We are thinking of renting out the main floor of our home but don't want the tenant to have control of the only thermostat. Perhaps we could disable the one on the Main floor and add one to the basement suite. What would this involve?
How to disable a main floor thermostat and add one in a basement suite
thermostat
Related Solutions
Condensing Unit Fan
If you're talking about controlling the speed of the fan in the outside condensing unit, the answer is no.
The job of this fan, is to remove heat from the refrigerant flowing through the system. Reducing the speed of the fan would reduce the cooling effectiveness of the system, and could lead to damage to, or premature failure of the system.
Blower Fan
If you're talking about reducing the speed of the blower fan (the fan that circulates air throughout the house), the answer is no again.
The job of this fan is to add heat to the refrigerant flowing through the system. Reducing the speed of the fan would reduce the cooling effectiveness of the system, and could lead to damage to, or premature failure of the system.
I think that in most cases you would run into the problem you described where you can't really provide "separate" power to the thermostat. This would obviously depend on the particular thermostat, however.
One smart thermostat manufacturer provides a 2-wire accessory kit. Looks like it completely replaces the 24VAC supply in the furnace.
http://www.smarthome.com/30418/Venstar-ACC0436-Thermostat-Two-Wire-Heat-Only-Kit/p.aspx
Also, definitely check out this Q&A on thermostat wiring.
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Best Answer
The thermostat wiring needs to be run to the location you want the thermostat or purchase a locking cover. Their are wifi controlled thermostats that you can install so it can be adjusted with your phone tons of option here I just grabbed one for an example.