A Nest Thermostat is an excellent tool for keeping your home comfortable, no matter what the season or weather. With a range of features and programs designed for maximum efficiency, convenience and comfort, a Nest Thermostat is the perfect solution if you want to manage your energy use — lowering your monthly bills in the process.
That’s why more homeowners are considering adding devices like a Nest to their homes. If you're interested in trying a Nest yourself, call your nearest expert for smart thermostat installation in Los Angeles.
From automated scheduling to energy efficiency monitoring, Nest makes controlling the climate of your home effortless.
Curious to learn more? Take a look at 12 things you need to know about your Nest Thermostat.
1. Resetting Your Nest Thermostat
A key piece of information to know about resetting a Google Nest Thermostat is that there's a difference between a restart and a reset.
- Restart: Similar to restarting any electronic device, including your phone or computer, restarting your Nest Thermostat simply turns it off and then back on. 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 reset erases some or all of your settings. In most cases, people resort to a reset as they're moving homes and bringing the thermostat with them, or if they just want to erase any personal details from the Nest before leaving it for the next homeowner.
To reset, it doesn't hurt to write down current temperature settings so they're still available if you forget or erase them. Next, locate Settings -> Equipment and write down the details about your system wires, heating type and safety temperature settings.
Once you have recorded your preferences, go to Settings, select Reset and press. You will then have five options:
- Restart: Shuts your Nest down and starts it back up while remembering your settings. You can also press the outside of the Nest and hold it down for a few seconds until it turns black, at which point you can remove your hand.
- Schedule: This reset clears all scheduling information—including for your hot water, if you've connected it to your Nest. If you choose this, you’ll need to create a new schedule or wait while your Nest learns your schedule.
- Away: This kind of reset erases all the information your Nest has learned about how often you walk by, so that it can change the temperature accordingly.
- Network: If you select this reset option, it erases connection info and your Nest is disconnected from Wi-Fi. It also forgets your Wi-Fi password.
- All Settings: This reset strips away all your personal settings and learning.
2. How to Connect Nest Thermostat to Wi-Fi
Connecting to Wi-Fi is important for making the most of your Nest's features.
To connect your Nest to the internet:
- Open the Quick View menu by turning the thermostat ring.
- Find the Settings icon.
- Press Network.
- Once your Nest has scanned nearby networks, locate your Wi-Fi and, if you have one, put in your password.
3. Does a Nest Thermostat Have a Battery and How Long Does It Last?
Nest thermostats receive power from your HVAC system, but also have a rechargeable lithium-ion battery for backup power in case of an outage. According to Google, Nest's manufacturer, a Nest Thermostat battery last an average of several months. Recharge it with the USB cord that comes included.
4. Shutting Off a Nest Thermostat
If you plan on being away for a couple weeks, it's a good idea to set your Nest Thermostat to Off mode, though Eco mode is also a good option. Using Off mode will turn off all of your regular heating and cooling schedules, but it will still adhere to any current Safety Temperatures to keep your home from getting particularly hot or cold.
To choose Off mode on the thermostat:
- Hold the touch bar until the display reads “Turn Off” before sliding 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, Amazon's Alexa is compatible with a Nest Thermostat. Alexa voice controls are also available with Nest doorbells and cameras. You can even operate a Nest Thermostat with Google Assistant.
6. Can a Nest Thermostat Work Without Wi-Fi?
The good news is that a Nest Thermostat can control the temperature of your home without Wi-Fi. At the same time, a lack of an internet connection means your Nest doesn’t have the smart thermostat functions that most people enjoy.
7. Are You Able to Lock a Nest Thermostat?
When family members can't stop bickering over temperatures, Nest can help you bring a little order back to your household.
A user 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 still has access to programmed settings—but simply prevents people from changing the settings.
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.
- For locking a Nest in Heat or Cool mode, select 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. Adjusting a Nest Thermostat from Your Phone
You can control the Nest through your Google Home app, which is accessible on your phone as well as a computer. Other versions of Nest, including the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat, are also compatible with remote control via the Nest app.
Before you can control 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, if you have an advanced model, the Nest app to your phone.
- Plug in your Nest Thermostat.
- Start 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.
As soon as you've connected the Nest to your Home app, it's accessible by clicking Thermostat on the home screen. Once you do that, making adjustments is done by dragging your finger along the screen or tapping on a plus or minus sign.
The app also allows you to change the Nest's preset temperatures. From the home screen, find your Thermostat before selecting Settings. At this screen, press Temperature Preferences and then Temperature Presets. Current presets for Comfort, Eco and Sleep modes will be displayed. Select one of these options to change the temperature for that preset.
9. Creating a Nest Thermostat Schedule
You can set a temperature schedule on a Nest Thermostat 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, can also be adjusted by using the Nest app.
There are two ways you can set up a schedule on your Nest:
- Quick Schedule: Quick Schedules are based on the national average schedule for more energy-efficient use. As you set the thermostat up, the Google Home app enables you to set the temperature with a schedule. If you select this feature, it will show a preset schedule for you to customize as you wish. Once setup is complete, that’s the schedule it uses.
- Temperature Presets: To change the temperature presets on your Nest, open the Google Home app and select Thermostat. Then, tap Presets and select Edit. After the changes are complete, select Done.
To make tweaks or changes to your current schedule, open the Google Home app, select Thermostat and then tap on Schedules. Find the time of week you want to add a temperature to. 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. Setting a Temperature Range on a Nest Thermostat
The Nest features an Eco mode ideal for setting custom temperature ranges. Your Nest will adjust the temperature depending on if you're at home or away.
To create a custom temperature range in Eco mode, go to Settings and select Eco. The thermostat's display should list existing “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 heating and cooling systems. The maker of Nest, Google, features a compatibility checking tool that asks a series of questions about your location and current setup to see which Nest model works with your system.
If you have a Nest and believe it’s not compatible with your system, it’s best to reach out to a professional for smart thermostat installation in Los Angeles. Experienced technicians evaluate your system and, if your Nest is compatible, install it quick so you can jump right into the savings and convenience.
12. How Do I Manually Control My Nest Thermostat?
Nest Thermostats are packed with features designed to increase comfort and decrease costs. However, you can actually turn off the smart features if you prefer to control your Nest like it's a normal thermostat.
Remember, by doing this you clear all your temperature schedules and your Nest will work like any other thermostat—it will display the temperature and allow you to make changes, 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.