Smart thermostats are increasing in popularity as more and more homeowners look for ways to cut down on their energy bills. These devices can be programmed to automatically maintain the temperature of your home in line with your regular schedule. They also have the capacity to study these preferences over time. Subsequently, you can save money on your energy bills by seeing to it that your HVAC system is only on when you need it.
Google’s smart thermostat is the Nest, and numerous homeowners are happy with its features and general efficiency. But one feature–the Seasonal Savings program–could be causing trouble instead of supporting your HVAC system. Persistent issues are forcing homeowners to look for how to switch off this feature. We’ll present the issues some people are having with Seasonal Savings and include instructions for how to opt out of the program.
Many Homeowners Allege the Seasonal Savings Program Isn’t Working Well
Google built the Seasonal Savings program to help homeowners boost their energy efficiency. Around maximum HVAC use in the summer and winter, it can automatically adjust the thermostat to satisfy your preferences with energy efficiency. The program is supposed to run without interrupting your sense of comfort, implementing the biggest changes when you’re away or sleeping. Sadly, this isn’t the case for lots of people participating in the program.
In fact, there are accounts that the program is contradictory and annoying to use. Homeowners are complaining that the program is actually increasing their energy bills instead of reducing them. And when they decide to disable or opt out of Seasonal Savings, they’ve discovered the option to do so is hard to find or outright absent. In several cases people have even noted it being flipped back on after it was disabled.
Smart thermostats are expected to enhance the efficiency of your HVAC system. While automatic temperature adjustments are a common feature in smart thermostats, it shouldn’t ignore your favored settings. If a Nest won’t work with your comfort preferences, opting out of the Seasonal Savings program is the correct move.
But First, Why Is This A Problem?
Homeowners are noticing that the Seasonal Savings program was activated on their Nest thermostat without their permission. Why would a smart thermostat you control overlook your settings and enroll in the program? It could be because of an energy-efficiency program you subscribed to with your utility company.
These agreements help you increase your home’s energy efficiency. They may offer rebates on new products or special discounts for renewable energy systems. But many people are surprised to hear they also allow your utility company remote access to your thermostat. If the power grid is experiencing a heavy load, the utility company can take over your thermostat and adjust the temperature. You could be having issues with the Seasonal Savings program because a utility company is utilizing this remote access.
But what if the feature is defective or just ignoring your preferences? Whatever the reason may be, you don’t want a feature to double your energy use without your permission. We’ll walk you through how other homeowners have shut off the Seasonal Savings program.
How to Disable Your Nest Thermostat’s Seasonal Savings Feature
A number of people have documented trouble opting out of the Seasonal Savings feature. While the location of this setting may be different based on your specific Nest model, other users are alarmed that Google is intentionally making it more difficult to disable Seasonal Savings. To ensure you can opt out no matter what, we’ll describe the ways other users have enjoyed success.
- Overriding Seasonal Savings: Manually setting the temperature should overrule the Seasonal Savings program, but numerous users have observed this isn’t entirely accurate. If you see your Nest repeatedly ignoring your changes, you’ll probably want to turn off the feature outright.
- Opting out of the program from the Nest app: Your phone or tablet’s Nest app ought to have a History option and a Settings option. Google guides users to their History to shut off Seasonal Savings, but other homeowners have discovered this option under Settings. Once disabled, the feature is temporarily off until the next summer or winter.
- Shutting off the program from the Nest thermostat: Your thermostat should also provide a History option where you can turn off Seasonal Savings, but some homeowners claim the disable option is gone.
- Opting out before the program begins: The Seasonal Savings program is only available in summer and winter. Your smart device will get a notification when the program is about to start, allowing you the chance to opt out.
When Seasonal Savings is live, your Nest should display a small yellow symbol of a leaf. If your Nest is experiencing issues and the Seasonal Savings icon is not visible, your predicament could be with another setting entirely.
Sometimes the Problem Isn’t Seasonal Savings but Another Setting or Program
Different options on Nest smart thermostats apart from Seasonal Savings can lead to counterintuitive temperature changes. If these settings are active during Seasonal Savings, even shutting off the program may not deter the thermostat from making alterations. Luckily, these settings can be turned off. You’ll also have options if the problem is a third party like a power company.
- Turning off Auto-Schedule: The Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat both offer the Auto-Schedule feature, using their capacity to learn your preferences to define the best possible schedule. Going into Settings and switching off Auto-Schedule should prevent other automatic changes such as Seasonal Savings.
- Disabling auto switching: Nest thermostats will still shift to eco temperatures if you have an auto-switching setting like Home & Away Routines or Home/Away Assist. These functions automatically adjust the temperature when the thermostat detects that no one is home.
- Opting out of the utility company’s energy agreement: Since your energy provider might be remotely controlling your Nest thermostat, cancelling the agreement should get rid of remote access. You can locate the complete details of these agreements with your energy provider.
- Reaching out to Google support: If everything else fails, calling Google’s technical support may be of help. Staff can guide you to resetting the Nest or finding the correct setting to switch off Seasonal Savings.
If the Problem Persists, Your Thermostat May Be Faulty
There’s always the possibility the Nest smart thermostat is just malfunctioning. Electrical issues or software glitches can result in all sorts of problems, including an inconsistent Seasonal Savings program. If you suspect the problem is isolated to your own thermostat, a seasoned technician might be able to help. After all, smart thermostats remain a worthwhile investment for your home’s energy efficiency.
If you want local service for your smart thermostat in Hurricane, call the heating and cooling specialists at Teays Valley Service Experts. They can help you figure out the ideal way to disable an uncooperative Seasonal Savings program on your Nest thermostat.