Smart thermostats are gaining in popularity as more and more homeowners look for ways to scale back their energy expenses. These devices can be programmed to automatically regulate the temperature at home in line with your day-to-day schedule. They also have the means to study any preferences over time. For this reason, you can save money on your energy bills by ensuring that your comfort system is only running when you need it.
Google’s smart thermostat is the Nest, and many homeowners are satisfied with its features and general efficiency. But one feature–the Seasonal Savings program–may be stirring up trouble instead of supporting your HVAC system. Persistent issues are pushing homeowners to look for how to disable this feature. We’ll present the concerns some people are having with Seasonal Savings and offer instructions for how to opt out of the program.
Many Homeowners Claim the Seasonal Savings Program Isn’t Working Like It Should
Google built the Seasonal Savings program to help homeowners enhance their energy efficiency. For peak 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, setting up the biggest changes when you’re away or asleep. However, this isn’t the case for many people participating in the program.
Alternatively, there are reports that the program is inconsistent and annoying to use. Homeowners are noticing that the program is actually increasing their energy bills instead of lowering them. And when they attempt to disable or opt out of Seasonal Savings, they’ve found the option to do so is hard to find or downright absent. In various cases people have even noted it being flipped back on after it was disabled.
Smart thermostats are designed to improve the efficiency of your heating and cooling. While automatic temperature corrections are a widespread feature in smart thermostats, it shouldn’t bypass your preferred settings. If the Nest isn't meeting your comfort preferences, opting out of the Seasonal Savings program is the right 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 can a smart thermostat you operate overlook your settings and enroll in the program? It could be because of an energy-efficiency program you signed up for with a utility company.
These agreements help you boost your home’s energy efficiency. They can include rebates on new accessories or special discounts for renewable energy systems. But lots of people are shocked to learn they also grant your utility company remote access to your thermostat. If the power grid is under a heavy load, the utility company can override your thermostat and raise the temperature. You may well be having problems with the Seasonal Savings program due to the fact that a utility company is utilizing this remote access.
But what if the setting is defective or just ignoring your preferences? Whatever the reason might be, you don’t want a feature to increase your energy use without your consent. We’ll walk you through how other users have turned off the Seasonal Savings program.
How to Disable Your Nest Thermostat’s Seasonal Savings Feature
A number of people have reported trouble opting out of the Seasonal Savings feature. While the location of this setting could be different depending on your specific Nest model, other users are worried that Google is intentionally making it tougher to turn off Seasonal Savings. To make sure you can opt out no matter what, we’ll describe the ways other users have found success.
- Overriding Seasonal Savings: Manually adjusting the temperature should outrank the Seasonal Savings program, but numerous users have discovered this isn’t the case. If you note your Nest consistently undoing your changes, you’ll probably want to disable 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 points users to their History to shut off Seasonal Savings, but other homeowners have located this option under Settings. Once disabled, the feature is temporarily off until the next summer or winter.
- Stopping the program from the Nest thermostat: Your thermostat should also feature a History option where you can opt out of Seasonal Savings, but many homeowners report the disable option is absent.
- Opting out before the program starts: The Seasonal Savings program is only available around summer and winter. Your smart device is supposed to receive a notification when the program is about to begin, offering you the opportunity to opt out.
When Seasonal Savings is on, your Nest will display a small yellow symbol of a leaf. If a Nest is having issues and the Seasonal Savings icon is missing, your issue could be with a different setting entirely.
Sometimes the Problem Isn’t Seasonal Savings but Another Setting or Program
Additional settings on Nest smart thermostats apart from Seasonal Savings can result in automatic temperature changes. If these settings are active during Seasonal Savings, even opting out of the program may not stop the thermostat from making alterations. Thankfully, these settings can be disabled. You’ll also have options if the headache is a third party like a power company.
- Shutting off Auto-Schedule: The Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat both extend the Auto-Schedule feature, using their capacity to study your preferences to set the perfect schedule. Going into Settings and switching off Auto-Schedule should disable other automatic controls including Seasonal Savings.
- Disabling auto switching: Nest thermostats might still swap to eco temperatures if you have an auto-switching function like Home & Away Routines or Home/Away Assist. These settings automatically change the temperature when the thermostat assumes that no one is home.
- Leaving the utility company’s energy agreement: Because your energy provider may be remotely controlling a Nest thermostat, negating the agreement should get rid of their access. You can find the complete details of these agreements via your energy provider.
- Reaching out to Google support: If everything else fails, contacting Google’s technical support might be of help. Staff can lead you to resetting the Nest or finding the proper setting to turn off Seasonal Savings.
If the Problem Persists, Your Thermostat Could Be Defective
There’s always the risk your Nest smart thermostat is just malfunctioning. Electrical issues or software bugs can trigger all sorts of problems, including an obnoxious Seasonal Savings program. If you think the problem is isolated to your personal thermostat, a seasoned technician will be able to help. After all, smart thermostats are still a beneficial investment for your home’s energy efficiency.
If you prefer local support for your smart thermostat in Fort Wayne, contact the heating and cooling professionals at Rolf Griffin Service Experts . They can help you find out the easiest way to switch off an uncooperative Seasonal Savings program on your Nest thermostat.