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Micro-air Thermostat


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5 hours ago, CRY1942 said:

According to Micro Air this is a Plug & Play replacement.

However, it does NOT work with the Dometic, four button, thermostat. One has to upgrade from the FOUR button thermostat to the FIVE button thermostat and new A/C board(s).

Given the cost to upgrade to the Five Button Thermostat, new A/C Control Boards (2) and the Micro Aire, the total cost was a bit too high for me, although I really like the looks of the Micro Air. I replaced the insides of the Four Button Switches and the thermostat works good as new, so guess I will pass.

Why would you buy a 5 button, just to replace it with the micro aire?

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19 hours ago, fredelkamp said:

Anyone know the secret to removing the Five Button Thermostat? I don't want to destroy it during disassembly.

Look up underneath it. You'll see a tab against the wall. Gently pry down on that tab, pull the bottom out away from the wall and then lift the front cover up.

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  • 4 months later...

I just saw this thermostat on the Monaco facebook forum. They really brag on it.

When I eventually get all the important stuff going I think I'll buy one of these. I have to keep a flashlight on the kitchen counter to use so I can see the readout on my 5 button thermostat since it's so dim.

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If I were doing it again, I'd probably get microair instead of CCC2.

The CCC2 is a huge improvement over CCC in terms of visibility. And it looks nicer. Which is a good thing... because at 6" wide there's a whole lot more of it to look at... 😲

But in terms of new functionality I don't think it's worth the big honking hole I had to cut in the wall to mount it. 

Cheers,

Walter

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48 minutes ago, FishAR said:

I just saw this thermostat on the Monaco facebook forum. They really brag on it.

When I eventually get all the important stuff going I think I'll buy one of these. I have to keep a flashlight on the kitchen counter to use so I can see the readout on my 5 button thermostat since it's so dim.

I replaced both 5-buttons in my Monaco, and the Coleman in my fifth wheel with Micro-Airs.  Absolutely some of the best money I've spent on the coach.  My fifth wheel is permanently parked on a river so I have wifi there all the time and I have a hotspot in my Monaco so I always know the status of my ACs.  They work flawlessly and I love the peace of mind.

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I can echo Joe’s comments.  I’ve had the Micro-air for several months and have been very pleased. I also have (almost) full time WiFi, and being able to check on the status is nice. I’ll also echo an earlier comments… being able to see a FPC change the temp from anywhere in the coach is very convenient. The interface isn’t the prettiest software I’ve ever seen, but it does everything I need (and a few things I don’t). 
 

Probably the biggest compliment I can give is that my DW loves it and can operate it without having to ask for assistance. (She doesn’t love the NEST in our bricks & sticks). 

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I replaced our 5-button in our Monaco with the Micro-Air.  Absolutely some of the best money I've spent on updates. I have a Mobley and the wifi on in the coach all the time. So I always know the status of my ACs.  Works flawlessly and I love the easy to read display.

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On 7/10/2021 at 10:50 AM, Scotty Hutto said:

Probably the biggest compliment I can give is that my DW loves it and can operate it without having to ask for assistance. (She doesn’t love the NEST in our bricks & sticks). 

Scotty, I chose the Emerson Sensi Wi-Fi Thermostat for our Florida home shorty after purchasing it back in 2016 specifically so I could monitor & control the temp and humidity in the house while we are away on our coach trips during the summer months. I have been very pleased with the ease of use and visibility so much that I purchased the non-Wi-Fi version for the Aqua-Hot system zone one which is the salon & kitchen area of the coach.

https://tinyurl.com/3hpcmmbp

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On 7/11/2021 at 7:53 AM, BennieH said:

I replaced our 5-button in our Monaco with the Micro-Air.  Absolutely some of the best money I've spent on updates. I have a Mobley and the wifi on in the coach all the time. So I always know the status of my ACs.  Works flawlessly and I love the easy to read display.

How do you like the mobley? It has it's own data plan? 

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On 2/12/2021 at 7:10 PM, wamcneil said:

I can't speak to the cost specifically, but I think I understand the requiring requirements . At least in my RV...

The wall thermostat is connected to the first rooftop unit by a phone cable. you should already have that cable, and that first unit will be Zone1.

Then the other rooftop units are daisy-chained to Zone1 with a phone cable (Thermostat>>Zone1>>Zone2>>Zone3>>Zone4)

Only the first rooftop unit (Zone1) can use the temp sensor in the wall thermostat. Any other rooftop units that are daisy-chained off of Zone1 will each require a remote temp sensor to be connected to each rooftop unit.

Otherwise, I'm not sure any more rewiring is necessary. The wall thermostat isn't connected directly to the furnace or aquahot. It's the rooftop unit circuit boards trigger other features like the furnace or aquahot when told to do so by the thermostat. And all that other wiring should already in place.

