Trane Nexia Plugin Q&A

Use this thread for Q&A on the plugin. But reports and Feature requests should be submitted via GitHub: https://github.com/FlyingDiver/Indigo-T ... xia/issues

I have an xl950 Thermostat. It logs into my account, and reads much of the info. Somehow it does not see changes in heat or A/C. Is this due to the thermostat model? Is there someway to get the xl950 showing these changes?

How long are you waiting? It's a polling model so it won't be an instant update.

Otherwise, please open an issue on GitHub at the link above. Please include the output of the plug's "Write Thermostat Data to Log" menu command. Turn debug logging on and include the output from plugin restart to when you change the temp setting (through the next update cycle).

... It's a polling model so it won't be an instant update.

Question: How often does it poll, and is it possible to force a refresh?

Default is 15 minutes, minimum is 5 minutes, and it's configurable in the Plugin Configuration panel.

[jay (support)]

Since you apparently have experience with both Ecobee and the Trane WiFi thermostats, which one do you think is more reliable? I had a Honeywell WiFi thermostat and their network/api was down much too frequently for my taste and the WiFi implementation on the thermostat was so unreliable that I had to power cycle it periodically. And don't get me started on the Nest fiasco (though I never bought one of those). The Trane Z-Wave thermostats have been rock solid for me.

So I'm super hesitant to buy in to yet another WiFi thermostat solution. I am looking for a new one for our new home, preferably one with a remote temp sensor as well, so I'm back looking at the various Indigo alternatives. How would you describe your experiences with these two WiFi solutions?

I'd say go Ecobee unless you can't.

Ecobee has a published API that works reasonably well. The biggest issue users have with it is that it really is a "smart" thermostat and trying to control it like a dumb thermostat is going to be an exercise in frustration. So monitoring works fine, as do short-term overrides. But total control of the schedule from Indigo is going to take diligence in initial setup and command discipline.

Trane (Nexia, really) is a much more straightforward traditional schedule-based system. But it's a reverse-engineered API that depends on screen-scraping to obtain the authentication credentials. The ONLY reason I have the system (and wrote the plugin) is that the high-efficiency variable speed compressor and air handler we installs requires their thermostat. It uses a data bus communication with the air handler, not the standard multi-wire 24V system that Ecobee and Nest and everyone else supports.

The website and mobile app work fine, and it does Z-wave on it's own so you can use it as a smart home hub. But that doesn't help with Indigo.

I still use Ecobee for the two 1.5 ton units. It's Florida - for 4000 sqft we have (1) 5 ton and (2) 1.5 ton units.

Ecobee has been quite reliable, ever since I rewrote the original plugin to handle the authentication tokens properly. I get an error in the middle of the night fairly regularly, because I never figured out how to detect when the servers are down for daily maintenance. But the plugin connects when they come back up, so no big deal. The wall unit is one of the most attractive out there, IMO, and the remotes are quite small and very easy to add to the system.

Adding a remote sensor to the Trane system is a pain in the rear. Typical obscure service menus and so on.

So, unless you absolutely need a manufacturer specific thermostat (like the variable speed units do), I wouldn't hesitate to use Ecobee. I had four units in the house before we did the big unit changeout.

[jay (support)]

Thanks. The Ecobee does a good job of being "smart"? I know there were a lot of issues with the Nest intelligence such that some people turned it off.

The Nest tried to change it's own programming. The Ecobee doesn't. But it's smart about anticipating mode changes, etc, if you want to let it. I liked it, my wife didn't.

The biggest difference is that the schedule is based on changing "comfort" settings on a schedule, not temperatures.

On the Ecobee, changing a temperature is interpreted as putting a "hold" on the zone at the new temp. Making another change (like fan mode) releases the hold and starts a new one. For instance:

1. Comfort mode is temp 74, fan auto.
2. Change temp +1. System now has a hold at 75.
3. Set Fan mode to ON (from Auto). System now has a fan hold, but the temp is back to 74.

[jay (support)]

That's counter intuitive - how do you describe your comfort level if not by temperature?

This is what I'm concerned about - a thermostat that I have to fight with to get it to work right...

You define a full set of set points and fan settings, and name it as a "comfort setting". Then you select a comfort setting for each schedule period. Or you select a vacation comfort setting for a period you'll be away. And at the end of the defined vacation (date and time), it goes back to the normal scheduled comfort setting for that day/time.

You just have to think of it as a "set" of settings, not individual ones.

The problem is when you override the settings using the standard controls, the plugin doesn't define a new set. It just changes the specific setting, which causes the hold behavior.

If you've done all the setup the Ecobee way, then the behavior is consistent and makes sense. The problem is then trying to map changes to it.

[jay (support)]

Ah, that makes sense.

The plugin has actions to select a comfort setting. And you can specify "until next transition" (schedule period) or "permanent". So you can do your own scheduling with Indigo, but you can't create or edit comfort settings. That might be possible with the API, but I never tried to implement it.

[jay (support)]

Probably wouldn't want to - a UI customized to manage those settings would almost certainly be much better than anything you could do in Indigo.