thermostat (Home Systems)

Thermostat

• What this is: how your thermostat works, how to choose and install one correctly for any BC home — including the heat-pump compatibility trap, the C-wire install snag, and how to claim BC rebates.
• Not: the heating system itself (see heating-system (Home Systems)); cooling/AC equipment (see cooling-ac (Home Systems)); smart-home platforms or hub devices (see smart-devices (Home Systems)).
• Figures: 2025–26 Metro Vancouver estimates — get your own quotes. Rebate amounts change; verify with BC Hydro and FortisBC before purchasing.

Bottom line

The rule (tripwire)

• If you have a heat pump and are buying any thermostat → verify heat-pump compatibility first. Most basic and older programmable thermostats do NOT correctly control a heat pump’s aux/emergency heat staging. A mis-wired or incompatible thermostat runs your expensive electric-resistance backup heat instead of the efficient heat pump — costing 2–3× more per heating cycle.¹ This is BC’s number-one thermostat trap as heat-pump adoption accelerates.
• If your home has no C-wire → stop before ordering a smart thermostat. Most Wi-Fi smart thermostats require a common (C) wire for continuous power. Without one you will need an adapter kit or an HVAC technician to run one — both are solvable, but discovering this after purchase wastes time and may void manufacturer warranty if incorrectly attempted.²³
• If a thermostat swap on a heat pump or multi-stage system is anything other than a straight like-for-like swap → hire an HVAC technician, not a general handyperson. Wrong O/B wire polarity or missing auxiliary-heat wiring will silently run the system in the wrong mode.⁴

Recurring upkeep

• Test your thermostat’s schedule seasonally — spring (switch to cooling mode, confirm setpoints) and fall (switch to heating mode, confirm setpoints and any overnight setback). About 5 minutes twice a year.
• Replace batteries annually (non-C-wire models and backup-battery models) — most smart thermostats will alert you, but do not wait for a low-battery lockout in mid-winter.

One-time setup

• Check for a C-wire before buying a smart thermostat. Remove your current thermostat faceplate and look for a wire connected to the terminal labelled “C.” If absent, buy a model that includes an adapter (ecobee Power Extender Kit, Nest proprietary power-sharing) or budget for a technician to run one.²³
• Check BC Hydro and FortisBC rebate eligibility before purchasing. FortisBC offers up to $150 for ENERGY STAR–certified smart thermostats for eligible customers (fall 2026 BC Hydro free-thermostat program targets electric-baseboard homes specifically).⁵⁶ Buying a non-eligible model costs you a real rebate.
• If you are in a strata: confirm whether the thermostat controls a shared system. A thermostat that controls common-area heating or a centrally managed HVAC system is common property — the strata is responsible for it, not you. Most in-unit thermostats are owner-scope.

Standing facts

• Thermostat replacement at low voltage (24V, like-for-like) does NOT require a Technical Safety BC electrical permit under BC’s Electrical Safety Regulation s.18(2) — the exemption covers replacements “of a similar type or rating” up to 150V to ground.⁷ This applies to detached homeowners AND strata owners (unlike higher-voltage electrical work).
• Strata owners CANNOT pull homeowner electrical permits for any other electrical work — but thermostat swap at low voltage sits inside the permit-exempt category.⁸
• An HVAC technician (not an electrician) is the right trade for heat-pump thermostat wiring — they understand staging, O/B valve polarity, and aux-heat logic.

How it works — the one thing that matters

A thermostat’s only job is to close or open electrical circuits that tell your HVAC equipment to run. The critical difference is that controlling a heat pump requires more circuits than controlling a furnace — and getting them wrong silently costs you money.

Furnace / central AC (simple system): A basic two-wire thermostat handles this: R (24V power), W (heat call), Y (cool call), G (fan). The thermostat closes a circuit, the furnace fires. Four wires, nearly any thermostat works.

