TCL window and through-the-wall AC remote: what each button does

The remote’s buttons at a glance

The remote that comes with TCL’s electronic window and through-the-wall air conditioners has 11 keys, which TCL’s manuals number 1 to 10 because ▲ and ▼ count as one: Power, Cool, ▲/▼, Sleep, Timer, Auto Mode, Fan Speed, Display, Eco and Fan Only. On through-the-wall models that also heat, the Auto Mode button is replaced by Heat.

The remote has no Mode button and no Filter button. Those two are only on the unit’s control panel, and the panel has no Display button. The remote takes AAA batteries; TCL says not to mix old and new batteries or different battery types.

Find your model’s family

The buttons work the same way on every model below. Sleep and Eco differ slightly between TCL’s documents, so check which one covers your unit. The model number is on the unit’s model and serial number label.

Model number	TCL document (used in the tables below)
TAW05CR19, TAW05CRB19, TAW06CR19, TAW08CR19, TAW08CREB19W, TAW10CR19, TAW12CR19, TAW15CRE19	TAW operating instructions
TAW05CRB0N, TAW05CRW0N, TAW06CRW0N, TAW08CRNW0N, TAW08CRNWB0N, TAW10CRNB0W, TAW10CRNW0W, TAW12CRB19, TAW12CRNW0W, TAW15CRW0W; 6W3ER1, 8W3ER1, 10W31, 10W3E1, 12W31, 12W3E1, 15W3E1-A, 15W9E1-A	Window quick-start guide (5K–12K or 15K–24K)
TWC-06CR/UH to TWC-24CR2/UH	UH owner’s manual
TTW-08CR/UF to TTW-14CR2/UF, TTW-08ER/UF to TTW-14ER2/UF	Through-the-wall manual
W8T9E1-A, W10T9E1-A, W12T9E1-A, W10T9EX1-A, W12T9EX1-A, W14T9X1-A	TTW quick-start guide

TAW12CRB19 is listed by TCL with the quick-start guide, not the TAW operating instructions. Dial-control models (TWC-05CM/UH, TAW05CM19, TAW05CMW0N) have no remote.

What each button does

Button	What it does
Power	Turns the air conditioner on and off.
Cool	Switches to Cool mode, which cools the room and also takes some humidity out of the air.
▲ / ▼	Raises or lowers the set temperature, from 61 to 88 °F (16 to 31 °C). While you set a timer, the same buttons change the hours instead.
Sleep	Night mode: most display lights go off and the unit slowly raises the set temperature (details below).
Timer	Sets the unit to turn off after a delay, or, when it’s off, to turn on later. Delays run from 0.5 to 24 hours.
Auto Mode	The unit picks Cool, Dry or Fan by itself, based on the room temperature measured by its own sensor.
Heat (heat/cool through-the-wall models only)	Switches to Heat mode. It sits where Auto Mode is on cooling-only remotes.
Fan Speed	Steps through fan speeds: Hi, Med, Lo or Auto in Cool mode; Hi, Med or Lo in Fan mode. Auto speed isn’t offered in Fan mode.
Display	Turns all the lights and the LED display on the unit off or back on.
Eco	Energy-saving cooling: the unit stops once the room reaches the set temperature and starts again when it warms up. The Eco light on the unit is on while it’s active.
Fan Only	Switches to Fan mode: air moves, but the unit doesn’t cool.

The Timer button needs a specific press sequence, and Sleep behaves differently between model families. Both are explained below.

Modes, and why Dry isn’t on the remote

The control panel’s Mode button cycles through Cool, Dry, Fan and Auto (and Heat on heat/cool through-the-wall units). The remote has a direct button for Cool, Fan Only and Auto Mode (or Heat), but none for Dry. An earlier edition of TCL’s window quick-start guide says outright that Dry is available only from the panel’s Mode button, and the other documents list it only there too, so use the panel to choose it.

