12 Things to Learn About Nest Thermostats

A Nest Thermostat is an excellent tool for keeping your home comfortable, regardless of the season or weather. With a number of innovative features meant to maximize efficiency, convenience and comfort, a Nest Thermostat is the perfect solution if you want to manage your energy use — saving you money in the process.

That’s why more homeowners are considering adding devices like a Nest to their HVAC system. To add one to your home, reach out to an expert for smart thermostat installation in Rio Grande Valley.

From auto scheduling to optimizing energy efficiency, Nest is designed to make securing your sense of comfort effortless.

Ready to learn more? Take some time to review these 12 things you should know about your Nest Thermostat.

1. Resetting Your Nest Thermostat

One of the first things to know about resetting a Google Nest Thermostat is that there's a difference between a restart and a reset.

• Restart: This process is similar across most electronics, including your phone or computer, restarting your Nest Thermostat turns it off before starting it right back up again. This records your existing thermostat settings, ad can reapply them once you're done confirming if your Nest is frozen or not connecting to Wi-Fi.
• Reset: A more drastic function, a reset should restore your Nest to its original settings from the manufacturer. People normally only use a reset as they're moving homes and bringing the thermostat with them, or if they are moving out and want to erase all personal info from the Nest before leaving it for the next homeowner.

To initiate a reset, it doesn't hurt to write down current temperature settings so reapplying them is faster. Next, go to Settings -> Equipment and write down the details about your system wires, heating type and safety temperature settings.

After writing down this information, go to Settings, select Reset and press. You will be presented with five options:

• Restart: Shuts your Nest down and reboots it while saving your settings. Another way to restart is to press the outside of the Nest and hold it there until it turns black, and then pull your hand away.
• Schedule: This type of reset clears any info about your temperature schedule—including for your hot water, if you have that programmed into your Nest. If you choose this, you’ll have to input a new schedule or wait until the Nest learns your schedule.
• Away: An Away reset gets rid of any programming your Nest has picked up about how often you walk by, so it will be able to change the temperature even when you're not around.
• Network: By selecting a network reset, it erases connection info and your Nest will no longer be connected to Wi-Fi. Use this option if you want your Nest to forget your Wi-Fi password.
• All Settings: The most far-reaching option, using the All Settings reset option clears all your personal settings and learning.

2. How to Connect Nest Thermostat to Wi-Fi

Staying connected to your Wi-Fi is important for making the most of your Nest's features.

To connect your Nest to the internet:

• Access the Quick View menu. This is done by turning the thermostat's outer ring.
• Locate the Settings icon.
• Press Network.
• As your Nest scans available networks, select your Wi-Fi and, if you have one, put in your password.

3. Does a Nest Thermostat Use a Battery and How Long Will the Battery Last?

Nest thermostats receive power from your HVAC system, but also have a rechargeable lithium-ion battery for backup in case of a power outage. According to Google, who manufactures the thermostat, a Nest Thermostat battery should last several months. It can be recharged using a USB charger that comes with the Nest.

4. How to Turn Off a Nest Thermostat

If you won't be home for a while, it's a good idea to set your Nest Thermostat to Off mode, though Eco mode is another solid choice. Off mode shuts down all your regular heating and cooling schedules, although the Nest will still use your Safety Temperatures to keep your home from getting particularly hot or cold.

To find Off mode on the thermostat:

• Hold the touch bar until the display reads “Turn Off” and then slide the bar to highlight Turn Off, and then touch the bar to select.
• You can also go to Mode from the main menu and select Off.

Off mode is available on the Google Home app as well:

• Select Thermostat from home screen
• Tap Temperature mode
• Select Off

5. Will Alexa Work with a Nest Thermostat?

Yes, your Amazon Alexa can be used to control a Nest Thermostat. Alexa can also be integrated with with Nest doorbells and cameras. Google's own voice control technology, like Google Assistant, can be used to operate your Nest.

6. Does a Nest Thermostat Work Without Wi-Fi?

The good news is that a Nest Thermostat can still control temperatures even without Wi-Fi. At the same time, a lack of an internet connection means your Nest doesn’t have access to all the key features that most people enjoy.

7. Can You Lock a Nest Thermostat?

If different members of your family can't agree on the ideal temperature, Nest offers a handy feature that keeps things simple.

Users can lock the Nest to prevent others from adjusting the settings or changing the temperature outside of a preset range. This doesn’t lock in a specific temperature—a locked Nest will still continue to run the programmed settings—but simply keeps these settings from being changed.

