Customer Reviews

Aube by Honeywell TI032-3W-5/U 7-Day Programmable Timer Switch, Almond

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As far as I know, there is nothing even close to this on the market.

I have had a few of these for many years. None have ever failed. Setup is straightforward and programming is reasonable.

Having the lights automatically adjust for sunrise/sunset is great. If we leave the house at 4pm and come back at 9pm, the front lights are on.

There is a little bug in the programming (TI034). It screws up if it is programmed to turn on before midnight and turn off after midnight. I forget now how it screws up, because I changed mine to turn off just before midnight. I think it just stayed on.

I would like more flexible programming, but that usually comes with complexity. There isn't much space there for a display.

1. Be able to set an offset (sunset +/- nn minutes).

2. A random feature where it would vary the actual on/off times by +/- nn minutes. This is a minor point, because it already vary some because of changing sunset/sunrise times.

3. Automatic adjustment for daylight savings. That may be a problem, because they could change the cutover date, so maybe it's better as it is.
This also allows me to synch the clock twice a year. The timer does not keep perfect time, which is surprising. I would think it could use the 60 Hz from the grid to stay perfectly in time. Maybe an upgraded model could include a received for the time signal from Colorado? :-)

This is one of my favorite gadgets. It used to be very hard to find. I am glad that Amazon is now carrying it. I often give them away as gifts.

07/30/10 Update: Aube makes quite a few models. It took me awhile to figure out the differences and I bought one wrong model. Some of them are designed for more heavy-duty work and controlling motors (033 & 035). I see that they now have a few new models with more programming options and higher wattage ratings. Most of mine are the 034. These are fine for porch lights. Our front porch light is also wired in with the front outside plug so it can control external Christmas lights. The 500 watt max for the 034 is limiting. I may get the new 071 or 072 to replace that one.

Here's a summary of the model from the Aube website (aubetech dot com). Please excuse the (. . .). That's the only way I could find to make a table.

. . Model . . . . . . . . . . . Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Programs
. TI032-3W . . . 500 W @ 120 V, 40 W minimum . . 7 manual
. TI032-3W-5 . .500 W @ 120 V, 40 W minimum . . 7 manual
. TI034-3W . . . 500 W @ 120 V, 40 W minimum . . Sunset/sunrise
. TI070-3W . . . 500 W @ 120 V, 40 W minimum . . 7 manual + Sunset/sunrise
. TI073-3W . . . 500 W @ 120 V, 40 W minimum . . 21 manual + Sunset/sunrise
. TI033 . . . . . . 2400 W max., 1 HP @ 120 V . . . . 7 manual
. TI035 . . . . . . 2400 W max., 1 HP @ 120 V . . . . Sunset/sunrise
. TI071 . . . . . . 1800 W @ 120 V, 0 W minimum . . 7 manual + Sunset/sunrise
. TI072-3W . . . 1800 W @ 120 V, 0 W minimum . . 21 manual + Sunset/sunrise

The 3W means 3-way. The -5 is almond color.

Great option for ensuring your outside lights are on, whether you're home or not. Very easy to install. Programming was fairly simple.

I bought this a few years ago to replace another timer switch of a different brand that kept breaking after about a year of use. It is now going on 2 years with this one with no problems. I have no problem recommending.

I ordered this so that we did not have to worry about turning our front door outside light off and on (we have an American Flag out front). It has worked well for us thus far. We did have one issue where I thought the switch has broken all of a sudden, but it turned out that it was the bulb that had blown. When the bulb blows, the switch will not have the minimum load it needs to run (the switch will appear blank as if it had fried out or something). Simply replacing the bulb fixed the issue and I am happy to report that none of the settings were lost! My only complaint is the minimum load requirement. We used to use a CFL bulb in this light socket, but had to convert back to the old-school energy-inefficent bulbs to enable us to use this timer. That said, I would still recommend getting this and am looking at getting a few more for a couple more lights.

This switch is fine for a light fixture in our backyard since we use it primarily for security. As a result, I do not need the light to go on exactly at dusk.

However, if you are looking for a switch for your front porch that goes on and off at dusk automatically, check out the following: Aube by Honeywell TI070-3W/U ECONO Switch Programmable Timer Switch, White. Just set it once and forget it....forever.

I bought this timer about a month ago. Installation was a snap, although the unit is bit bulky and required to move some wires around. Other than that it is a great product and it's been working flawlessly since then.

I used it on a circuit with a gfi circuit breaker and 2 26 watt cfl lights in parallel for a total of 52 watts.

My Mother had her front porch light timer fail after about 5 years. Of course the Intermatic timer she used was no longer available from Home Depot. So, I picked up the brand they had. The first timer worked fine for about 10 minutes, then the relay started going crazy and the light stayed on and you could not manually override it. The replacement timer of the same model worked fine tuning the lights on and off manually, but the timer refused to turn the lights on when programmed (I tried four different times to no avail). Lowes of course did not carry any timers, so this lead me to Amazon. Thank goodness for all of the reviews. I ultimately settled on this timer and it installed and has worked great!!! Be aware that there are only three wires on this timer and you do not have/need a white (common) for it to work. Essentially you have hot, load, and a third for a 3 way switch if needed. The only challenge I experienced during the programming was figuring out how to get it to switch from "manual" to "auto" since there is not a mode key. In case you don't know you hold the front plate for 4 secs and it switches modes. Anyhow, it works, my Mom is happy, I'm happy and I will likely go this route again as I change other timers.

I purchased this item after buying a similar (but more expensive and seemingly inferior) product at Lowes. Lowes (in my area) only carried white, and I needed Almond. This seems to work well. I've read reviews of similar products that lose programming after power failures. This one (so far) has held it's programming after a power failure. I have it running CFL flood lights which they say could be an issue, but since the overall watts are over 40, it is no problem. It is also being run in conjunction with dusk to dawn fixtures, which I thought may pose a problem due to the watt pull. I simply programmed the switch to power on shortly after dark, and it hasn't been an issue.

The first one I installed was defective and caused me lots of problems until I determined that it was defective. Then I replaced it with another it it works just fine. The small access door does obstructs the view and makes it hard to program but otherwise the product is fine.