• Cool: cools and dehumidifies. Without Eco, the fan can keep running after the room reaches the set temperature.
• Dry: lowers humidity by alternating short cooling cycles with fan-only running.
• Fan: circulates air only. TCL notes it works only when the air conditioner is vented.
• Auto: chooses Cool, Dry or Fan from the room temperature. The UH and through-the-wall manuals say it also picks the fan speed.
• Heat: heat/cool through-the-wall models only: TTW-…ER/UF, and the heating units covered by the TTW quick-start guide (it doesn’t say which of its model numbers heat).

TCL asks you to wait at least 3 minutes before changing modes. That protects the compressor from overheating and helps keep the circuit breaker from tripping.

Timer and Sleep in more detail

Timer. To turn the unit off later, press Timer while it’s running, set the hours with ▲/▼, then press Timer again. To turn it on later, start with the unit off: press Timer, set the temperature, press Timer, set the hours, then press Timer a third time. Delays go in half-hour steps below 10 hours and one-hour steps from 10 to 24 hours. A SET light is on while you’re setting, and pressing Timer again cancels.

Sleep. The set temperature rises automatically every 30 to 60 minutes, at most six times. How it behaves depends on your manual:

Family	Display lights	How far the temperature goes
TAW operating instructions and window quick-start guide (every TAW model, plus W3E1, W3ER1 and W9E1 models)	All lights go off after a while; the Sleep light stays on.	Up to 81 or 82 °F.
UH window units (TWC-…/UH)	The Sleep light is on for 10 seconds, then all display lights go off.	Up in 1.8 °F steps to 82.4 °F.
TTW-…/UF through-the-wall units	The Sleep light is on after 10 seconds; the other lights go off.	Cooling: up 1 or 2 °F per step to 82 °F. Heating: down to 75 °F.
TTW quick-start guide (W…T9…-A)	All lights go off after a while; the Sleep light stays on.	Cooling: up to 81 or 82 °F. Heating: down to 75 or 76 °F.

None of these manuals explains how to cancel Sleep or whether it ends by itself.

How Eco differs between manuals

All the manuals agree that in Eco the unit switches off at the set temperature and back on when the room warms. Before the compressor restarts, the fan runs for a while, stops and repeats.

• The UH and TTW-…/UF manuals say the fan is off too once the set temperature is reached.
• The quick-start guides (window and TTW) say the fan turns on for a few seconds now and then to take an accurate temperature reading.

So if the fan stops and starts on its own in Eco, that’s how Eco is designed. If you want steady airflow, use Cool without Eco.

Controls that are only on the unit

• Mode: the only way to reach Dry (see above).
• Filter: turns off the Filter Check light. That light comes on after the fan has run for 500 hours in total, as a reminder to clean the filter. Press Filter after cleaning; if the light is off, there’s no need to press it.
• Indicator lights: fan speed (High, Med, Low, Auto Speed) and mode (Cool, Dry, Fan, Auto Mode, plus Heat on heat models). The display shows the mode and set temperature, or the remaining time while a timer runs. The TAW, UH and TTW-…/UF manuals note that the display shows the room temperature in Fan mode, except while you set the temperature or timer.
• Wi-Fi light: only on Wi-Fi models. For CF, AP, PP or SA on the display, see what the TCL Wi-Fi codes mean.

Airflow direction isn’t on the remote either. Use the wheel on the front grille for side-to-side airflow and the air deflectors for up and down.

Careful with Display on Wi-Fi models

On TCL models with Wi-Fi, pressing Display six times in a row is TCL’s way of resetting the Wi-Fi setup back to its connect (CF) mode. If your unit is already connected to the app, press Display once to turn the lights off or on, not repeatedly. TCL describes this only for Wi-Fi models.

Common questions

Can I switch between °F and °C or lock the remote?

The manuals give the temperature range in both scales but don’t describe a °F/°C switch, a lock or a child lock for these models. We couldn’t confirm either from TCL’s documents.

The remote does nothing. What should I check?

TCL’s troubleshooting tables list two causes: batteries inserted the wrong way round, or dead batteries. Check that the AAA batteries are the right way round, then replace them as a pair. The manuals give no range for these remotes. If the unit’s own Power button works but the remote still doesn’t after new batteries, contact TCL support.