As with all internet smart devices there are many choices when it comes to buying a smart thermostat. Reference The Top Smart Thermostats of 2021.

However, installing and setting up smart thermostats can be trickier than setting up other smart appliances. The first factor is the furnace, gas fireplace or A/C unit that the thermostat must communicate with to control. Some older models will not work with a smart thermostat.

The second factor is the wiring for the existing thermostat. Many older thermostat’s did not have a C-Wire ran from the furnace along with the other control wires. The C-Wire provides 24 Volts of continuous AC power that the smart thermostat’s internal computer needs to operate.

For example, the picture below shows the wiring of an older thermostat with no C-Wire available. There are only two wires coming from the furnace, a white and red wire. The white wire is connected into the W port (heating control relay) and the red wire is connected to the RC port (24 Volt AC for cooling call).

Those two wires were enough for the old thermostat, but a C-Wire adapter was needed in this situation to be able to install a smart thermostat. The good news is C-Wire adapters are not too expensive and pretty easy to connect into the thermostat. The hard part can be running the C-Wire from the nearest power socket to the thermostat. Depending on how far the thermostat is from a power socket you may evaluate hiring an electrician to run a C-Wire to the furnace or to install a power socket nearby.

Once you have your C-Wire in place you are ready to install the smart thermostat. The known brand names like Honeywell, Google and Ecobee all provide good instructions with the thermostat and online. You can also find YouTube videos demonstrating how to install your smart thermostat.

The main thing is getting the wires into the correct port on the smart thermostat as they were on the old thermostat. Note that the colors of the wires does not always match up with the port letter. The White port usually has a white wire as do the Red and Yellow ports. But the wire colors for the other ports (C, W1, Y2) can vary.

After you get the smart thermostat wired and installed on the wall the hardest part should be past. You are ready to power it up and connect it to your wireless internet.

Again there are plenty of good instructions out there to reference for the thermostat setup phase. But first you want to make sure the smart thermostat will actually control your furnace. You should be able to manually raise the temperature and hear the heater respond. Or the manual may guide you through other tests. Note, though, some smart thermostats will have default settings that have to be changed in order to control a gas fireplace vs. a standard furnace. Follow the setup guide step by step and read it carefully as you go to avoid failure problems at the end.

Finally you will be ready to configure the WiFi settings. Usually this is done by downloading an application on your smart phone and then connecting to the thermostat through the application. You’ll likely have to setup a login with the vendor and register your thermostat before you can finish.

At last you’ll have a smart thermostat that can really simplify life and help you keep heating costs down. If you leave your cabin to go home for the week you can set the heat low. Then when you head back up you can raise the thermostat and get the cabin warmed up before you arrive.