Customer Reviews

Aube by Honeywell TI034-3W/U Solar Time Table, Programmable Timer Switch, White

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
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.

This product performs exactly as advertised. The reason I only give it 3 stars is that the 40 watt minimum is way too low for this type of product. I am going to return these, and buy a different product that is as similar as possible, but without the 40 watt minimum. I bought these despite the 40 watt minimum, because I was thinking that the minimum might not really be a factor for my application. It was a factor. The clock in this switch doesn't keep accurate time at all, when used with lesser wattage bulbs.

I have 4 sets of outdoor lights, and planned to replace two of them, and their associated switches with this product. One of them powers my front door light fixture, and the other powers lights that are on either side of my garage door. Neither circuit has enough draw to meet the 40 watt minimum requirement.

My 1st fixture holds two small, chandelier type bulbs. Since these are on for a long period of time, they are florescent, each drawing 9 watts, for a total of 18 watts. Most fixtures that people use in this location, either have 2 of these types of bulbs, or 1 standard size CFL bulb which are typically at most 23 watts. You could of course get to 40 watts by using less efficient incandescent bulbs, but with amount of time that this type of fixture is on, you would be better off leaving LED of CFL bulbs on 24x7, than using a 40 watt incandescent bulb for 12 hours a day.

My 2nd circuit that I was going to use this product on has two fixtures, identical to the one I just described. I currently have LED bulbs in them, drawing 1.5 watts each. 1.5x4 is 6 watts total. I knew that this wouldn't be close enough to the 40 watt minimum to work, and they aren't really bright enough anyway, so I had fully planned to switch these bulbs to four 9 watt CFLs. Even this would be 4 watts shy of the 40 watt minimum. Depending on how returnable the switch I already opened is, I may use it in this location, assuming that 36 is close enough to 40.

If you want to use these switches for fixtures that are being 40 and 500 watts they are perfect. You set them up, and never have to touch them again. For less than 40 or more than 500, don't even consider them.

Aube Solar Timer Switch was easy to order, easy to install, and easy to program. I have used other "automatic" timers that I have to adjust every few weeks for changes in daylight as sunset shifts throughout the year. These switches do it all. They come with lists of nearby cities to calculate your local latitude and longitude to establish local sunset times. You can also get the same information readily on-line or from a GPS navigation radio if you have one... The only other feature I can think of to add would be if the switch could automatically adjust for daylight savings time. But if I only have to mess with the thing twice a year, I guess I shouldn't complain. Great product!

I have been looking for new automatic switches for my outside house lights for some time. Prior to this, I was using Radio Shack switches with a remote time controller. I had to reset these every month or so during the season as sunset time changed. The old switches quit working and before replacing one for the third time I looked into something new. I was just looking for a decora sized switch to match the rest of my house switches and was delighted with the idea of the switch adjusting "on" and "off" times on it's own, based on sunrise and sunset at my home location. These switches are simple to install and take only a few minutes to program. Now I don't need to reset them monthly or after a power failure. I need only to adjust twice a year for daylight savings time. And they are easy to override if I want the lights on manual mode. A great product.

I bought this product to turn my outdoor lights on and off automatically. It adjusts for the changing sunrise and sunset times. Installation is very straight forward and programming is as well. I originally shipped to an incorrect address and Smarthome was incredible responsive and helpful about resolving the mistake, which was not theirs to begin with. Their customer service organization is a model for others to follow.

We haven't touched the switch since I installed it and set it up. It is an attractive unit, and installation was easy. Programming the switch took a few minutes, but the instructions were clear and the examples were helpful. Overriding the "auto" mode is as simple as pressing on the panel door, below the digital readout.

I highly recommend this switch!

I really like this product. It came with clear instructions and installed easily. Programming was easy. I just wish this timer could be set to turn on a set number of minutes AFTER sunset, and turn off a set number of minutes BEFORE sunrise. I find that the lights turn on while there is still quite a bit of daylight and don't turn off until it's been light for 30-40 minutes. Other than that, It's a great product. The change from standard to daylight time involves only a few button presses, just don't lose the instructions because the procedure is not intuitive.

This product lasted less than 30 days. I'm trying to figure out whether or not to get a replacement or move on to something else. It was great to install (except for not having a ground), fun to program and excellent to have in-wall programming and manual control for my lights. I wish it didn't blow out just as I was getting comfortable with it.

I've used this switch for the past year and a half or so, and it did work well. Unfortunately, it just died and now I can't even turn the light on manually. I assume that the internal battery is dead, but looking inside, I see that it is soldered in so not readily replaceable.
For the price, I would have expected more than the time I got out of it. It also would have been better if the switch could still be used as a manual switch once the battery runs out. Now, I have to shell out another 35[...] to get a new switch. It didn't save me that much money in electricity over its short little life.

This is the switch I been looking for. I have 2 outside lights that are hard to get to. One light is under an extended eave and the photo light sensor doesn't work. This product solved that.

The installation took about 15 minutes. It was a lot like programing a VCR. Switched to daylight saving time and then set the hours & minutes. Got my long & lat on the web and punched in the numbers along with day of year.

The unit started the light a little after sundown. The next moring my neighbors light was still on because of dark, rainy, cloudy day, mine shut off. The next day it started a little later, say 3 minutes.

I'm running a 65W mini fluorescent street light, works just fine.

I highly recommend this product