New England B.S. Thread

I can absolutely help.
So, since you have a T87, I'm guessing it is 2 wire?

Low voltage
R(usually, red)- 24v
W-heat(sometimes white)
Y-AC(usually yellow)
G-fan(usually green, ALWAYS hot when Y is hot.
O/B- reversing valve(heat pumps)
C-common, color depends.

If you have 2 wires, I suspect it'll be red and white.

I can carry on, and we can certainly move this to DM...
Just know I'm absolutely slammed, and just getting from a 18 hour day..

 

Busy every day lmao

 

It’s gonna be a shit show when we get busy

 

-insert some stupid joke about the box on top-

 

it has my $6 elbow pads in it, so if someone really wants it they can have it haha

 

It was more fun as a mystery box..

 

Two wires, red and white. House was built in the mid 1960s, so has "period correct" wiring. We added central air about 1984, that uses a separate Thermostat which is again a vintage Honeywell round.

Back to heat. Two zones on upstairs, other downstairs. I eyeballed that the other day and it's definitely two wire. I'll eyeball the upstairs one when I can, but I see no reason to believe it's anything other than red & white.

From what I've read, the 24volt red is only hot when the boiler is actually running. If so, does that mean that I need to use battery powered thermostats?

The Lux gets pretty good reviews, but I'm completely open to suggestions from people who know what they are talking about. Which obviously is not me.

 

Speaking of class action law suits. I was watching "Roadworthy Rescues" on Motor Trend TV. Entertaining show, plus I remember when all of the vehicles he rescues were brand new. Anyway, he was working on a 1964 Chevy Bel Air and while he was pulling the engine he mentioned that one of the motor mounts was broken.

That reminded me of that on going fiasco that lasted for several years. 1965-1970 GM motor mounts would separate where the two haves were glued together and the right side of the engine would lift up. In turn, that would result in the transmission shifting into neutral and more or less stalling the car.

That happened to me several times when I was driving my Mom's 1965 Impala SS two door. Mainly because I was a 17 y/o kid hotrodding his Mom's super nice 1965 Impala SS.

Anyway, we figured it out before GM or Ralph Nader and replaced the motor mount at my Dad's shop.

My point, and i do have one, is that there was a recall, Ralph Nader probably made some money, but there was no massive class action law suit to make TV lawyers rich.

 

@HisDad

So, in your case, I would recommend we have a conversation before any purchases.

You will need to pull wire regardless.
Red should be hot(unless they landed it white on hot).

So. Your control is through the oil burner itself. Has a 24v line that uses the total as a switch to call the burner to run.
Basic, simple, reliable.

They DO make basic programmable , battery powered tstats that can work with a 2wire.

There are other ways to skin this cat... it's all about your goals... and I'm sure I missed that.

 

I call this: Avoiding DC, Baltimore, Philly, NJ, NYC. Making this trek Friday.

Richmond is a solid 7 out of 10 depending on the time I hit it. But also avoiding Richmond

 

Sounds like a very similar setup to mine minus having AC. I plan to just pull new wire where my current red/white two wire setup runs so I can have a constant “c wire” and don’t have to worry about power to the thermostat.

Same as above. Very simple system which I like. Boiler is new as of 2018 it looks like too so that’s a bonus. I’m thinking I can just pull 18/3 or 18/5 to my current thermostat locations and have the extra wire to act as a c wire. My question would be, and I haven’t looked too far into it yet, is where at the boiler do I get the constant 24v power from?

 

It looks like the route I take. Mass Pike to I-84. I-84 through CT, NY, PA until we hit I-81. Stop in Scranton for lunch at Abe's NY Deli. My only NJ stop is in Matamoros for cheap(ish) NJ gas. That carries us all the way to WV for gas as NY and PA gas prices are insane. We stop overnight in Winchester, VA (birthplace of Patsy Cline) and then finish up the next day.

We also stop at the Pilot in Sturbridge on I-84 to top off the gas tank. That's cheap(ish) gas and we see lots of CT plates on cars and trucks getting fuel there.

There is also the Blue Mountain Travel Plaza in Newburgh, PA. That's right off of I-81 and has pretty good food.

The scenery along that route is much better than I-95 and it's less than a hour difference in travel time.

 

Pulling wire for the downstairs isn't tough at all since it's through the basement and open. The upstairs might be a bit more of a project.

Boiler is a 2013 Utica. I forget off hand what the control panel is.

It's a lot more complex than the elderly boiler that was replaced. That was original to the house from the 1960s.

That said, if I can avoid it I'd prefer to do that.

 

Visited Springfield and found some gems.
Dr. Seuss sculpture garden.

And, the contrast of the Springfield Armory National Historical Museum.

 

One of these days I'm going to get back to the Springfield Armory. Was last there about 1980.

 

One thing I also found it that "Walmart" branded gas stations have really good prices. That's not "Murphy Oil" gas stations but the Walmart ones. There is one in Abingdon, VA right off of I-81. There were a couple in TN as well, but I forget the locations. You can probably search for them on line.

Also, Pilot generally has better prices, but Love's has cleaner restrooms.

If you go back to mid May in this thread I wrote multiple travelogue posts which gave a lot more detail about stops along the way.

To get to NOLA, at some point you are going to want to get on I-10. You'll probably want to go to the Mobile, AL area and then just jump on I-10 west. I don't remember which road will take you there, but as I recall about five years ago an Interstate was being built that would get you into AL.

 

Not going to lie, the stops for food are, unfortunately, Jersey Mike's and Burger king. My timing is leaving at 9, that should get me going through NYC area at a good time. If I leave earlier, I'd hit earlier during shenanigans traffic time. As it is, I'm getting home at 11 that's with 30 minutes stop for lunch and gas, dinner and gas. So, chances are 11:30 earliest.

But yes you are correct. I get to deal with 95 through Richmond, DC, Philly, Baltimore, NYC, Jersey, then through NYC and into CT.

OR add about the same distance, about the same time, and go through the mountains in the fall? Yeah, I know which way I'm going

There was a chance I break this into two days but then I'd be driving through the nice areas at night, so I decided to hammer down Friday all day and start early and get into the mountains and nice areas during daylight instead.

 

GO straight thru Maryland and Washington, its a shit show but a cool driving, you can see the pentagon up close and personal. In Maryland you pass by the head quarters of the Homeland Security too.

 

There's nothing wrong with Jersey Mike's subs. I'm not a fan of Jimmy John's, but that's a different story. I try to double up gas and food when possible. Or gas, piss, and coffee. Drain my personal tank as I'm filling the truck's fuel tank. If you get my meaning.

If you're destination is Richmond, then it's a longish one day drive, but clearly doable.

The only time I flew through NYC on I-95 was on a Sunday morning when I left my son's place in Edison, NJ at 06:00. Fastest trip I ever had as I made it home near Brockton in a little over 3 hours. Stopped only for coffee, gas, and some sort of Dunkin' Donuts breakfast thing.

Other than that, I avoid NYC like the plague. It's traffic jams in NYC almost 24 hours a day. Even worse than Boston.

 

Gas stations on the highway are unarmed robbery. As above, I try to combine gas with food and bathroom breaks. It's a lot faster that way. Around here BJs has the best gas prices. The one in off of I-84 in Waterbury, CT has good for CT prices. It's right off the highway, but not on the highway. If you know what I mean.

Once I get below 100 miles to empty I start seriously searching for a gas station.