Heat pump (complex system): A heat pump needs additional wires for functions a furnace doesn’t have:

• O/B wire — controls the reversing valve that switches the refrigerant circuit between heating and cooling mode. Most brands energize the valve in cooling (O terminal); Rheem/Ruud energize it in heating (B terminal). A thermostat configured for the wrong polarity runs the heat pump in cooling mode all winter, or heating mode all summer — silently.⁴⁹
• W/AUX wire — calls for auxiliary (electric resistance) heat strips when the heat pump cannot meet demand. At moderate BC temperatures the heat pump alone is enough; on cold snap nights the aux strips kick in automatically. A thermostat that triggers aux prematurely (because it can’t read heat-pump output or miscalculates the recovery needed) runs 2–3× more expensive heating.¹
• E wire — emergency heat, manually engaged only when the heat pump itself has failed. Bypasses the heat pump entirely and runs only the electric strips.
• C wire — powers the thermostat continuously; required by most smart thermostats and by many heat-pump thermostats because they need the power to manage multi-stage logic.²

So what: a heat-pump-compatible thermostat explicitly supports the O/B reversing-valve setting, aux/emergency heat terminals, and heat-pump staging logic. A generic programmable thermostat from a hardware store usually does not. With BC’s ongoing switch from gas furnaces to heat pumps, this compatibility check is the most important thing to do before any thermostat purchase. → Heat-Pump-Compatible-Thermostats-Require-OB-Wire-and-Aux-Staging (Home Systems)

C-wire physics: Old thermostats ran on two wires and drew tiny amounts of power through a trick called “power stealing” (borrowing a tiny parasitic charge from the heating or cooling wire). Smart thermostats with Wi-Fi, colour displays, and always-on learning cannot steal enough power this way — they need a dedicated C (common) wire as the return path of the 24V circuit. Without it: display flickers, Wi-Fi drops, thermostat resets, or the furnace control board heats up from the parasitic load. The solutions are: (a) a C-wire adapter that repurposes an existing unused wire, (b) a thermostat with a built-in adapter kit (ecobee Power Extender Kit), or (c) an HVAC technician running a proper C-wire back to the furnace board.²³ → C-Wire-Is-the-Number-One-Smart-Thermostat-Install-Snag (Home Systems)

What goes wrong, and the warning signs

Watch for	What it means
Heating or cooling never turns on	Thermostat not calling — check wiring, dead batteries, or a tripped breaker at the furnace
System runs constantly and won’t shut off	Thermostat stuck in “call” — short circuit in wiring, or failed thermostat
Heat pump runs but home won’t warm up	Aux heat not working, or O/B polarity wrong (system heating in “cooling” mode)
Aux/emergency heat light always on	Thermostat is bypassing the heat pump — wrong configuration or O/B mismatch
Thermostat display flickers or Wi-Fi drops repeatedly	Missing or weak C-wire — the thermostat can’t get enough continuous power
Short-cycling (system turns on and off every few minutes)	Thermostat placed near a heat source or draft (false temperature readings) — fix placement first
Thermostat reads different from room temperature	Placed on exterior wall, near a vent, or near heat-generating appliances — placement is the cause
Schedule not running as set	Battery low on a non-C-wire model, or time zone / DST setting off

What actually fails (the load-bearing failures):

• Wrong heat-pump configuration — the O/B polarity or aux-heat wiring is incorrect. The system appears to work but runs in the wrong mode or triggers expensive aux heat constantly. This is the failure that costs you real money, invisibly.¹⁴
• Missing C-wire on a smart thermostat — parasitic power-stealing causes intermittent resets, display issues, and in some cases overheats the furnace control board (a $300–$600 part). The thermostat appears to work until it doesn’t.²
• Thermostat placed in a bad spot — reads high because it’s in a sunny hallway, or reads low near a drafty window. The HVAC runs longer and more often than needed, and no amount of adjusting setpoints fixes it.
• Thermostat failure (age/wear) — older analogue bimetallic thermostats drift over time; programmable models can fail around electronic components. Usually manifests as the system not responding to calls or running non-stop.

When to replace vs repair

What you see	Do this
Thermostat is an old analogue / mercury-bulb model	Replace — mercury thermostats must be disposed of as hazardous waste; and any analogue is worth replacing for scheduling gains alone
System won’t respond to calls; new batteries don’t fix it	Replace the thermostat — failure is in the unit
Heat pump added or upgraded but thermostat is not heat-pump–compatible	Replace — a furnace-only thermostat on a heat pump is wrong equipment for the job
Smart thermostat loses Wi-Fi repeatedly despite C-wire present	Diagnose router/signal first; if signal is fine, likely a thermostat defect — replace under warranty
Display blank with known-good batteries and power	Try a factory reset first; if still blank, replace
Thermostat works but is non-programmable and you pay for heating	Replace with a programmable or smart model — the setback savings pay back the cost in under two years at typical BC energy prices10
System short-cycles or reads wrong temperature	Check placement before replacing — this is almost always a placement problem, not a thermostat failure

Verdict: a thermostat replacement is fully reversible (you keep the old one) and cheap ($25–$300 for the device) — this is a low-stakes, do-it-yourself decision for most homeowners. The only exception is a heat-pump–system thermostat swap, which crosses into “hire an HVAC technician” territory because a wiring error costs more than the technician does. No The Decision Lifecycle full-process needed — the cost is below $500 and the decision is reversible.

