more expensive (nearly twice a much).
The 2GIG cannot operate based on an internal programmed schedule if z-wave if turned on. It would need to be controlled using scenes in Vera instead.
The 2GIG does not require power from the furnace, but that is not a big deal to me since I will be getting a new unit.
Any feedback/thoughts would be appreciated. I am using UI2 if that makes a difference and have no plans to upgrade. I work in IT and have learned that “fixing something that is not broken” can lead to problems.
5 is the standard for HVAC, but you can just as easily run an 8 wire cable if you are going to go through the trouble anyway.
5 will be enough for Heat/Cool, and in most cases Heatpump setups. After having to recently go through the incredible hassle of running a new thermostat wire though (I put in 5 wire), I wouldn’t blame you for futureproofing with even more. You never know what the next furnace/thermostat combination will be capable of, or require for wiring.
Jeffy1021 - thanks for mentioning point #2 below - I wasn’t aware of that.
I have a Trane in my weekend home, and I really like it, but I was considering a 2Gig for another installation where I don’t have a common wire for power. I only use Vera to control switching the system between ESM and Normal (when I’m at the house or not) and occasionally I’ll override the temp setting if I’m on my way home and want to heat up/cool down the house outside of the normal program time. But I rely on the internal program for normal, day-to-day operation, and wouldn’t want to re-create that in Vera. I’m disappointed that the 2GIG won’t allow both modes of control simultaneously.
So that pretty much makes up my mind that I will need to run a common wire and get another Trane.