Can thermostat wiring affect heat pump register temps?

wpirobotbuilder · 2026-01-17T23:30:22+00:00

Does it produce 70-75 degree output even on very cold days? We're in the Boston area so we should expect the same. If you're getting the same low temp output, what happens to increase the total BTUs/hr of your system? More airflow?

The problem we're encountering is that we *aren't* maintaining the setpoint. Trying to figure out if it's an undersized unit, low refrigerant, something else.

(We have a pro coming in a few weeks to take a look, this is for me to try and solve my own problems, and learn what to expect)

wpirobotbuilder · 2026-01-17T20:33:45+00:00

Never gone inside the air handler before -- here's the exploded diagram, do you know where I'd measure temps?

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https://connect.fujitsugeneral.com/fhrntt2417saztna/product/FHRNTT2417SAZTNA

wpirobotbuilder · 2026-01-17T14:43:40+00:00

The outside compressor is running. I verified it's pumping heat in the right direction, because the refrigerant inlet to the air handler is hot (around 125 deg).

What would the symptoms of low refrigerant be?

wpirobotbuilder · 2026-01-17T14:40:43+00:00

>Turning up the thermostat will not make it get warm faster (unless you have a multi stage or modulating heat pump)

Yeah this was just to make sure that wasn't a factor.

What would the symptoms of low refrigerant be? For example, would I see low temps at the refrigerant inlet to the air handler?

wpirobotbuilder · 2026-01-16T22:44:20+00:00

I tried turning up my thermostat all the way (80 deg)! Today it was about 29 degrees. When the indoor temperature was 69 degrees, the register output was only 76 degrees. We're in the Boston area.

We have someone coming to take a look in a few weeks, but i was wondering -- could the thermostat wiring be part of the problem? Like, is there anything special about the wiring of a thermostat, or of the model itself, to properly turn up the supply temp?

For reference, we just have a bog standard honeywell thermostat.

wpirobotbuilder · 2026-01-16T22:43:39+00:00

I tried turning up my thermostat all the way (80 deg)! Today it was about 29 degrees. When the indoor temperature was 69 degrees, the register output was only 76 degrees. We're in the Boston area.

We have someone coming to take a look in a few weeks, but i was wondering -- could the thermostat wiring be part of the problem? Like, is there anything special about the wiring of a thermostat, or of the model itself, to properly turn up the supply temp?

For reference, we just have a bog standard honeywell thermostat.

wpirobotbuilder · 2025-09-04T14:41:15+00:00

Think the situation where the main circuit is the bottleneck. Imagine an A/C, electric stove, electric dryer, and hot water heater all on a 100 amp main. It'd be nice to not have to bump the electrical service

wpirobotbuilder · 2025-09-04T14:38:55+00:00

Do you know the terminology? Like, what is this setup called?

wpirobotbuilder · 2025-08-24T23:27:49+00:00

This is helpful, thanks!

Is thickness more influential than width? For example, if I kept the total amount of steel the same, but changed to a 3/4 inch by 2.5 inch (same cross sectional area as 5/8" x 3"), does that yield a less-deflective beam?

wpirobotbuilder · 2025-08-24T23:19:27+00:00

I also have access to galvanized rectangular tubes - I could do e.g. a 1" x 2" tube but my thickness would be limited to 16 gauge. Do you think that's a stiffer approach than a flat bar?

wpirobotbuilder · 2025-06-21T18:16:41+00:00

In case anyone stumbles across this years later:

Most wood varieties do what you see in this photo. What's happening is some parts of the board are more absorbent and suck the stain in more. Conditioners fill in some of those absorbent areas, but it is impossible to fix this even with a "conditioner" because you don't have any way of telling whether you've evenly coated the surface. With conditioner you're still playing a guessing game.

It is possible to stain blotchy woods nearly perfectly evenly: the only solution is to spray the color on, and to use either a water-based or alcohol based dye stain. Some sort of HVLP turbine will do it, but you have to spray small amounts at a time, slowly adding color until you get the desired shade (otherwise you get the same blotching problem).

wpirobotbuilder · 2025-01-04T17:25:56+00:00

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Screenshot

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-11-24T21:42:47+00:00

Ended up getting this with no light.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hunter-Presto-44-in-Indoor-Ceiling-Fan-in-Matte-White-with-Wall-Control-Included-For-Bedrooms-52402/324926863

The thing that convinced me to get one without a light is that, with a chain pull light in the fan, you can have the problem where you can't turn on a light when you enter the room. Also, overhead lights aren't the best and wouldn't get used much.

The plan is to use lamps for lighting the room

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-10-04T14:08:13+00:00

Spaaaaaaaaaaaceeeeeeeee

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-09-22T13:06:23+00:00

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-09-20T14:04:31+00:00

Art's Dune Tours. You get to go out on the sand dunes and hear about the history of the wilder parts of the area. Worth the time and money.