Example: In my case, I've got a middle AC that is Zone2 on the bedroom thermostat. I would like it to be connected to the front thermostat instead. I believe I can run a phone cable overhead from the front AC to the middle AC, disconnect the phone cable that presently connects the middle AC to the bedroom AC and I think that's all that is needed. The middle AC already has a remote temp sensor located in the bathroom because it is currently Zone2 on the bedroom thermostat, and not controlled by a dedicated thermostat.

Does that help?

Cheers.

Walter

You might need to change some dip switches as daisy chained A/C’s need a switch setting in each so that the thermostat knows how many zones there are.

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Those that bought the micro-aire thermostat to replace the 5 button did you have to do anything to the original dometic ac/heat pump or aquahot for them to work? Can you replace just one ac in the back and use the micro-wire to control an original and a new dometic ac/heat pump? Thanks I have tried to research and look through all the posts but need some clarification. 
 

2006 Dynasty

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1 minute ago, Duey59 said:

 Can you replace just one ac in the back and use the micro-wire to control an original and a new dometic ac/heat pump? 
 

2006 Dynasty

I seriously doubt that could ever work. The thermostat is connected to the first AC, and then there's a data cable from the first AC (zone1) to the 2nd AC (Zone2). So for the thermostat to control both old and new ACs, it'd need to speak two languages down the same wire. 

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Makes sense. We are trying to just replace one of the ACs in the back but I believe they need the same control board. I have seen some that put the old control board on the new AC to make it work but not positive. I am sure the control boards have to be the same between the two units but we are trying to replace only one of the units. Thanks for the reply!

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3 hours ago, Duey59 said:

Those that bought the micro-aire thermostat to replace the 5 button did you have to do anything to the original dometic ac/heat pump or aquahot for them to work? Can you replace just one ac in the back and use the micro-wire to control an original and a new dometic ac/heat pump? Thanks I have tried to research and look through all the posts but need some clarification. 
 

2006 Dynasty

I believe that question would be best answered by the manufacturer. 

Maybe email or call them to ask, & let us know what they advise. 

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18 hours ago, Duey59 said:

... we are trying to replace only one of the units. 

Dometic sells a retrofit board for the new AC that makes it work with the old CCC. Save the normal board and then change the thermostat when you replace the other AC.

Cheers,

Walter

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I bought a MicroAir at FMCA Perry '21 but haven't tried it yet.  However when at the booth it appeared there were different models to replace depending on what you had ... 5 button or new CCC2 type units or Coleman vs Dometic. IMHO (which could be wrong), if you have Heat Pumps, the Penguin reversing valve is controlled differently depending on old vs new II model.  If it is not a Heat Pump but only A/C then as there is no reversing valve so there may be no difference.  In my case, as I had replaced the front HP (that is the only unit on the front thermostat) with a Penguin II and I had no wall space for the HUGE CCC2, I originally opted to put in the HP conversion control board and keep the 5 button.  But in that arrangement that front unit is very loud as the fan runs either very very very max loud or just a tad slower but still loud on lower fan setting.  Thus I was going to try putting the the original new Penguin II board back in and the MicroAir model specifically for a Penguin II that would fit the wall space of the 5 button and hopefully get the three speed fan settings.  But it's been too hot to get around to it.

So remembering what that vendor booth had with pictures of existing thermostats to pick the "right" model of MicroAir, I do not believe one MicroAir could control a mix of new and old Penguin HPs on the same thermostat without also modifying the new Penguin II with the back level conversion control board to work with the back level model of the MicroAir as to my knowledge there is no control board to make an old HP speak the new protocol to match the other new replacement HP on a same thermostat.  So when you get to the point of replacing the other old HP unit, now you are stuck having to get another back level conversion board for the new replacement, or a different (new) model of the MicroAir and put the original first Penguin II control board back into the first unit you replaced.  I THINK it is a catch 22....

FWIW

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Just installed my new Micro-Air thermostat last night and am very satisfied with it.  The only issue I had was one screw broke off when mounting it to the wall plate.  Maybe if I had drilled a larger pilot hole?  Maybe the screws they send are cheap. My phone did tell me the app is frequently crashing and recs keeping the app closed when not using.  I have an android. But so far, so good. 

16267825701641975574128760888803.jpg

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Guest KenAVTech

I installed one in my 2003 Camelot, works like a charm! Plug and play. I really like the blue tooth app as you can do everything from your iphone. Wifi is okay, but it depends on local internet strength! Also installed their Soft Starts on both roof units. I like them!

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8 hours ago, KenAVTech said:

I installed one in my 2003 Camelot, works like a charm! Plug and play. I really like the blue tooth app as you can do everything from your iphone. Wifi is okay, but it depends on local internet strength! Also installed their Soft Starts on both roof units. I like them!

With the soft starts, may I ask what you like about them?  Using on 30A or 15A? Or something else?

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Guest KenAVTech

Normally Im on 50 amp, But the initial startup of the AC units is much smoother as the fan starts first then a few minutes later the compressor kicks in. Dont think it would work well on 15amp, but it works fine on 30! Meaning I never tried 15!

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