I’m afraid that I’m a mite miffed at the moment. You might even venture to say that I’m a tad peeved (see also the Piece on Peeves by John Cleese). The subject of my ire is the numskulls who designed the graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for the ecobee smart thermostat in both its physical (wall-mounted) and virtual (iPhone app) incarnations.

Let’s wind things back a bit. In the summer of 2025, our air conditioning system started to struggle as outside temperatures rose above 75°F. It’s not uncommon to see temperatures above 100°F where we live, so I wasn’t wearing my happy face.

Our heating and cooling company (who shall remain nameless) tried many things and eventually informed us that we needed to replace the HVAC system. We trusted them (said Max, sadly), so we took the plunge and—under their guidance—purchased a top-of-the-line Bosch system.

Sad to relate, even this new system started to struggle when the outside temperature rose above about 80°F. Eventually, we discovered that we had excessive humidity in the crawlspace under the house, that it was coming into the house, and that the air conditioner was prioritizing lowering humidity over lowering temperature (at least, that’s what we were told).

So, we ended up having the crawlspace encapsulated. If you venture under the house, it now looks like you are in a spaceship. Even better, the air conditioning actually cools the house down. Of course, you may be wondering if we actually needed a new HVAC in the first place, but I’m trying not to think about that.

The next problem occurred when the outside temperatures started to fall. As I described in my Raving Over Rocket City Restoration blog, a few minutes after the gas-powered heating portion of the system fully kicked on, smoke and ash began pouring out of the ceiling vents. It turned out the installers had left the manual inside the unit. Give me strength.

I don’t even want to talk about the hassles we experienced after they supposedly addressed that issue. For example, every time the gas heating was called into action, it ran for only a couple of minutes before turning itself off again. I can’t tell you how many times I woke to a freezing house, only to find my ecobee thermostat saying, “We have a problem, I’ve been requesting the auxiliary gas heat, but it’s not coming” (or words to that effect).

Fortunately, the heat pump portion of the system is amazingly efficient, and it held the line (once I’d instructed the ecobee to use it rather than the gas furnace). However, we’d opted to have the gas furnace as the auxiliary heat source for a reason, and we couldn’t use it, which resulted in much gnashing of teeth and rending of garb, let me tell you.

I also can’t tell you how many times we had the heating and air company round, and how much time I lost not working (well, I could, but it would make me cry). Eventually, under my prompting, they got the Bosch technicians on a video call and showed them the setup.

It turns out that in a typical Bosch gas furnace/air handler assembly, the blower, heat exchanger, and burner section are arranged in a straight-line (inline) configuration. If you look down the unit's long axis, the manufacturer allows the entire assembly to be installed in one of two mirrored orientations: left-hand configuration (access panels and service components face left) or right-hand configuration (the unit rotated 180°, with the access panels facing right).

Mechanically, the core components (blower, heat exchanger, burners) function identically in either orientation. However, when the unit is rotated, the pressure switch tubing must be rerouted, condensate drain connections may need to be swapped, gas valve and manifold connections may require repositioning, sensor wiring and mounting brackets may need adjustment, and any slope-sensitive components (like condensate traps) must be reconfigured to maintain proper drainage. In other words, the furnace itself doesn’t change, but the ancillary tubing, sensors, and fittings must be mirrored so they still function correctly in the new orientation.

You’d think (hope) that the heating and air company that installed the system would be aware of this fact. Spoiler alert: they weren’t. Still and all, they spent all that day (it was a Friday) getting things sorted. They finished by running the gas furnace for an hour. Everything checked out. I was happy, because the temperature was predicted to fall to 20°F (~-6.5°C) that evening.

You can only imagine my chagrin the next morning to once again wake to a freezing house, and to once again find my ecobee thermostat saying, “We have a problem, I’ve been requesting gas heat, but it’s not coming.”

“Oh dear,” I said (or words to that effect).

Fortunately, our heating and air company has 24/7/365 service. Even more fortunately, our new HVAC system came with 10 years of parts and labor. Still and all, I wasn’t wearing my happy face when I called them and asked them to return.

This time, it turned out that our spanking new high-efficiency (condensing) gas furnace has a small condensate collection tank where water can accumulate, that the water in this tank can freeze under certain conditions, and that the freezing of the water in this tank will... you've guessed it... cause the gas furnace to turn itself off. “What conditions?” I hear you ask. Well, if the temperature falls below freezing, which it does in our loft, which boasts continuous soffit vents. Arrgggghhh (and I mean that most sincerely).

So, to cut a long story short (which is the opposite of the way my dear old mum taught me to do things), they wrapped the condensate trap and drain line with self-regulating heat tape (properly known as heat trace) to prevent freezing.

All this took place about six weeks ago as I pen these words, and our gas furnace has been functioning properly ever since (“touch wood,” as they say). Having said that, I still awake each morning with a feeling of trepidation until I’ve verified that the system is still working.

But none of this is what I wanted to talk about.

As I mentioned at the start of this blog, my current peeve is with the undoubtedly well-meaning but misguided souls who designed the GUIs for the ecobee smart thermostat’s physical and virtual manifestations. But I have another column to write (for a paying customer), so I’ll tell you about that next time. Until then, as always, I welcome your comments, questions, and suggestions.