This morning I caught the system just as it turned on (my ears are now trained to listen for the click of the tstat and the fan coming on.) This time, when the tstat started heat all by itself, the Aux Heat call did not come on. I have a feeling that anytime I try to force the heat on myself, the tstat is seeing a large enough delta between set and actual temp that it is kicking AH on. I will have to watch the operations over the next few days to see if it consistently works without AH. In the mean time, the breaker to the heater pack is off to avoid the toaster. I have decided to send an email to Honeywell tech support on the CPH setting for my tstat. Now that I understand what the CPH setting does, I need to know how the logic is implemented. For example, my tstat setting for Compressor Cycle Rate is set to 3. Does the tstat bleed these 3 cycles per hour (max) uniformly over an hour of time - or does it simply allow 3 on/off cycles in rapid succession, and then no more for the rest of the hour. If the allocation is uniform across an hour, then the Aux heat setting (which is currently 9 CPH) could be adjusted lower to keep Aux Heat from popping on so quickly - like when I increase the tstat setting by 2 degrees. Again - if it is a uniform distrubution of on/off cycles the tstat would permit Aux Heat to come on every 3 minutes with a 9 CPH setting and that is too frequent. So the CPH adjustment may in fact be part of the solution. I have also discovered a nagging issue with my second story heat pump. That unit is actually zoned - where 3 bedrooms each have their own tstat. My guess is that the CPH setting for each tstat is set to the recommended default (3 CPH) which means that there are actually a total of 9 CPH allowed (3 for each tstat). That explains why that unit kept cycling so frequnectly on me last winter. I believe that a CPH reduction is probably warranted in each of those tstats and that would reduce the number of total HVAC cycles upstairs. The downside is that some rooms way have a wider tempertaure swing and then a longer run to get up to the set temp. But I would rather have a reduction in cycles as long as the swings are not too big (which could cause Aux Heat to pop on). Imagine Room 1 calling for heat and getting serviced - then shutting off. Then a few minutes later, Room 2 does the same thing, then Room 3. If I stretch out the ON/OFF times in all rooms, I will increase the probability that heat calls will overlap. I will check on the L line. I believe that my tstat does not use L becasue I get no alarm lights when the compressor locks out - and I would like to have that. There have been cases where the compressor has locked out and the only way I knew it is when it got very cold in the room and I opened up the heat pump cover to see the red light on the contoller.

Gmom74, I took some of the moon with the star next to it. I will have to post one later. We have the same 'eye' for a good photo. Thanks for the responses everyone. Kt

Kinetico softeners are popular and they have a lot of loyal customers. Kineticos are proprietary and expensive. You'll be married to your dealer for warranty, parts and service at whatever price they choose to charge. If the price sits well with you and you have a good dealer you should be happy. The Aquasystems is incredibly complicated for what it is and yet it is nothing special. That doesn't bode well for reliability and ease of maintenance. You should consider looking for a local independent water treatment professional who will offer industry standard softeners assembled from industry standard components. Should be a lot less expensive than the other two choices and will work every bit as well and you can get parts all over and tech info is free for downloading.. Before I offer a recommendation on size you need to post more info... 2 people, right? how many bathrooms? hardness = 20 gpg iron = you said NONE manganese? TDS? pH? SFR of the plumbing?

Which Drake is everyone referring to? The standard Drake using 1.6 gallons that is #1 selling toilet on Amazon Toto CST744SL #01 or the Drake II which is rimless and has the double cyclone technology, making it a closer match to the Carlyle II which has the Tornado technology and is rimless (and skirted). There is also a Eco Drake that is similar to the standard Drake but uses 1.28 gallons. We are considering the standard 1.6 gallon Drake for our secondary bathrooms because of its low price and yet excellent flushing. Saving water is not a priority for those bathrooms that don't get used a lot anyways. We are considering the Toto Ultramax II 1.28 - which is the same as the Carlyle II 1.28 but without the skirt. I like the idea of the skirt but it didn't appear that the Carlyle's skirt was as simple as needed to be easy to clean and thus not worth the extra $185. Also, as far as Toto colors, the cotton white is the bright white and Colonial white is the antique white.