Programable Household Thermostats

[Calgary14]

Originally Posted by Barnes

This is absolutely false. The rate of heat loss of your house is a function of the difference between the two temperatures. The lower the temp in your house the slower it loses heat. If you keep it warm, you lose more heat faster. You use less energy brining it back to temperature then maintaining it throughout the day/night or whenever you sleep/work.

I'm not sure one way or the other as I only know the basics of a home. Apparently he's been with the company for 20 years and prior to that was a home inspector but I have no way to verify.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by TheGrimm

I have a hard time wrapping my head around how a NEST can be any better than my cheap dollar 7-day programmable thermostats.

- I have to spend time "training" my NEST
+ I programmed my thermostats in 5-10 minutes
- NEST can tell when you are away - My wife works from home and would continually trigger NEST. Not to mention the fact she would probably fuss with the temperature all the time.
+ Programmable is set and forget. If I go on vacation I can override them in a couple of minutes.

I agree. I've read through all the posts in this thread and went on their website and i don't get it. Regular programable thermostats do the same thing without "training"

Buying multiple units for zones and running additional lines in the house on top of it all.

It looks nicer but that's about it for me.

[Regular_John]

Yup, Janurary's Enmax bill was quite high. Highest we've had in the 2.5 years we've owned the place.

[bomber317]

add me to the list of a high bill last month. It was 20% over my average for winter months.

I'll check my previous bills again and see what changed, perhaps a new rider fee or something?

[monkeyman]

I have a nest, have had it for quite awhile. I do admit, part of it is the sexy factor... I've had a number of people comment on it while over.
There are a couple of features that make the nest different from any other thermostats i've had.
1. It senses motion so if you're away or home at a time you don't anticipate, the thermostat will adjust.
2. you can monitor your usage from month to month to gauge why your bill might have going up or down.
3. you can control it from anywhere from using your phone or another computer. so if you're heading home early, you can turn it up before you leave work.
4. you can control your humidifier with it(version2 only)... adds to the sexy factor, especially if you have one of those old box humidistats.
5. you can link it to the nest fire alarms. the two units talk, so if it senses motion in the fire detector, it tells the thermostat you're home. I believe in the event of a fire, it also tells the thermostat to not turn on the furnace(i think).
That's all i can think of.
I really like mine.

[psicodude]

I have owned a Nest for about 18 months and I love it. I am not a fanboy, however, and feel that I can give a somewhat unbiased opinion of the product.

The big difference between a Nest and a normal programmable thermostat is that Nest is "smart". It has software built into it and utilizes data on the internet to learn your habits as a homeowner and automatically adjust itself. For example, you tell the Nest where you live because it can check the local weather and get information like unusual temps and humidity and adjust accordingly.

This week is a perfect example: The Nest knows that I normally head out the door at about 6:10 am and my wife and kid get up around 7:00. The Nest has automatically programmed itself to fire up at 6:00 am and heat the house to 21. It knows how many square feet my house is and which floor the Nest is located on. It also knows that it was -26 and low humidity on Monday morning, so it automatically figures out exactly how long the furnace needs to be on to achieve the desired temperature. It doesn't just sit there and wait for the thermostat to reach 21 like a normal thermostat. It takes into account that the Nest itself may be far away from a heat register or in a corner or for whatever reason that it may measure the temperature lower than it actually is in the house (The hallway that the Nest is located may be 20, but the kitchen may be 22). It uses an algorithm to decide how long to keep the furnace on that should result in the furnace being able to turn off a few minutes quicker than a traditional thermostat.

Other cool features include the auto-away, Nest Sense (it will turn off your condenser and use the "coldness" in the coil to cool your house that last degree or so) the sun sensor (it won't let direct sunlight affect the temperature sensor) and of course the ability to adjust the temperature with your phone.

All of that being said, however, I don't know what the ROI is on this device. It's nearly impossible to compare year-to-year heating and cooling costs directly as there are so many variables to consider. I am confident in saying that my costs have dropped, but is it a quantifiable difference? I'm not sure. If it's only $5 per month, I am not sure it will ever pay for itself because I am assuming the thing will be dead in 5 years. I think it's important to note that there is no way the Nest would ever pay for itself if you do not have A/C.

