Accurate temperature sensing by heat pump?

[Bobbie54]

Someone posted something about this at one point and I can't find it, but I am hooked to power, have the heat pump on, and it is nice and warm- until it stops too soon. Guessing it is reading the ceiling temperature. I could just keep cranking up the remote but they had mentioned some way to get a more accurate sensor temp.

 

[CharlesinGA]

With reference to the Houghton 9500, Myself and at least one other, have found that the temp bulb inside the inlet of the system seems to cause constant cycling. I now have mine hanging outside of the plenum in free air, next time I use it I will see if it is an improvement or not.

EDIT:
This post, and this one, and finally, this one, all discuss moving the sensor outside the plenum, exposing it to free air. It looks goofy but if it works, so be it. I would like to extend the wires and run them above the headliner material and over to the wall and down to a small vented box. Probably never get around to it.

Charles

 

[Bobbie54]

Found it. Adding Air Conditioning Q’s….. I haven't figured out how to do it but that was what I was looking for.

 

[zephirus]

I have only used my heat pump for heat once and it never cycled off - just ran. Heat pumps only work to about 40-45 degrees and then they use aux. heat strips like a hair dryer. My propane heater worked much nicer. So agreeing with CharlesinGA. I wonder if Houghton has a solution ? The heat pump should cycle off once the interior temp is reached (mine did not).

 

[Bobbie54]

Mine cycles off but it does it too soon. I have it set for 74 to get an inside temp of 68. Propane heater does the same though and I have to mess with it to get the temperature right. Charles, I'll see what you did and maybe try it.

 

[Bobbie54]

With reference to the Houghton 9500, Myself and at least one other, have found that the temp bulb inside the inlet of the system seems to cause constant cycling. I now have mine hanging outside of the plenum in free air, next time I use it I will see if it is an improvement or not.

EDIT:
This post, and this one, and finally, this one, all discuss moving the sensor outside the plenum, exposing it to free air. It looks goofy but if it works, so be it. I would like to extend the wires and run them above the headliner material and over to the wall and down to a small vented box. Probably never get around to it.

Charles

 

[Bobbie54]

How do you take the inside cover off? I can't find anything in the manual about even how it is installed and don't want to break something trying.

 

[CharlesinGA]

How do you take the inside cover off? I can't find anything in the manual about even how it is installed and don't want to break something trying.

I guess you did not do the install yourself. Remove the filters. There should be two screws on each side exposed by removing them. There are four more recessed but visible screws in the plenum, remove them. Gently pull down on the cover enough to get your fingertips on top of the plenum in the most sturdy areas, probably the four corners of the cover where there are not louvers or the filters, and pull rather hard, it will pop off. There are wires attached to the inside of the cover for the receiver for the remote and the temp readout, unplug the wires. The can be plugged up backwards so when reinstalling make sure the colors match when plugging together.

There is a notch in the black plastic in the middle for the four wires going to the cover to fit into, between the red circles in the pic below.

The red circles indicate the clips the plenum snaps into when reinstalling it. Everything must be aligned just right, then give it a firm upward push.

Charles

 

[Bobbie54]

Thanks. What are the blue circles? And then where is the temperature sensor?

 

[Luvnlife-ESC]

Where the screws are

 

[CharlesinGA]

The blue circles are the bosses where the four screws that hold the cover on go after you have snapped it up in place.

Run all of the screws in by HAND. Using a power screwdriver is asking to strip out the plastic or the plywood in the ceiling on the outboard screws.

Sensor is tywrapped to a tab protruding thru the styrofoam near the top of the blue flex duct, aft RH side. This pic was taken looking thru the louvers in the plenum with the RH filter removed.

Charles

 

[CharlesinGA]

I have only used my heat pump for heat once and it never cycled off - just ran. Heat pumps only work to about 40-45 degrees and then they use aux. heat strips like a hair dryer. My propane heater worked much nicer. So agreeing with CharlesinGA. I wonder if Houghton has a solution ? The heat pump should cycle off once the interior temp is reached (mine did not).

Just to note, this unit does NOT have any electric heat strips, and most modern heat pumps produce into the mid 30'sF

Charles

 

[Bobbie54]

I have the 13,5 and it is doing just fine at 31-35 outside temp as far as the heating part goes. I just have to set it way high to get it to warm up enough. I'll work on releasing the temperature sensor when I have time at home.

 

[John in Santa Cruz]

can you wire in an external thermostat to control the heat pump? moving the thermostat away from the pump likely would lead to longer cycle times, and more accurate internal temps.

 

[Bobbie54]

I don't know why they don't put the thermostats in the remotes on these kind of units. It would make more sense since you tend to keep that where you hang out.

 

[John in Santa Cruz]

I use my propane furnace at night, which is under the bench in the back of the trailer, my thermostat is on the side of the closet across from the door, the bed is in front.... I find there's several degrees difference between the floor and the ceiling late at night when the heat is set for, say, 63F, unless I run the maxxfan in 'ceiling fan' mode (fan blowing down on 20% or 30% with the vent closed), then that 'stirs' the warm air into the room and equalizes things.

 

[Bobbie54]

I don't like to use propane when I'm paying for electric but the problem with it that I have yet to solve is that the thermostat is over the bed where it doesn't cool off as fast but everything else gets drafty and cold until it comes on again. There should be a setting to make it work better but I haven't figured out how to adjust it yet. I want to move that thermostat so it more accurately monitors the temperature as well.

 

[John in Santa Cruz]

at $19 for 4.,5G of propane (local price, its cheaper elsewhere) and considering that 4.5G of propane is good for a couple months of camping and running the heater at night, and I have 2 bottles... i just use it. My water heater is propane only anyways.

 

[John in Santa Cruz]

I don't like to use propane when I'm paying for electric but the problem with it that I have yet to solve is that the thermostat is over the bed where it doesn't cool off as fast but everything else gets drafty and cold until it comes on again. There should be a setting to make it work better but I haven't figured out how to adjust it yet. I want to move that thermostat so it more accurately monitors the temperature as well.

If you have a Maxxfan deluxe, turn it on, set it for 20% or 30%, 'in' (down), close the lid, and that's 'ceiling fan' mode, stirs the warm air down, so the floor to ceiling temps are more evenly distributed. Its easiest to do it with the fan's remote control (push On, push Close, set speed).