Typical cost (BC / Metro Vancouver)

Tier	What’s included	Range	Sources
DIY / parts only	Thermostat unit only (manual/programmable $15–$100; smart $100–$300); you supply installation	$15–$300	11212
Basic	Like-for-like swap on a simple forced-air system; HVAC technician or handyperson; no C-wire work	$150–$350 total (device + labour)	111213
Standard	Smart thermostat swap including C-wire adapter install or C-wire run to furnace board; HVAC technician; heat-pump system compatibility config	$250–$500 total	111213
Premium / complex	Heat-pump multi-stage system with proprietary communicating thermostat (Lennox iComfort, Daikin One+); or new thermostat location requiring wall patching and new wire run	$400–$800+	413 — indicative (limited sources)

Metro Vancouver labour rates for HVAC technicians run $100–$150/hour; most standard thermostat swaps take 30–60 minutes plus configuration time. A C-wire run from thermostat to furnace adds 30–60 minutes of additional labour. Get a written quote before work begins.

Before net rebates: FortisBC rebates up to $150foreligibleENERGYSTAR–certifiedsmartthermostats{[}^5];BCHydr{o}^{\prime }sfall2026free-thermostatprogram(valuedat$350) targets electric-baseboard homes specifically — different program, different eligibility.⁶ Rebates reduce effective device cost but do not reduce installation labour.

Communicating/proprietary heat-pump thermostats (Lennox iComfort, Daikin One+) only work with matching-brand equipment — verify before any purchase.⁴

How to maintain it — the procedures

Procedure: Seasonal mode switch and schedule check — twice a year

Why: thermostats are often set once and forgotten. A mis-set schedule in spring (still calling for heat after switchover) or fall (no overnight setback programmed) wastes energy all season.

You’ll need: the thermostat manual or app; 5–10 minutes.

1. Spring (April): switch mode to “cooling” (or “auto” if available). Confirm summer setpoints: away/vacant temperature, sleeping temperature, waking temperature. Confirm the schedule days match your actual routine.
2. Fall (October): switch mode to “heating.” Confirm winter setpoints. If you have a heat pump: confirm the setback overnight is no more than 2–3°C from your comfort temperature — deeper setbacks trigger costly aux heat on recovery.¹⁴¹
3. Confirm the thermostat’s date and time are correct (DST changes can shift schedules by an hour).
4. If the unit has a “heat pump” mode: confirm the O/B setting matches your system (check your HVAC manual or the label on the furnace/air handler).

Done when: mode is correct for the season, setpoints match your comfort preferences, and schedule days are accurate.

Stop and call an HVAC technician if: the system doesn’t switch modes properly after you change settings, aux heat is running continuously, or you’re unsure whether the O/B terminal is configured correctly for your heat pump.

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Procedure: Battery replacement — annually (non-C-wire models)

Why: a dead battery in a non-C-wire thermostat means no heating or cooling — the system goes dark.

You’ll need: replacement AA or AAA batteries (check model label); 2 minutes.

1. Pull the thermostat face off the wall plate (most snap off).
2. Replace batteries — note polarity.
3. Re-seat the face. Confirm the display comes back on and shows the correct time and temperature.
4. Confirm the current schedule re-loaded (some models retain settings in memory; some reset to factory defaults on battery change — check your manual).

Done when: display is on, time is correct, schedule is intact.

Stop and call a pro if: display does not come back on after fresh batteries — the unit has failed.

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Procedure: Smart thermostat DIY swap (simple forced-air system with C-wire) — one-time

Why: replacing an old thermostat with a smart model on a simple forced-air system is genuinely a 15–30 min DIY job if the wiring is compatible.

You’ll need: new thermostat and its manual; a screwdriver; a phone (for photos); tape and marker (to label wires); patience.