I didn't mind spending the money on the Nest because I think it's really cool. It changes colours when it's cooling or heating (red or blue), allows me to adjust the temperature from my phone (awesome if you have been out all day and want to walk into a warm house) and sends me a usage report every month. I love it and would buy another, but yeah, $250 is a lot for a thermostat.

To summarize, if you are looking to purchase the Nest strictly as a money saving device, I think you will be disappointed. You need to be comfortable with spending money on some of the convenience features for it to be worth the money.

[csnarpy]

Originally Posted by octothorp

I like the specs of the Nest, but I have a hard time stomaching the idea that I'd need to shell out for three individual units totalling $750 because our house has three zones. It seems like there should be a system for multiple zones where one thermostat is the brains of the system and the other ones are just control knob relays... but no, Nest's solution is simply 'buy more, they'll all work together!'

Actually, a bit of googling and it looks like the Irish-made Climote is designed to support multiple zones in a sensible way, but doesn't seem to be supported outside of Ireland.

Multi zone or stage? Nest does multi stage heating/cooling.

[return to the red]

Originally Posted by psicodude

I have owned a Nest for about 18 months and I love it. I am not a fanboy, however, and feel that I can give a somewhat unbiased opinion of the product.

The big difference between a Nest and a normal programmable thermostat is that Nest is "smart". It has software built into it and utilizes data on the internet to learn your habits as a homeowner and automatically adjust itself. For example, you tell the Nest where you live because it can check the local weather and get information like unusual temps and humidity and adjust accordingly.

This week is a perfect example: The Nest knows that I normally head out the door at about 6:10 am and my wife and kid get up around 7:00. The Nest has automatically programmed itself to fire up at 6:00 am and heat the house to 21. It knows how many square feet my house is and which floor the Nest is located on. It also knows that it was -26 and low humidity on Monday morning, so it automatically figures out exactly how long the furnace needs to be on to achieve the desired temperature. It doesn't just sit there and wait for the thermostat to reach 21 like a normal thermostat. It takes into account that the Nest itself may be far away from a heat register or in a corner or for whatever reason that it may measure the temperature lower than it actually is in the house (The hallway that the Nest is located may be 20, but the kitchen may be 22). It uses an algorithm to decide how long to keep the furnace on that should result in the furnace being able to turn off a few minutes quicker than a traditional thermostat.

Other cool features include the auto-away, Nest Sense (it will turn off your condenser and use the "coldness" in the coil to cool your house that last degree or so) the sun sensor (it won't let direct sunlight affect the temperature sensor) and of course the ability to adjust the temperature with your phone.

All of that being said, however, I don't know what the ROI is on this device. It's nearly impossible to compare year-to-year heating and cooling costs directly as there are so many variables to consider. I am confident in saying that my costs have dropped, but is it a quantifiable difference? I'm not sure. If it's only $5 per month, I am not sure it will ever pay for itself because I am assuming the thing will be dead in 5 years. I think it's important to note that there is no way the Nest would ever pay for itself if you do not have A/C.

I didn't mind spending the money on the Nest because I think it's really cool. It changes colours when it's cooling or heating (red or blue), allows me to adjust the temperature from my phone (awesome if you have been out all day and want to walk into a warm house) and sends me a usage report every month. I love it and would buy another, but yeah, $250 is a lot for a thermostat.

To summarize, if you are looking to purchase the Nest strictly as a money saving device, I think you will be disappointed. You need to be comfortable with spending money on some of the convenience features for it to be worth the money.

This sells it for me right here. My existing thermostat is in direct sunlight in the middle of the day so in the winter my house is cold and in the summer my house is...freezing!

Payday tomorrow, I'm going to buy one

[Barnes]

Originally Posted by return to the red

This sells it for me right here. My existing thermostat is in direct sunlight in the middle of the day so in the winter my house is cold and in the summer my house is...freezing!

