Smart thermostats are growing in popularity as more and more homeowners seek out ways to scale back their energy costs. These accessories can be programmed to efficiently maintain the temperature inside your home in line with your regular schedule. They also have the means to study any preferences over time. For this reason, you can cut costs on your energy bills by ensuring that your home is only heated or cooled when you need it.
Google’s smart thermostat is the Nest, and numerous homeowners are pleased with its features and overall efficiency. But one feature–the Seasonal Savings program–might be causing trouble as opposed to helping your HVAC system. Persistent issues are forcing homeowners to find out how to disable this feature. We’ll present the trouble some people are having with Seasonal Savings and include instructions for how to opt out of the setting.
Many Homeowners Argue the Seasonal Savings Program Isn’t Working Well
Google developed the Seasonal Savings program to help homeowners increase their energy efficiency. For the highest HVAC use in the summer and winter, it will automatically adjust the thermostat to balance your preferences with energy efficiency. The program is expected to run without disrupting your sense of comfort, making the biggest changes when you’re away or in bed. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case for numerous people enrolled in the program.
In fact, there are reports that the program is sporadic and annoying to use. Homeowners are noticing that the program is really increasing their energy bills instead of reducing them. And when they attempt to disable or opt out of Seasonal Savings, they’ve discovered the way to do so is difficult to find or just absent. In some cases people have even discovered it being turned back on after it was disabled.
Smart thermostats are supposed to enhance the efficiency of your heating and cooling. While automatic temperature corrections are a popular feature in smart thermostats, it shouldn’t overrule your preferred settings. If the Nest won’t work with your comfort preferences, disabling the Seasonal Savings option is the right move.
But First, Why Is This A Problem?
Homeowners are complaining that the Seasonal Savings program was activated on their Nest thermostat without their approval. Why would a smart thermostat you control dismiss your settings and activate the program? It might 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 feature rebates on new accessories or special promotions for renewable energy systems. But lots of people are shocked to find out they also permit your utility company remote access to the thermostat. If the power grid is experiencing a heavy load, the utility company can override your thermostat and adjust the temperature. You might be having trouble with the Seasonal Savings program because a utility company is using this remote access.
But what if the feature is faulty or just ignoring your preferences? Whatever the reason might be, you don’t want a feature to increase your energy use without your permission. We’ll take you step-by-step through how other homeowners have turned off the Seasonal Savings program.
How to Disable Your Nest Thermostat’s Seasonal Savings Feature
A number of people have experienced trouble shutting off the Seasonal Savings feature. While the location of this setting may be different according to your specific Nest model, other users are alarmed that Google is intentionally making it more difficult to opt out of Seasonal Savings. To make sure you can opt out no matter what, we’ll list the ways other users have enjoyed success.
- Overriding Seasonal Savings: Manually changing the temperature should supersede the Seasonal Savings program, but many users have found this isn’t entirely accurate. If you note your Nest constantly reversing your changes, you’ll probably opt to turn off the feature completely.
- Shutting off the feature from the Nest app: Your phone or tablet’s Nest app should have a History option and a Settings option. Google points users to their History to disable Seasonal Savings, but other users have discovered this option within Settings. Once disabled, the program is temporarily off until the following summer or winter.
- Disabling the program from the Nest thermostat: Your thermostat should also possess a History option where you can turn off Seasonal Savings, but many homeowners state the disable option is not there.
- Opting out before the program starts: The Seasonal Savings program is only accessible in summer and winter. Your smart device is supposed to be sent a notification when the program is about to launch, offering you the opportunity to opt out.
When Seasonal Savings is engaged, your Nest is supposed to feature a small yellow symbol of a leaf. If your Nest is struggling with issues and the Seasonal Savings icon is not visible, your problem may be with yet another setting entirely.
Sometimes the Issue Isn’t Seasonal Savings but Another Setting or Program
Alternative features on Nest smart thermostats besides Seasonal Savings can cause unwanted temperature changes. If these settings are active during Seasonal Savings, even disabling the program may not prevent the thermostat from making adjustments. Fortunately, these settings can be disabled. You’ll also have options if the problem is a third party like the power company.
- Turning off Auto-Schedule: The Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat both give you the Auto-Schedule feature, using their ability to learn your preferences to set the ideal schedule. Going into Settings and switching off Auto-Schedule should stop other automatic controls like Seasonal Savings.
- Disabling auto switching: Nest thermostats can still flip to eco temperatures if you use an auto-switching setting like Home & Away Routines or Home/Away Assist. These features automatically change the temperature when the thermostat detects that no one is home.
- Negating the utility company’s energy agreement: Because your energy provider might be remotely controlling a Nest thermostat, opting out of the agreement should get rid of their access. You can obtain the complete details of these agreements with your energy provider.
- Reaching out to Google support: If nothing else works, contacting Google’s technical support may be of service. Staff can direct you to resetting the Nest or locating the appropriate setting to shut off Seasonal Savings.
If the Problem Remains, Your Thermostat May Be Malfunctioning
There’s always the risk a Nest smart thermostat is just malfunctioning. Electrical problems or software bugs can result in all types of trouble, including an inconsistent Seasonal Savings program. If you suspect the problem is isolated to your specific 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 prefer local assistance for your smart thermostat in Concord, get in touch with the comfort experts at Freschi Service Experts. They can help you find the best way to shut off an uncooperative Seasonal Savings program on your Nest thermostat.