1. MUST turn off power to the furnace/air handler at the breaker before touching any wiring.
2. Remove the old thermostat faceplate. Photograph every wire and its labelled terminal before disconnecting anything.
3. Count the wires and match them to your new thermostat’s compatibility checker (most smart thermostat brands have a free online tool — enter your existing wire labels).
4. If no C-wire is present: stop. Consult the new thermostat’s C-wire adapter documentation, or call an HVAC technician.
5. Disconnect each wire, label it with the terminal letter from the photo.
6. Mount the new wall plate; reconnect wires to their corresponding terminals on the new thermostat.
7. Restore power. Follow the in-app setup to configure your system type, schedule, and any heat-pump staging if applicable.
8. Run a heating and cooling test cycle to confirm the system responds correctly.

Done when: heating and cooling calls work; display shows correct temperature; schedule is running.

Stop and call an HVAC technician if:

• You have a heat pump (the O/B polarity configuration requires HVAC knowledge)
• No C-wire is present and you’re not confident running one or using an adapter
• The wiring doesn’t match the terminals on the new thermostat
• System short-cycles or aux heat runs constantly after installation

Maintenance calendar:

• Twice yearly (April and October): seasonal mode switch + schedule check.
• Annually (October, before heating season): replace batteries if applicable.
• At any HVAC equipment change (new heat pump, new furnace, new air handler): re-verify thermostat compatibility — the old thermostat may not support the new equipment’s staging.
• At move-in: photograph existing wiring before touching anything; run the compatibility checker for any planned smart thermostat.

Thermostat placement — the often-skipped step

Where you put the thermostat determines what it measures. A thermostat in the wrong spot creates phantom calls — the system runs to satisfy a false reading while the actual living space is too hot or too cold.

Mount on:

• An interior wall in the main living area (away from exterior walls)
• About 1.5 m (52–60 inches) off the floor — where occupied-room temperature is most representative¹⁵
• A location with good air circulation from the living space

Never place near:

• Windows, exterior doors, or skylights (drafts and solar gain cause false readings)
• Supply vents or return-air grilles (direct conditioned air flow skews readings dramatically)
• The kitchen (cooking heat spikes)
• Sunny walls or south-facing windows (afternoon solar hits the sensor)
• Heat-generating appliances: lamps, televisions, ovens
• Hallways with poor air circulation

For strata units: the existing thermostat location is usually fixed. If you suspect placement is causing issues (system short-cycles, readings differ from an independent thermometer by more than 2°C), note it when you call your HVAC technician — moving a thermostat location requires new wire routing and is a technician job.

Setback strategy — and the heat-pump exception

Conventional forced-air (gas furnace / electric furnace): Setback scheduling works exactly as advertised. Setting back 7–10°C for 8 hours per day can save about 10% on heating annually.¹⁰ Overnight setbacks of 3–5°C are the standard recommendation. A smart thermostat’s adaptive learning optimizes this automatically.

Heat pump — the exception: Deep setbacks (>3°C) on a heat pump frequently trigger the aux/emergency electric-resistance heat strips on recovery, which cost 2–3× more per unit of heat than the heat pump itself. The efficiency gain from the setback is wiped out by the expensive recovery.¹⁴¹ → Smart-Thermostat-Setback-Penalty-On-Heat-Pumps (Home Systems)

Heat pump setback guidance:

• Keep overnight setbacks to 2–3°C maximum in winter
• Use “recovery mode” features in heat-pump–compatible thermostats (ecobee, Nest) — they pre-warm gradually to avoid triggering aux heat
• In very cold snaps (below –5°C outdoor), consider no setback at all — the heat pump is already working hard and recovery will definitely trigger aux strips
• Summer cooling setbacks are less penalty-prone — you can be more aggressive (4–6°C) when away

Strata reality

In-unit thermostat = owner scope (with one important exception).

In most BC strata, an in-unit thermostat that controls only your suite’s HVAC equipment is part of your strata lot — your responsibility to maintain and replace.¹⁶ Standard Bylaw 2 puts owners in charge of their strata lot maintenance.

The exception: if your strata uses a central heating system (common boiler or central heat pump feeding all units) with thermostats that control shared equipment or communicate with a building-wide system, those thermostats may be common property or limited common property. Check your strata plan and bylaws before touching a thermostat in this scenario.

Permit reality: thermostat replacement at low voltage (24V) is exempt from TSBC electrical permit requirements under BC Electrical Safety Regulation s.18(2) — this is the one area of electrical work where strata owners and detached homeowners have the same exemption. You do not need to hire a licensed electrician to swap a like-for-like low-voltage thermostat, even in a strata.⁸⁷ However, hiring an HVAC technician (not an electrician) is still recommended for heat-pump systems.

