How do Ecobee Room Sensors Work? (Simple Answer!)

How do ecobee room sensors work

Curious about how do Ecobee room sensors work to help you achieve the perfect temperature? Let's find out...

Who would think twice about investing in technology that will save money in the long run? While HVAC systems have made homes much more comfortable whatever the weather, they come at a cost. In fact, whenever you leave your home the whole day with the heat or the airconditioning on, you are paying for it. If you don’t, then you would be returning to a home that is either too hot or too cold. If only there was a way to switch your thermostat off before you go and switch it back on after work with enough time to get your place to a comfortable temperature. Wouldn’t you love that?

Ecobee came up with a smart thermostat that controls the temperature settings of your home’s HVAC system, but while it can adjust based on the room’s current temperature, the smart thermostat can only sense a limited area around it. This means, your hallway might be a few degrees higher or lower, so you might not be ending up with a comfortable home. 

Introducing Ecobee Room Sensors

ecobee room sensors

Your smart thermostat from Ecobee can be paired with their room sensors, which work together in measuring the temperature throughout the whole house and adjusting the settings accordingly. The main goal is to help you save energy and money, by allowing you to control your HVAC system remotely and even setting it to adjust automatically. 

Even when you are far away from home, you can open their app that helps you monitor the temperatures all over your place. As you may very well know, some parts of the house tend to be colder or warmer than others. And in some cases, you might not need so much heating or cooling in unused rooms or areas where it is not as necessary, saving you money as well. Because these sensors can be distributed in different areas, you have an idea of how each room’s temperature varies. 

Another top feature of these sensors is to detect whether someone is in the room, making adjustments as necessary to make it comfortable for the individual. If he is staying for a long time, then the sensor continues to send messages to the thermostat to stay on. This is done by the built-in passive infrared sensors that function both in dark and bright rooms.

Specifications Of Ecobee Room Sensors

Ecobee room sensors are available in packs of two but you can pair up to 32 with your smart thermostat. It is also not possible to only have the sensors, as they function together with the thermostat. Pairing them is easy, especially when your smart thermostat has already been configured. Once paired, you can set names on specific sensors so you know which room is being monitored.

Each sensor communicates with the Ecobee thermostat, using 915 MHz radio waves. The max range is 45 feet, though floors and thick walls can hinder their efficiency. They might also interfere with devices using the same frequency. When they are also installed too far, you might experience faulty or unreliable readings. 

Other Cool Features Of Ecobee Room Sensors

ecobee room sensors features

Your Ecobee room sensor features are accessible in the menu of the mobile and web app. You can also use the thermostat itself to access the menu. 

They have 3 default profiles - Home, Away, and Sleep. Besides these, you can create additional profiles using the web portal of Ecobee. For every profile, you can choose which sensors are used. You can also set temperatures when the thermostat should switch on. For example, when the temperatures fall below 70 °F, the heating is automatically activated while heating switches on once the temperatures go over 80°. 

A Follow Me feature makes sure that the active sensors average their temperature measurements and use it to activate the thermostat if necessary. This is a great feature that detects which rooms you actually occupy and make sure these spaces are comfortable for you (without huge temperature changes as you walk from one room to another)

Ecobee room sensors are particularly useful when you are not home, using the Smart Home/Away profile. The sensors track the comings and goings of the residents to set a comfortable temperature without wasting energy by staying on the whole day. However, once there is no one at home for 2 hours, this will switch off. 

While there are default comfort profiles, you can still set up your own profiles as long as you are using at least one active sensor.

Placing Your Ecobee Smart Sensors

You want your thermostat to function as efficiently as possible, and the key to this is to place the sensors in the perfect location. The first question you should ask yourself is, “where are the unusually cold or hot spots in each room?” This includes drafty windows or areas that are under direct sunlight during the day. Obviously, you will need to avoid them to prevent any faulty or unreliable readings. At best, place them at least 5 feet high. To make the most of the motion detection, they should be placed where doors and seating areas are.

Skip the kitchen because temperatures vary wildly when you are cooking. Instead, go for the outer areas of the kitchen. The same goes for bathrooms, as the sensors get conflicting readings when you go for a nice, hot shower.

Conclusion

ecobee smart sensors

Should you invest in Ecobee room sensors for your home? Well, if you already own an Ecobee thermostat, then it is a worthwhile upgrade. If not, you might need to shell out more for the whole system. Still, you need to weigh the potential savings in the long term. 

If your house is empty most of the day and tend to get too cold or too hot while you are out, then you can ensure both energy savings and a comfortable home by investing in the smart thermostat and room sensors. You will also get your money back much more easily if you find yourself paying a lot of money for HVAC in your area.

Smart home systems like this are designed to make life better for you and at the same time, do it as efficiently as possible. With the Ecobee room sensor and thermostat set, both are easily achieved.

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