Nest thermostat what else can it do ?

[rfuerst911sc]

In September of last year we moved into our retirement house which has a Nest brand thermostat . It is just the wife and I so no 12 year old computer savvy kids in the house So we have been manually using the Nest for both heat and AC and all is good . The wife decided the other day to " register " the Nest and down load the app to both of our phones .

So with our limited knowledge/skills we can now remotely change temp settings and go from heat to AC using our phones . So what else can this thing do ? Can it QB a security system ? Can it open/close garage doors that have door openers on them ? Just random questions really but trying to learn what else it can do .

[red-beard]

You are now setup so Google knows exactly what temperature you keep your house and when.

[RKDinOKC]

Think it is pretty much a thermostat, not a home automation hub.

[mepstein]

I love my nest. I know the heat is on after a storm so pipes don’t freeze. Able to adjust the heat when we go away and return to room temp before we come home. Gives you a readout of each days energy usage. It’s not total house control, just hvac, but it’s so easy to use the phone app that I rarely look at the wall mount. Also nice if a room heats up from cooking or the sun, I can turn on the fan for a while from my phone.

[Bugsinrugs]

I check the temp in the house when others are there.....wife,kids. I turn the heat down without them knowing. Saves money

[scottmandue]

Secretly record your conversations, take pictures of you naked and upload them to the internet... stuff like that.
J/K

[Rtrorkt]

it "learns" habits and will keep the house at the temps set. I have mine set for when both my wife and I are out, the system kicks over to the "away" mode to save $$$. I also have it set to meet the desired temp at the time designated which means it starts early enough to get to temp at the time rather than starting to the cycle to warm or cool at the time set.

I also have installed the Nest smoke and C.O. detectors. Recently added a security camera.

I do have some reservations about the Google ownership. I bought into the system when they were tied closely to Apple. I am pretty sure one of these days I will need to watch an ad to change temp in the house. But for right now this is a very seamless system

[Amail]

We've got ours connected to Alexa. We can now adjust the temperature by saying "Alexa, turn the heat to 70°". Small convenience, but we appreciate it.

[vash]

i need to donate one for my office. one of the thermostats is in my office; i share a vent somewhere with a very cute engineer that is always cold. she is always parading thru adjusting the damn thing. i would love it if she could just use her smartphone.

sorry no pics. but a cute civil engineer is a unicorn indeed!

[masraum]

Originally Posted by vash

i need to donate one for my office. one of the thermostats is in my office; i share a vent somewhere with a very cute engineer that is always cold. she is always parading thru adjusting the damn thing. i would love it if she could just use her smartphone.

sorry no pics. but a cute civil engineer is a unicorn indeed!

Wait, you live in the female desert, and you have an excuse for a cute female to come to your office to adjust the thermostat, but you'd be happier if she used her phone and never came to your office?

I think I read that right, and I don't understand.

I work in IT. If I had that problem, I'd probably be tweaking the thing all day to get visits.

[vash]

Originally Posted by masraum

Wait, you live in the female desert, and you have an excuse for a cute female to come to your office to adjust the thermostat, but you'd be happier if she used her phone and never came to your office?

I think I read that right, and I don't understand.

I work in IT. If I had that problem, I'd probably be tweaking the thing all day to get visits.

good point..but too much of a good thing...applies.

i am good on wet days when she wears her HUNTER rubber boots. those things are cool on cute chicks.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by vash

...i share a vent somewhere with a very cute engineer that is always cold.
sorry no pics. but a cute civil engineer is a unicorn indeed!

My first wife was a cute civil engineer...

Yet she was also clinically crazy! And was fired from her first company for incompetence. She used to work at TVA, (not far from IROC) in Tennessee and now is in Las Alamos.

I'm afraid! Very afraid!

[fintstone]

What they can do depends on which generation/version of nest you have. https://store.nest.com/product/thermostat/T3007ES?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8ry_wfuC2gIVyrjACh2RxA26 EAAYASAAEgJMCfD_BwE&dclid=CJHb59n7gtoCFVBmwQod2ewCDw

Nest is compatible with wemo which allows you to control lights, etc. You can make the hvac/temp and lights and other electrical equipment match people coming and going, etc.
Wemo works with Nest

[stevej37]

I'm not sure that setting the thermo down for a few hours or a couple days is worth it. The time it takes to warm everything back up, makes it a small savings.
Nest also has a doorbell with camera built in, and their wireless security cameras. (formerly DropCam)
All their stuff can be controlled by your phone or laptop/tablet.