Relevant SPA provisions:

• Standard Bylaw 2 — owner’s duty to maintain strata lot
• Standard Bylaw 8 — strata council approval needed for alterations that affect common property or limited common property; a simple thermostat swap (same location, same footprint) typically does not trigger this

No s.158¹⁷ chargeback exposure for a thermostat failure (unlike a water heater or washing machine, a thermostat failure does not flood a neighbour). Strata insurance implications are minimal unless a thermostat malfunction causes a freeze-up that bursts pipes — remote, but worth knowing the responsibility chain sits with you for the thermostat.

When you hire someone

Ask:

• Are you an HVAC technician (not just a handyperson) familiar with heat-pump staging and low-voltage wiring?
• Have you worked with my specific heat pump brand and model? (Proprietary communicating systems require brand-specific knowledge.)
• Will you run the thermostat’s compatibility checker and confirm correct O/B polarity before installation?
• Is C-wire installation (if needed) included in the quote, or quoted separately?
• Will you test both heating and cooling mode after installation?
• Do you handle rebate paperwork, or do I submit that myself?

Verify the work:

• Heating call confirmed working (system runs and reaches setpoint)
• Cooling call confirmed working
• For heat pumps: aux heat only activates when the heat pump cannot meet demand — not continuously
• Thermostat display shows correct room temperature (within 1–2°C of a separate thermometer)
• Schedule is programmed and running
• No short-cycling (system should run in cycles of at least 5–10 minutes, not flicker on/off)

Who to call

These become real when filled in the Tier-B MOCs:

• HVAC technician (heat-pump–experienced) → vendor-roster (Home Systems). Fill: company name, phone, notes on whether they service your heat-pump brand (Daikin, Mitsubishi, Lennox, etc.).
• BC Hydro / FortisBC rebate program → vendor-roster (Home Systems). Fill: your utility account number; note the current rebate program name and expiry date at the time you buy.
• Strata manager → Strata MOC. Fill: confirm whether your thermostat controls a shared system (common property) or only your unit (owner scope), and whether any alteration approval is needed.

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Sources

Idea Compass

North: Where this comes from

• HVAC (Home Systems) — parent system
• heating-system (Home Systems) — the equipment the thermostat controls
• Heat-Pump-Compatible-Thermostats-Require-OB-Wire-and-Aux-Staging (Home Systems) — the core compatibility mechanism this note rests on

East: Tensions / failure

• C-Wire-Is-the-Number-One-Smart-Thermostat-Install-Snag (Home Systems) — the install trap that catches most DIYers
• Smart-Thermostat-Setback-Penalty-On-Heat-Pumps (Home Systems) — the setback strategy conflict for heat pump owners
• cooling-ac (Home Systems) — the other mode the thermostat controls; heat-pump systems blur the line

South: Where this leads

• vendor-roster (Home Systems) — the HVAC technician named-resource card
• smart-devices (Home Systems) — smart thermostat overlaps with home automation
• the BC Hydro / FortisBC rebate programs — the financial downstream of choosing an ENERGY STAR–certified model

West: What’s similar

• electrical-panel (Home Systems) — same pattern: a control component where the DIY line is “like-for-like swap is fine; anything involving staging or load changes needs a licensed trade”
• water-heater (Home Systems) — same pattern: rebates available, BC Hydro and FortisBC programs, compatibility check before purchase
• The Decision Lifecycle — the repair-vs-replace framing (thermostat is low-stakes enough that full process is rarely needed)

Footnotes

1. About Darwin, HVAC guidance — heat pump thermostat settings: aux heat costs 2–3× more than heat pump operation; recommended winter setback no more than 3–5°F (2–3°C); gradual 30–60-minute recovery preferred — https://www.aboutdarwin.com/best-heat-pump-thermostat-settings/ ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

2. Sensi by Copeland (thermostat manufacturer) — C-wire explanation: what it is, why smart thermostats need it, options when absent (unused wire, repurposed G wire, adapter, or battery models) — https://sensi.copeland.com/en-ca/support/what-is-a-common-wire ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

3. iFixit, repair resource — thermostat wiring terminal letter guide: C wire function, O/B reversing-valve wire, W/W2 auxiliary and emergency heat, Y wires for cooling — https://www.ifixit.com/News/30317/what-all-those-letters-mean-on-your-thermostats-wiring ↩ ↩² ↩³