If you want to lock your Nest:

• Tap the Settings icon, scroll to the bottom and tap on Lock.
• Enter a 4-digit pin number you can remember, and keep in mind this has to be entered twice.
• If locking in Heat or Cool mode, fine-tune your maximum and minimum temperature range and then tap Lock at the bottom of the screen.

To unlock a Nest, open the settings and choose Unlock. After you've entered the 4-digit pin, your device will be unlocked.

8. Controlling Your Nest Thermostat from a Phone

You can control the Nest through your Google Home app, accessible through your phone as well as a computer. Other versions of Nest, including the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat, can also be controlled remotely by the Nest app.

Before you can make adjustments for a Nest on your phone with Google Home or the Nest app, there are a few steps to complete first:

• Download the Google Home app or, with premium Nest models, the Nest app to your phone.
• Connect your Nest Thermostat.
• Open the Google Home app on your phone and follow the instructions to select your account, link to your new device and connect to Wi-Fi.
• Google offers a more in-depth setup tool, for those needing extra assistance in connecting.

Once you’ve added your Nest to your Home app, you can find and adjust it by clicking Thermostat on the home screen. Once you do that, you can make changes to the temperature by dragging your finger along the screen or tapping on a plus or minus sign.

You also can change preset Nest temperatures on the app. From the home screen, choose Thermostat and then select Settings. At this screen, select Temperature Preferences and then Temperature Presets. The display will show your preferred Comfort, Eco and Sleep temperatures. Select one of these options to change the temperature for that preset.

9. Making a Nest Thermostat Schedule

A Nest allows you to set temperatures schedules either on the device or on the Google Home app. More advanced versions of the Nest, such as the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat, also can be controlled via the Nest app.

You have two primary ways to establish a temperature schedule on a Nest Thermostat:

• Quick Schedule: The Quick Schedule feature is based on the national average schedule for energy efficiency. When you are setting up your Nest, the Google Home app allows you to change the temperature with a schedule. If you choose that option, it presents a preset schedule before letting you customize it. After you've made all your choices, that’s the schedule it will use.
• Temperature Presets: To change the temperature presets on your Nest, open the Google Home app and press Thermostat. Then, tap Presets and select Edit. Once you’ve made the changes, select Done.

To make tweaks or changes to your current schedule, open the Google Home app, select Thermostat and then tap on Schedules. Choose the day of the week where you want to make changes. After the day is selected, tap Add and select the preset you want. Finally, select Time before touching and dragging the numbers to change the time. The changes won't save unless you select Done.

10. How to Set a Temperature Range on a Nest Thermostat

You can set a temperature range on a Nest Thermostat in the Eco mode. A key part of this feature is the Nest's ability to adjust the temperature based on whether it detects you at home or not.

To create a custom temperature range in Eco mode, go to Settings and select Eco. The display will show any current “Heat to” and “Cool to” temperature settings. You can select each and make any and all adjustments. Once you're finished, select Done.

11. What to Do if a Nest Thermostat Is Not Compatible

A Nest Thermostat is compatible with most HVAC systems. The maker of Nest, Google, has an online compatibility checker that presents a few questions related to your location and current setup to learn which Nest model works with your system.

If you have a Nest and believe it’s not compatible with your system, you should get in touch with local pros for smart thermostat installation in Rio Grande Valley. An experienced technician will be able to evaluate your system and, if your Nest is compatible, get it installed and on the road to saving you money in no time.

12. How Do I Manually Control My Nest Thermostat?

Nest Thermostats are loaded with innovative features designed to make life more comfortable and save money. However, there is a way to turn off the smart features if you prefer to control your Nest like it's a normal thermostat.

Bear in mind, by doing this you are turning off all of your temperature schedules and your Nest will work like any other thermostat—it will display the temperature and let you change the temperature, but that’s about it.

You can achieve this by disabling the settings in a series of steps:

• Auto-Schedule: From the main screen, go to Settings and then scroll to Nest Sense. Go to Auto-Schedule, select No and click Done.
• Eco: From the main screen, go to Settings, scroll to Eco. Once in Eco, select Off for both the Heat to and Cool to temperatures, and select Done.
• Home/Away Assist: From the main screen, go to Settings and select Home/Away Assist. Then, select Stop Using and click Done.
• Reset: After you've cleared the settings, reset your nest. From the main screen, go to Settings and select Reset, highlight Schedule and then select Reset to clear out any saved scheduling data.