Payday tomorrow, I'm going to buy one

That's a feature that came with one of the last updates.

Which leads me to another great feature, they add functionality through updates.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

I'm trying to find a thermostat with a remote wireless temperature sensor that I can put upstairs. The main unit is on the mail floor but upstairs is always hot/cold.

Any suggestions? Honeywell FOCUSPro is what I've been told. Does the Nest have a remote sensor?

[Table 5]

Slightly off topic, but is there a "Nest" of security systems? I love the elegant usability/design and smart tech of this, but would like it in a security system!

[return to the red]

Originally Posted by Table 5

Slightly off topic, but is there a "Nest" of security systems? I love the elegant usability/design and smart tech of this, but would like it in a security system!

Buddy has vivant or however its spelled. Take a look at that as it seems pretty advanced

[return to the red]

another question....installation to replace both a humidistat and thermostat, pretty simple?

[csnarpy]

Originally Posted by Table 5

Slightly off topic, but is there a "Nest" of security systems? I love the elegant usability/design and smart tech of this, but would like it in a security system!

Go look at a Vera system. Great home automation that can be intergrated with your existing security system or use their security devices.

www.getvera.com

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by Table 5

Slightly off topic, but is there a "Nest" of security systems? I love the elegant usability/design and smart tech of this, but would like it in a security system!

I like Honeywell's stuff, but you have to get it from the US to enjoy all of the bells and whistles.

[foshizzle11]

I am sorry to bump this thread but I thought I would ask how people who have the Nest thermostat like them now? I think I am going to buy one. I like that I can adjust it while I am away. We always have difference schedules but we also have pets.

Can the dogs trip the sensor during the day or night when we are sleeping or not home?

I can't find anything only about that. Or for example when the kids come home for lunch and we are at work (they are 12 and 14 now and 1 block from school). I don't want the heat to turn up to the normal 70 degrees for the 30 mins they are home at lunch time for example.

What kind of stats are recorded? does it make suggestions of how to save energy/money? Our current thermostat has a fan setting but it doesn't know how to use it nor does it ever really get turned on. I think having the Nest would be quite helpful with that, actually using a feature that our current furnace has but our cheap thermostat doesn't use even when we program it in.

[Ducay]

I have 2 nests for my two furnaces and you can indeed program as you are asking. You would just set it to away mode when you leave instead of "auto-away" (which turns on when no motion noted for X minutes, so dogs and kids would trip it to home mode).

Not sure on the fan usage as my furnace doesn't work that way. I know it can use AC more efficiently than a normal programabble thermostat.

That said, I wouldn't buy one strictly to save money. If you've got a programabble thermostat, that is how you get most of your savings, Nest might save a few extra percent, but nothing that is going to cover the upfront cost of the units. I like mine for the online control, gimmick, and wow factor.

[MoneyGuy]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

So for those of you that got em.....how low do you let the temp get at night and when you are not at home?

I let mine drop to 16 c at night, I sleep better in the cold. The wife thinks that is too low. I say what does she know.

This sounds like I wrote it. Word for word it describes our situation.

Also, I set the temp down one degree for every two hours we're away during the day. Sometimes I wish we had a system that allowed me to change the temp remotely from my iPhone.

[foshizzle11]

I really would like to get it for when we aren't going to be home for hours and can adjust remotely based on this. I think we could save some money.

I also wouldn't mind getting the other gadgets that are compatible. Does anyone have the smoke detector/carbon monoxide or the front door lock (maybe this is a rumor and doesn't exist).

[Ducay]

Originally Posted by foshizzle11

I really would like to get it for when we aren't going to be home for hours and can adjust remotely based on this. I think we could save some money.

I also wouldn't mind getting the other gadgets that are compatible. Does anyone have the smoke detector/carbon monoxide or the front door lock (maybe this is a rumor and doesn't exist).

Ya, I have the Nest Protects as well (CO+Smoke alarm). And again, not really all that different. Few neat features, but nothing you can't live without. Theyre nifty, and was easily justifyable given they were only 40 or so more than getting a CO and smoke alarm separately.