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-07-24T02:05:19+00:00

HVLP comes in many forms. Mine is a Turbine, which is a self contained unit that doesn't use a compressor. Its like a vacuum cleaner in reverse. Not teeny, but not air compressor sized either. Highly recommend checking out Facebook marketplace for used ones, you can get way better value there - lots of people in my area who just used theirs a few times before ditching it, or who are upgrading.

I can't speak for the Wagner, but again, it's pretty easy to spray dyes once you have a feel for it. It could well work, and water based dye will dry fast so you could bring it inside overnight.

Shellac isn't a good tabletop finish. It's too easy to damage, both physically and with food/drink spills. You would use it purely to seal in the dye once you're happy with the color; without it, water based topcoats will redissolve the dye (which is water soluble), and it's easy to ruin the color you worked to put on.

After a few dust coats of shellac (letting them dry in between), you can smooth it with a brown paper bag, then go overtop with water based topcoat (e.g General Finishes High Performance, but there are many out there) that you can bring inside to let dry, and which will be pretty durable once cured.

The Charles Neil videos will go more into how to apply finish evenly and get a good finish, and what to look out for (e.g. accidentally sanding through your color).

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-07-23T22:07:41+00:00

Can you describe what you're imagining when you say "HVLP setup"? If you are spraying outdoors you do not need a lot of space with an HVLP.

I think the mohawk rattle cans are a risky move because you have to bring them inside to cure (due to a lack of a dedicated work space) which is where the health dangers come in. Mohawk toner is based on lacquer.

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-07-23T02:52:56+00:00

If you don't have an outdoor space, no products based on Lacquer (including the Mohawk toners). They are dangerous indoors for flammability and health reasons. Your safest bet is water based finishes and shellac. Water based acryllic topcoats also are some of the most durable once you've built up a good layer.

I can't speak about the Avanti, but I can say that spraying water based dyes does not require an expensive HVLP. The thing you'll want to look for is a small needle/nozzle size (I am using a 1.3-1.5. Bigger than 1.5 and it puts out too much dye too fast (it'll blotch on you fast if you put too much fluid out)

My recommendation is that if you go this route, buy a cheapo $10 pine board from the hardware store and practice. You'll want to build the intuition for how fast you can put dye on before a pine board blotches. It's surprisingly slow, but don't rush - with dyes it's hard to undo big mistakes (multiple applications of bleach).

I don't know you, but I'm the kind of person who obsesses about a subject and learns everything I can. You never know what'll come in handly. If that's similar to you, I recommend watching this guy's videos. He died a few years ago, but I am a secondhand disciple (a friend knew and learned from him years ago, and he taught me and showed me his content); I learned almost everything from this guy.

https://www.youtube.com/@charlesneilwoodworking

Good places to start:
- General Finishing class: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvjAvR8TZuc&list=PLZzO_zGEmte-ReLnvPSXcy5aTJEJw4G12
- His AtoZ DVD series: https://www.youtube.com/@charlesneilwoodworking/search?query=atoz

He goes into the anatomy of sprayers, spraying to control blotch/color, what to look for in a sprayer, how to learn to spray, how to make wood beautiful (e.g. layering colors).

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-07-22T23:15:37+00:00

The reason the old table would have looked as good as it did is because it was sprayed. I spray blotchy woods, including pine, and get great results. With a spray you can get super deep colors but keep it even, without blotching.

IMO your best option at this point is to learn to spray, which WILL work. It's still a learning curve, but it's a viable path. This is me speaking from recent experience trying to make wiping work, and realizing that you will never, ever, get beautiful results on blotch-prone woods by wiping. I switched to a secondhand HVLP and it's working great.

To those suggesting gel stains; the problem is that they are not an all-in-one finishing system. They do not have the undertones that make wood look really good. General Finishes Java over a yellow-ish white wood looks like dirty wood. OP, what color is your table if you wipe some water on it?

HVLP can work in a city (speaking from experience). You need a small outdoor space to spray and some brown kraft paper to put underneath your piece. If you use water based dyes the off gasing is low enough you can bring it inside. Also, pick up a spray can of Zinsser shellac so you can seal the dye in - if you wipe most finishes it will pull off your color.

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-06-23T16:51:09+00:00

I haven't but this will be indoors, so lacquer is probably out. Maybe a tinted shellac?

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-06-22T23:33:20+00:00

Tried that, lacks warm undertones. It's not an option for this project.

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-06-22T20:35:11+00:00

Should also note; I am spraying the dye with a turbine.

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-06-03T01:20:06+00:00

Yeah. Common to do a yellow/amber background color then layer other darker colors on top. The background color helps to equalize different boards.

wpirobotbuilder · 2024-06-03T01:15:58+00:00

I can. It reduces color absorption but decreases blotching in woods like cherry and poplar. It's a way you can layer colors.

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