4. EcoFrost Heating, Canadian HVAC guide — heat pump thermostat compatibility 2026: O/B wire polarity requirement; brand-specific communicating thermostats (Lennox iComfort, Daikin One+ are equipment-proprietary); expert installation recommended for heat-pump multi-stage systems — https://www.ecofrostheating.ca/blog/best-smart-thermostats-canada-2026 ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

5. FortisBC, the BC natural gas utility — connected thermostat rebates: up to $150forENERGYSTAR–certifiedsmartthermostats;income-qualifiedupto$200; instant in-store rebates March–October 2026 — https://www.fortisbc.com/rebates/detail/connected-thermostat-rebates ↩

6. Victoria Buzz, BC news source — BC Hydro free smart thermostat program (announced May 2026): thermostats valued at ~$350forelectric-baseboardhomes;expectedfall2026;enrollmentbonus$100 and seasonal rewards $50–$200 through Peak Saver — https://victoriabuzz.com/2026/05/bc-hydro-to-offer-free-smart-thermostats-starting-this-fall/; BC Hydro Peak Saver enrolment page — https://www.bchydro.com/powersmart/residential/rebates-programs/peak-saver/enroll-smart-home-devices.html ↩ ↩²

7. BC Electrical Safety Regulation, s.18(2) — permit exemptions: replacement of thermostats up to 150 volts to ground with equipment of similar type or rating does not require an electrical permit — https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/12_100_2004 ↩ ↩²

8. Technical Safety BC, the BC electrical safety regulator — homeowner electrical permits: strata owners cannot obtain homeowner electrical permits and must hire a licensed contractor for electrical work — https://www.technicalsafetybc.ca/apply-for/permits/homeowner-permits/homeowner-electrical-permits ↩ ↩²

9. Hamco HVAC, Canadian HVAC contractor — compatibility issues overview: high-voltage baseboard heaters require dedicated thermostats (not standard 24V smart models); millivolt systems rarely support smart thermostats; heat pump O/B configuration as common professional installation step — https://hamco.ca/2026/02/hvac-and-smart-thermostat-compatibility-issues-what-homeowners-should-know/ ↩

10. U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency — programmable thermostat savings: up to 10% per year with 7–10°F (4–6°C) setback for 8 hours; savings higher in mild climates — https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/programmable-thermostats ↩ ↩²

11. Mysa Smart Thermostat, the Canadian thermostat manufacturer — installation cost breakdown: DIY with C-wire $159CAD;withadapter$174–$194CAD;professionaltotal$239–$359 CAD; payback 8–12 months — https://getmysa.com/en-us/blogs/all/smart-thermostat-installation-cost ↩ ↩² ↩³

12. Airtek, Canadian HVAC resource — thermostat installation costs in Canada: $150–$500 total; professional labour $100–$250; C-wire adapter adds $50–$100; urban centres (Vancouver, Toronto) run higher than smaller cities — https://airtekshop.com/blogs/all/thermostat-installation-costs-in-canada-what-you-need-to-know ↩ ↩² ↩³

13. HomeAdvisor, US home services cost guide (US source, flagged — Canadian prices will differ) — smart thermostat installation average $350(range$200–$500);licensedelectricians$50–$125/hr;HVACtechnicians$50–$150/hr;C-wireinstallationadds$50–$100/hr — https://www.homeadvisor.com/cost/heating-and-cooling/smart-thermostat-installation/ ↩ ↩² ↩³

14. GreenBuildingAdvisor, building science resource — programmable thermostats and heat pumps: aux heat activation on recovery negates setback savings; expert recommendation of minimal setbacks (1–2°C) or disabling aux strips in mild weather — https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/question/using-a-programmable-thermostat-with-a-heat-pump ↩ ↩²

15. Cielo WiGle, smart thermostat resource — thermostat placement: mount 52–60 inches off the floor on an interior wall; avoid direct sunlight, supply vents, exterior walls, kitchen, appliances, and hallways — https://cielowigle.com/blog/thermostat-placement/ ↩

16. Province of BC, BC government — division of repair duties in a strata; Standard Bylaw 2 puts owner in charge of repair and maintenance of their strata lot — https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/strata-housing/operating-a-strata/repairs-and-maintenance/division-of-repair-duties ↩

17. Strata Property Act (BC Laws) — the governing statute (incl. ss. 135, 158, 164) — https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/98043_09 ↩