More painting

"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn) 02/01/2016 at 15:21 • Filed to: None

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Having finished !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! the living room, I’m now on to painting the hallway (I have a Mrs. Ttyymmnn-imposed deadline of Super Bowl Sunday since we’re having a party). I’d like to take the thermostat off the wall so I can paint behind it. There are two screws that mount the box to the wall, but I need to remove these four wires to free the thermostat. It seems pretty simple: note which color goes where and loosen the screws holding the wires. Are there any electricity issues to deal with here? The thermostat itself is powered by 2 AA batteries. There’s also that strange jumper sort of thing that goes from the red hole to the white hole. What’s up with that?

MonkeePuzzle > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:23

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pop out the batteries and that fuse so you dont damage the thermostat in some way? then unscrew.

I have no facts, but I’d feel confident just undoing the screws and pulling it out.

*fingers crossed*

and/or, wait for someone informed to reply :D

ttyymmnn > MonkeePuzzle 02/01/2016 at 15:25

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You and I share the same thoughts. So, you won’t be offended if I wait for somebody who knows more than you and I do.

DrJohannVegas > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:29

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That jumper is totally normal for a newer thermostat on an older HVAC unit and wiring:

http://www.electrical-online.com/thermostat-wir…

To further clarify: all that is doing is sharing a common power circuit transformer to both the heating and cooling sides of the thermostat.

You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:30

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There aren’t any power issues to deal with. IIRC there is maybe a 4VDC signal coming from the furnace. I can’t remember what the jumper is for, but it is important. Just put it back when you’re done and it will be fine.

ttyymmnn > DrJohannVegas 02/01/2016 at 15:31

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Oh no, diagrams. In other words, just put it back exactly like it was.

Wacko > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:31

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shut off power to your heating system, since most heating systems give low voltage 24V DC. (ps.some don’t give power)

that battery might be for time backup. just mark down what wire goes where.

uncrew and no problems, paint, reinstall then power back up.

vicali > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:32

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I’m a big fan of putting things back the way they were..

But I see G W Rc Rh on your board.. I bet the one under the Yellow wire is actually Y.

Those are just the controls for the fan/furnace not major wires.. might be a good idea to switch it to ‘off’ and left it sit for 10 minutes before you unhook stuff.. Our old furnace was pissy with stuff like that.

DrJohannVegas > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:32

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Yep. Red to R, White to W, Yellow to Y, filthy Green to G.

That long weekend spent rewiring Mom’s thermostats is really coming in handy...

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:34

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I would assume the RH/RC indicated on the board are heat/cold on signal wires. Assuming you have one unit doing both heat and cold, the thermostat activating either cold or hot would turn your unit on. Hence jumper.

ttyymmnn > vicali 02/01/2016 at 15:35

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But there is no reason to shut off power anywhere? I mean, the thermostat is just a switch powered by batteries, right? Just trying to be super safe here. Don’t want to die for a paint job, or burn the house down.

ttyymmnn > You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much 02/01/2016 at 15:36

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Thanks.

ttyymmnn > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 02/01/2016 at 15:37

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Yes. The AC compressor is outside, the gas furnace/blower is in the attic right above the thermo. The same blower works for both hot and cold. So that jumper would make sense.

You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:43

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Turns out I mislead you. Apparently they use 24VAC control circuits now. It is still a low enough voltage that it is safe.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:43

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And because you are a clever lad, you will meet Mrs. Ttyymmnn’s deadline.

davedave1111 > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:48

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Do you need to remove the thermostat, or just unscrew it from the wall and paint around/behind it while it’s still wired in? As long as you have a bit of wiggle room, you should be fine.

ttyymmnn > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 02/01/2016 at 15:49

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Indeed. When Momma’s happy, everybody’s happy.

E92M3 > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 15:53

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It’s low voltage, so you won’t get shocked or anything. When I was painting I just let it dangle without removing the wires. I had already painted around it.

ttyymmnn > davedave1111 02/01/2016 at 16:03

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That was Plan A, but no, there’s no wiggle room at all. On to Plan B.

ttyymmnn > E92M3 02/01/2016 at 16:04

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My original plan was to leave it wired, but there’s no play in the wires at all. Or, at least, I didn’t pull hard enough.

vicali > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 16:08

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Our old furnace didn’t like having the Thermostat played with while it was running.. ie - “Dur, I’m making it hotter.. hotter.. hotter..” If you unplugged it while it was running, it would take a 20 minutes to check if it was over the temp and stop.. Once I had to find the reset on the actual furnace and make it stop.

Our new furnace just does what I tell it, even from my iphone.. Lennox icomfort ftw.

davedave1111 > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 16:11

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You don’t need more than to move one edge at a time away from the wall, do you?

ttyymmnn > vicali 02/01/2016 at 16:11

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That’s a good thought. It’s almost 80 degrees here today, so I doubt the heat will be kicking in.

ttyymmnn > davedave1111 02/01/2016 at 16:15

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Not really. I want to have the entire wall painted (except for the wire hole, of course) in case I want to get a different thermostat in the future. I won’t have to worry about an unpainted portion of the wall.

Jcarr > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 16:18

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ttyymmnn > Jcarr 02/01/2016 at 16:20

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Yes, but really, there’s just no room back there. Removing the removable thermo will be infinitely easier. Unless I break something.

davedave1111 > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 16:21

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That’s what I meant. If you have a few mil gap, you can get the brush in to paint that side up to the centre, then do the next side, etc.

Jcarr > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 16:32

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Unless I break something.

The quintessential handyman’s caveat.

ttyymmnn > davedave1111 02/01/2016 at 16:41

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Seriously, there is just no gap, and I can’t pull the wires farther out of the wall. Believe me, I’ve tried.

davedave1111 > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 16:43

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Not arguing with what you can see and I can’t - I was just making sure I’d got across what I was trying to say.

ttyymmnn > davedave1111 02/01/2016 at 17:05

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You did. Thanks.

itranthelasttimeiparkedit > ttyymmnn 02/01/2016 at 17:29

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shut off the braker for the AC unit. those wires are sort of live - if they touch it can kick on the unit

ttyymmnn > itranthelasttimeiparkedit 02/01/2016 at 17:38

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Good to know. Thanks.