How to use the new Google Nest thermostat

Google‘s new devices have taken many people by surprise. This is the case of the new Google Nest thermostat, which will automatically adapt to Eco Temperatures if it detects that no one is at home.

In fact, it is very easy to verify that this function is active, as it will be reflected on the terminal screen with the word “Eco” as well as in the Nest or Google Home application. You can also set Eco Temperatures when they are at home to help save energy.

But that’s not all. In fact, there are many functions and ways to customize the Eco Temperatures of your thermostat. If you want to know more about them, read on.

How do the Eco Temperatures work?

• First of all, you should know that you can manually set your Google Nest Thermostat to Eco Temperatures at any time, even when you are at home. 
• When you manually set your Nest Learning Thermostat or Nest Thermostat E to Eco Temperatures, it will remain in that mode and will not automatically switch back to heating or cooling until you manually switch it to one of those modes. So, keep in mind that in order for it to return to its automatic mode, you will have to manually switch it first, so that the thermostat resumes switching automatically when people leave and return home.
• NOTE: Nest thermostats work a little differently. You see, it will always exit Eco Temperatures at the next scheduled temperature change, although you can manually set it to maintain Eco Temperatures for up to 24 hours.
• Your thermostat can also switch from one mode to another if you manually change it from the Nest or Home app.

How do Eco Temperatures affect the behavior of your system?

• When you have enabled the Eco feature, the system may turn itself on in some cases:

1. if your home’s temperature exceeds the “Cool to” temperature you set, your thermostat will turn on cooling until your home cools to the Eco Temperature you set.
2. If the temperature of your home is lower than the “Heat to” temperature you set, your thermostat will turn on heating until your home warms to the Eco Temperature you set. 

How do I know which Eco Temperatures are right for my home?

Google Nest provides a temperature range that you can select from when setting an Eco Temperature. The Eco Temperature ranges you can choose from are wide: 40-70°F (4-21°C) for heating mode and 76-90°F (24-32°C) for cooling mode.

Truth be told, there are no specific temperatures to recommend, as everything varies depending on the construction of your home, local climates, the performance of your heating and cooling system, and your personal comfort preference, but we’ll leave you with a couple of general guidelines to help you figure out what’s right for you.

• When you choose a setting for Eco mode, the Nest Leaf appears to inform you that you have selected a temperature that can help you save energy (Remember that the Leaf is only a general guide, so you can save energy even if you choose an Eco Temperature that does not have a Leaf).
• If you choose “Off” for the “Heat to” or “Cool to” temperature, your system will not turn on at all when your thermostat is set to Eco until your home reaches the Safe Temperature .
• Try setting the eco mode to a level that saves energy while making sure that the people, pets, and plants in your home adapt to them, and, of course, that your pipes don’t freeze.
• You can always change the setting if you feel uncomfortable or if you are not saving as much energy as you would like.

Set Eco Temperatures to turn on automatically when everyone is outdoors

If you have a Nest thermostat, you will need to configure the Home & Away Routines option to enable automatic switching.On the other hand, if your thermostat is a Nest Learning Thermostat or a Nest Thermostat E, you will need to set up Home/Away Assist to enable it. Don’t you know which thermostat you have? Check it out here!

• Your Nest Thermostat uses its own activity sensors, sensor data from your other Google Nest products, and your phone’s location to know when everyone has left or someone has come home. 
• When everyone has left, the thermostat will wait a moment to make sure no one returns and then automatically switch to Eco Temperatures.
• NOTE: It is possible for your thermostat to wait up to 1 or 2 hours before switching to Eco temperatures if you use sensors on the device to detect your presence in the house and the sensors detect activity around the time everyone leaves. This longer wait time will occur even if you are also using the phone’s location to help determine if you are home or not. To avoid this situation, use only the phone’s location to detect presence and disable sensors on other devices in your home’s presence settings.
• If your thermostat has automatically switched to Eco Temperatures, it will revert to its usual heating or cooling schedule when someone returns home.
• Your thermostat will also switch to Eco Temperatures if you manually switch your home to Away mode with the Nest or Home app.
• Your thermostat will also leave Eco Temperatures and resume its usual heating or cooling schedule if you change the temperature with the Nest or Home app.

Set the Eco Temperatures to be maintained over a long period of time

Going on vacation for several days? It is probably best to activate the Eco Temperature when you are away from home. To set this, it works differently depending on the thermostat, but don’t worry, we will tell you how to do it on each terminal.

Nest Thermostat

You can set your Nest Thermostat to hold Eco Temperature in the Google Home app.

1. First, open the Home app.
2. Then, touch and hold your thermostat’s tile tap Settings.
3. After, follow the route: Hold > Eco. 
4. Next, select the end time you want.
5. You can also select None if you don’t want Eco Temperature to turn off at a set time.
6. Lastly, tap Start.

Nest Learning Thermostat and Nest Thermostat E

When you set your thermostat to Eco Temperature manually, it will hold the temperature until you change it. 

You can manually switch to Eco Temperatures whenever you want. To use the Nest or Home app or your thermostat, simply choose Eco on the screen where you switch your system’s mode. If you’ve set up the Google Assistant, you can also tell it to switch your thermostat to Eco Temperatures.

How to change the temperature at which Echo heats or cools 

If your Nest Learning Thermostat or Nest Thermostat E controls heating, you will see “Heat to”. If it controls cooling, you will also see a “Cool to” setting. In contrast, if you have a Nest Thermostat, your heating setting will be orange in the Home app and your cooling setting will be blue.

• Heat to: The thermostat will turn on the heat if the temperature in your home drops below this temperature. Now, a lower setting will allow your home to cool down, but may save more energy.
  Finally, you have the option to choose “Off” so that the device will not turn on the heat while set to Eco unless your home reaches the Safe Temperature.
• Cool to: The cooling will turn on if the temperature in the house exceeds this temperature. A higher setting will allow your home to warm up more, but can usually save more energy. You can also choose “Off.” Thus, your thermostat will not turn on cooling while set to Eco unless your home reaches the Safe Temperature.

If the Eco Temperature is turned off to either Heat to or Cool to, your thermostat will follow the schedule of your fan (if you have one) and maintain the safety temperature, which helps ensure that your pipes do not freeze or your home is not damaged by excessive heat.

Use Nest or Home App

You can change the Eco Temperature settings in the Home and Nest apps, depending on which thermostat you have.

1. With the Home app

Note: If you have a Nest Thermostat, you can only change Eco settings with the Home app. For Nest Learning Thermostat or Nest Thermostat E, use the Nest or Home app. 

2. Open the Google Home app.
3. Touch and hold your device’s tile.
4. At the top right, tap Settings .
5. Tap Comfort & Efficiency, and then Temperature Preferences, and then Eco. 
6. Tap the plus or minus sign next to the temperature you want to adjust and then Save.

2. With the Nest app

3. Select your thermostat on the Nest app home screen.
4. Tap Settings in the top right corner of the screen.
5. Select Home/Away Assist.
   • At the top of the screen, you can disable it by automatically switching to Eco Temperatures.
   • You can also select if your thermostat will use Eco Temperatures while you’re home or away.
6. Tap on Eco Temperatures to set the temperature range.
7. To adjust the range, drag the slider.

3. With your thermostat

1. Press your thermostat ring to open the Quick View menu.
2. Select Settings.
3. Select Eco.
4. Select the temperature you want. If your thermostat controls heating you’ll see Heat to. If it controls cooling, you’ll also see Cool to.
5. Press the thermostat ring to select the temperature you want to change. Turn the ring to adjust it, then press again to set it. 
6. Select Done to save your changes.