ecobee EB State3L 01 vs Schluter Ditra Heat E RS1: Thermostat or Floor Heat

The ecobee EB-STATe3L-01 and the Schluter Ditra-Heat-E-RS1 are both smart thermostats, but they solve different problems. The ecobee is a general-purpose room thermostat built to run a home’s heating and cooling from an app and a voice assistant. The Schluter unit is a floor-warming controller built to drive an electric mat under tile, with a built-in GFCI for safety.

Buyers choosing between them are usually deciding whether they need whole-home climate control or a dedicated warm-floor system. The overview below settles that in a few lines, and the rest of the article covers the differences one by one.

The Picks at a Glance

Product	Key Spec	Best Use	Price Tier
ecobee EB-STATe3L-01 3 Lite Thermostat	Wi-Fi, works with Amazon Alexa	Whole-home heating and cooling control	Mid-range
SchluterCompatible DHERT105/BW Ditra-Heat-E-RS1	Built-in GFCI, app and voice control	Electric floor warming under tile	Premium

ecobee EB-STATe3L-01 3 Lite Thermostat

Type: Wi-Fi room thermostat
Voice control: Works with Amazon Alexa
Connectivity: Wi-Fi
Model: EB-STATe3L-01
Intended use: Heating and cooling control

The ecobee 3 Lite is the streamlined member of the ecobee family: a Wi-Fi thermostat that connects to a home network, reports to an app, and responds to Alexa voice commands through an Echo or similar device. It is built to replace a conventional thermostat on a forced-air system and manage scheduling and setpoints from a phone.

The appeal here is ecosystem fit. A household already living inside Alexa gets voice control without adding a hub, and the app handles the day-to-day scheduling that a dial thermostat cannot. The 3 Lite trims the accessory sensor bundle that the full ecobee models carry, so buyers who want remote room sensors should look higher in the line.

Trade-off: The 3 Lite assumes a conventional HVAC system with the usual thermostat wiring; homes with unusual setups, such as some heat pumps or line-voltage electric baseboard, need a different controller entirely.

Check the current price on Amazon

SchluterCompatible DHERT105/BW Ditra-Heat-E-RS1 Smart Thermostat

Type: Floor-warming thermostat
Safety feature: Built-in GFCI
Control: App and voice
Integration: Compatible with Control4
Home automation: Home Assistant compatible
Model: DHERT105/BW

The Schluter DHERT105/BW is a different animal from a room thermostat. It is the control head for a Ditra-Heat electric floor-warming system, designed to regulate the heating cable or mat that sits under tile and keep the floor at a set temperature. The built-in GFCI is the important detail: floor heating lives in a wet zone, and ground-fault protection belongs in the controller.

This unit is aimed at renovation and new-build projects rather than a simple swap. It speaks to app and voice control and slots into home-automation platforms including Control4 and Home Assistant, which suits a house that already runs on a hub. The price tier reflects the specialized job it does rather than premium materials alone.

Trade-off: This is a controller for a Ditra-Heat floor system, not a drop-in replacement for a wall thermostat; a buyer without electric floor heating in the plan has nothing for it to control.

Check the current price on Amazon

Side-by-Side Comparison

Attribute	ecobee EB-STATe3L-01	Schluter DHERT105/BW
Type	Room thermostat	Floor-warming thermostat
Primary job	Heating and cooling control	Electric floor heat control
Wi-Fi	Yes	App control stated
Voice control	Works with Amazon Alexa	Voice control stated
GFCI	Not part of the unit	Built-in
Home automation	Alexa ecosystem	Control4 and Home Assistant
Model code	EB-STATe3L-01	DHERT105/BW
Price tier	Mid-range	Premium

The table reads cleanly in one direction: the ecobee is a comfort controller for the air in a house, and the Schluter is a safety-rated controller for the floor underfoot. The ecobee’s spec sheet is about voice and app convenience; the Schluter’s is about GFCI protection and automation-platform integration.

The second difference is installation context. The ecobee replaces an existing thermostat on a wired HVAC system, which is a job many homeowners take on themselves. The Schluter unit belongs to a floor-heating project, so it is specified alongside tile, mat and cable rather than swapped in on a Saturday.

The third is ecosystem. A household standardized on Alexa gets the most from the ecobee. A household running Control4 or Home Assistant, and planning warm tile in a bathroom or kitchen, gets the most from the Schluter.

Which Should You Buy?

Choose the ecobee EB-STATe3L-01 if the goal is controlling a home’s heating and cooling from a phone and an Alexa device, the existing thermostat is a conventional low-voltage unit, and the budget should stay mid-range. It is the wrong pick for anyone without a forced-air system to control.

Choose the Schluter DHERT105/BW if an electric floor-warming system is going in under tile, GFCI protection at the controller matters, and the house already runs on Control4 or Home Assistant. It is the wrong pick for a buyer who just wants a smarter wall thermostat.

FAQ

1. Can the ecobee EB-STATe3L-01 control floor heating? No. It is a room thermostat for conventional heating and cooling systems, not a controller for electric floor-warming mats.

2. Does the Schluter DHERT105/BW work without a floor-heating system? No. It exists to regulate a Ditra-Heat electric floor system, so it only makes sense as part of that installation.

3. Which one works with Alexa? The ecobee is certified to work with Amazon Alexa and can be controlled by voice through Alexa-enabled devices. The Schluter unit lists voice control as a feature without naming a specific assistant.

4. Is the built-in GFCI important? Yes, for floor heating. A controller feeding cable in a wet area benefits from ground-fault protection built into the unit.

5. Which is easier to install? The ecobee replaces a standard thermostat on existing HVAC wiring. The Schluter unit is part of a larger floor-heating build and is normally installed with the tile work.

6. Which suits a smart home? The ecobee fits an Alexa household. The Schluter unit fits Control4 and Home Assistant setups.

7. Which costs more? The Schluter unit sits in a higher price tier, reflecting its specialized role and built-in safety hardware.

Bottom Line

These two are not really competitors: the ecobee EB-STATe3L-01 is the pick for whole-home comfort control through Alexa, and the Schluter DHERT105/BW is the pick for a tile floor-warming project that needs GFCI protection and automation integration. Most buyers shopping the ecobee name want the former, so the ecobee EB-STATe3L-01 3 Lite Thermostat is the default choice unless electric floor heat is already in the plan.