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Getting to Know Your HVAC Thermostat




You may have temperature control on a wall in your home to manage the heating system. That is your thermostat, a contemporary term derived from two ancient Greek words Thermo and Statos.


The thermostat has a floating mercury thermometer connected to a damper lid on a furnace. When the thermometer's mercury reaches a specific level, the float shifts, forcing the damper to close. Despite its simplicity, the first thermometer paved the way for modern thermostats.


Modern thermostats perform the same function but with a lot more technology. The thermostat of today is a heat-activated switch with a temperature sensor. This switch opens and shuts, completing or interrupting the electrical circuit responsible for heating and cooling with the help of HVAC duct access doors.


Let us examine the components of a thermostat to see how it works!

 

Mercury


This liquid metal conducts electricity and flows in the same way as water does— through three wires within a glass vial. The wire runs the whole length of the vial's bottom, ensuring that the mercury is constantly in touch with it. 


Thermocouples and Switches


Also known as a bimetal strip, formed by two pieces of different metals bolted together in a typical thermostat—the strip functions as a bridge in an electrical circuit linked to your heating system. Typically, the bridge is closed, and the strip will conduct electricity across the circuit and switch on the heating. When the strip heats up, one of the metals expands more than the other, causing the entire strip to bend slightly. It eventually bends so far that it breaks the circuit. When the bridge rises, the electricity will immediately power down, the heating will stop, and the chamber begins to cool.


Internal Mechanisms


When you move the thermostat's lever to increase the temperature, the thermometer coil and mercury switch rotate, tipping them to the far side.

After that, a current flows through the mercury switch when the switch tips to the left. This current activates a relay, which starts your home's heater and circulation fan. As the temperature rises in the room, the thermometer coil spins until it sends the mercury switch to the right, breaking the circuit then switching off the heat. A relay activates the air conditioner when the mercury switches tips to the right. The thermometer coil winds up as the room cools until the mercury switch tips back to the left.


Wiring


The power from the air-conditioning transformer enters the RC terminal. Then the current jumps onto a trace that runs to the terminal in the lower-right corner of the circuit board by the ball controlled by the mode switch.


Knowing how your HVAC system keeps you warm during cold days and cold during hot days operating through your thermostat will help you get the ideal temperature you want, keeping you and your family comfortable throughout the seasons. Be sure to learn the signs when your HVAC system needs maintenance since it's essential to make sure your thermostat continues to track the correct temperature.
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