[spuggy]

Originally Posted by stevej37

I'm not sure that setting the thermo down for a few hours or a couple days is worth it. The time it takes to warm everything back up, makes it a small savings.

It's smart enough to "learn" how long it takes to get up to the desired temperature; if you allow it to (it's a setting), it'll start running the heat earlier to get there in time without resorting to AUX heat.

You'll get monthly reports showing how much energy it saved (or didn't), and whether that was down to weather, adjustments etc.

Originally Posted by rfuerst911sc

So what else can this thing do ?

Let it track your phone location, and it'll automatically switch to ECO mode when everyone is out of the house, and it'll notice you coming back.

Originally Posted by rfuerst911sc

Can it QB a security system ?

Like steve said, there's a security system (Nest Security), video doorbell, smart door lock, cameras (both internal and external), and also smart smoke/carbon monoxide detectors (with the option of wired, so you don't need to check/change batteries).

Originally Posted by rfuerst911sc

Can it open/close garage doors that have door openers on them ? Just random questions really but trying to learn what else it can do

To integrate with garage door openers (Chamberlin/Liftmaster etc), you probably need both a MyQ internet gateway for that guy, probably upgrade the control switch to a MyQ aware one (which also upgrades the security protocols/lets you use modern remotes). And the Chamberlin apps are very disappointing.

So it works well to use a smart hub - like a Wink - that lets you control/monitor everything (Nest, lights, garage doors) from a single interface.

Wink is kind of cool because it integrates with many of the competing/incompatible HA systems out there - and then presents it all in one place, rather than having an app for each system. And Alexa "knows" how to talk to Wink and Nest.

Being able to control, dim/brighten lights from an app is surprisingly useful. And the Wink has "robots"; you can have it in "Housesitter" mode, so it'll randomly switch lights or appliances on/off throughout the evening to make it look like someone's there. And do things like integrate a water sensor alarm to control a water shutoff valve (e.g. under your dishwasher or other appliance), for example.

[stealthn]

It makes a good launch point for a hack of your network

[svandamme]

my electricity/gas utility company keeps sending me promo crap for nest.
I keep trolling them with, so how does this work.. they come up with an explanation and what not how it will reduce my heating bills.
I play dumb and tell em , but that can never work..
sure it will, just put this on your heater and you'll reduce the bills by at least 20%

It won't, are you willing to be me half my utilities bill over it? obviously they won't.


to bad, cause I only have a wood stove...

[john70t]

Originally Posted by stealthn

It makes a good launch point for a hack of your network

I just like to inform the internet mine is held at 50deg for three weeks when leaving on vacation.

Same as my new DTE mandatory smart-meter.

[Paul T]

I had a nest for awhile at a 2nd home, mainly because I wanted to be able to check temp remotely to be sure power wasn't out, etc. Long story short, I hated it and took it off (free to anyone who wants it btw).

Maybe I didn't have it configured properly, but the damn thing would just move the temp all over the place for no apparent reason. We'd come back from being out for a couple hours and it'd be 78 degrees in the house! No matter what i did, I could not turn off the "learning" modes and have it function like a standard thermostat.

Anyway, maybe I just had a bad experience or was not doing something correctly, but it was not for me. Seems like another thing that is "reinvented" with added tech, but needlessly so. I know I'm in the minority, but I try to stay away from connected gadgets as much as possible. My toaster doesn't need to be internet enabled and the whole voice controlled everything just seems like peak laziness to me. And that's not even getting into the whole data thing...ok, maybe I need more coffee this am. Ranting over...

Enjoy your Sunday everyone!!

[stevej37]

Originally Posted by Paul T

My toaster doesn't need to be internet enabled and the whole voice controlled everything just seems like peak laziness to me.
Enjoy your Sunday everyone!!

A better use for your toaster!