One to two hours for most installations. A straightforward swap on a system with existing wiring can be under an hour; one requiring a new C wire, or configuration for multi-stage or heat pump equipment, takes longer.

What Happens During the Visit

We start by identifying your equipment — furnace or heat pump, single or multi-stage, whether auxiliary heat is present, and whether the system uses conventional or communicating controls.

Then we document the existing wiring before disconnecting anything. Thermostat wire colours are not standardised as reliably as people assume, and photographing the original terminals is what prevents a two-hour job from becoming a four-hour one.

The old unit comes off, the new base plate goes on, wiring is connected, and the thermostat is configured for your specific equipment. Then we run the system through heating and cooling to verify each stage responds correctly.

The C Wire Question

This is the variable that most often extends the visit.

Most smart thermostats need a C wire providing continuous power. Many older Hill Country homes were wired without one, because the thermostats of that era did not need it.

The options, roughly in order of preference: use an unused conductor already in the wire bundle, install a power extender kit at the furnace, use an add-a-wire adapter, or run new thermostat wire.

Running new wire is the most reliable and the most time-consuming — it can add substantially to the visit depending on the route between the thermostat and the equipment. We check for this during scheduling where we can, so the estimate is not a surprise.

Configuration Takes Longer Than Wiring

On simple systems, mounting and wiring is most of the job. On anything else, configuration is.

A heat pump needs the reversing valve orientation set correctly, auxiliary heat staging configured, and balance points established. Get this wrong and the system runs expensive electric backup heat when the heat pump could have handled the load — a mistake that produces no visible symptom and shows up only on winter bills.

Multi-stage equipment needs each stage mapped. Hybrid fuel systems need switchover logic set by outdoor temperature.

This is where a DIY installation most often goes wrong, and the failure is silent.

Setup and Walkthrough

Before we leave, we connect the thermostat to your wi-fi if it is a smart model, set up the app on at least one phone, and build a starting schedule with you.

That schedule conversation is worth having. In a Texas summer, aggressive setbacks can backfire — the house absorbs heat while you are out, and recovery runs the system hard while struggling with humidity. Moderate setbacks with a timed pre-cool generally work better here than the generic advice suggests.

We also show you how to override without breaking the program, which is the thing households most often get wrong in the first week.

Why It Sometimes Takes Longer

Beyond wiring: an unusual mounting location requiring patching or repositioning, discovering that the existing wire is damaged or undersized, or equipment that turns out to require a proprietary control from its manufacturer.

Communicating systems are the notable case — some manufacturers’ variable-speed equipment will not work properly with a third-party thermostat, and substituting one disables features you paid for. We check compatibility before recommending a model.

Combining It With Other Work

If you are already scheduling seasonal AC maintenance or furnace maintenance, adding a thermostat installation to the same visit is efficient — the technician is already at the equipment, which is where half the wiring work happens.

Settings get reviewed during subsequent maintenance visits under our Care Club maintenance plan, since a schedule set two years ago rarely still matches how the household lives.

We serve Fredericksburg, Kerrville, Boerne, Comfort, and the surrounding Hill Country. Contact 72 Degrees or call (830) 468-5316.