So the thermostat has a thermostat.That dial is the heat anticipator. What it does is it makes the thermostat stop calling for heat before the room gets too warm. It prevents heating overshoot. When the heat is on the stove is hot therefore when the thermostat stops calling for heat the stove still has to cool down and expel the heat into the room. That dial adjusts when the thermostat senses the room is at temperature before it's actually at temperature. This dial is on most any generic thermostats.
So the thermostat has a thermostat.
Thanks for the lesson.
Yes precisely, the thermostat has a thermostat.
It is basically a little built-in heater that actually fakes the thermostat out and makes it think the space is warmer than it actually is. This allows the thermostat to stop calling for heat before reaching the desired setpoint and allowing the heat source to cool down right before reaching the set point. As it cools down heat will still be expelled into the space therefore cycling the heat source off at your desired set point.
I just found this thread but thanks. I had been wondering just how the heat anticipator was supposed to work. I didn't think of it being a heater to fake out the thermostat, but I knew it was a resistance wire. So with the on/off thermostat I made, I just bypassed the anticipator altogether because I didn't want it dropping voltage to the relay.
It is not the full swing but it does affect the swing. If you bypass it, or at least put it to its lowest setting, it will make the appliance run longer per cycle which is often better for a stove. Turning it up will only cut the cycles shorter.
My stove manuals tell you to turn that anticipator down to the lowest number to prevent short cycling. I believe it would function as a crude type of 'swing' adjuster although it would be trial and error to find the correct adjustment point and it might be affected by ambient temperature variations.