When my boyfriend moved into our apartment house, I got excited thinking it came with zone control.
The house had three thermostats in it.
There was one in the bedroom, kitchen and living room. I heard about zone control HVAC systems and figured this must be it. You can set the heating and cooling differently in each space. It is a great idea and can save money and add comfort to a home. I had grand plans of making a meal in the kitchen with the AC on. My boyfriend could enjoy quality heating while watching the game. During the summer, the two of us could splurge to have good AC when we sleep at night, but let the rest of the house get hot. The two of us talked for a long time on how each room would be set. After about a week of adjusting each thermostat and watching what the HVAC system did, it turns out there was no zone control. The house just for some reason had three thermostats that all connected to the same system. I was seriously bummed to figure that out. If I wanted AC in the kitchen, the rest of the house still got hit with cooling. At night, the bedroom temperature would be the same as the rest of the house. The two of us now just control one thermostat and ignore the two others. It seems so pointless for the house to have them. Eventually I will have a home of my own and will own a zone control HVAC system.