A Nest Thermostat is the perfect way to keep your home comfortable, no matter what the season or weather. With a range of features and programs designed for maximum efficiency, convenience and comfort, a Nest Thermostat is the perfect solution if you want to manage your energy use — lowering your monthly bills in the process.

That’s why more homeowners are considering adding devices like a Nest into their home. If you're interested in trying a Nest yourself, call your nearest expert for smart thermostat installation in Omaha.

With everything from automatic scheduling to energy efficiency monitoring, Nest makes controlling the climate of your home effortless.

Want all the details? Take some time to review these 12 things you should know about your Nest Thermostat.

1. Resetting Your Nest Thermostat

One of the first things to know about resetting a Google Nest Thermostat is that resetting is different from restarting.

  • Restart: Similar to restarting any electronic device, including your phone or computer, restarting your Nest Thermostat turns it off before starting it right back up again. This preserves current settings and should be attempted if your Nest is frozen or not connecting to Wi-Fi.
  • Reset: Conversely, resetting eliminates most if not all of your preferred settings. For the most part, homeowners will perform a reset when they’re moving to a new home and bringing the thermostat with them, or if they just want to erase their personal information from the Nest before leaving it behind for the next resident.

If you want to perform a reset, first write down your temperature settings so reapplying them is faster. Next, find Settings -> Equipment and record your system wires, heating type and safety temperature settings.

Then, to manually restart or reset your Nest, go to Settings, select Reset and press. You can choose from five options:

  • Restart: Turns your Nest off and starts it back up while remembering your settings. Another way to restart is to press the outside of the Nest and hold it down for a few seconds until it turns black, at which point you can remove your hand.
  • Schedule: This reset setting clears any info about your temperature schedule—including for your hot water, if you've connected it to your Nest. With this option, you’ll be given the chance to plan out a new schedule or wait while your Nest learns your schedule.
  • Away: This kind of reset erases all the information your Nest has learned about how often you walk by, so that it can update the temperature on its own.
  • Network: If you select this reset option, it forgets connection logins and your Nest will no longer be connected to Wi-Fi. Use this option if you want your Nest to forget your Wi-Fi password.
  • All Settings: Self-explanatory, an All Settings reset clears all your personal settings and learning.

2. How to Connect Nest Thermostat to Wi-Fi

Staying connected to your Wi-Fi is important for making the most of your Nest's features.

To connect your Nest to the internet:

  • Access the Quick View menu. This is done by turning the thermostat's outer ring.
  • Find the Settings icon.
  • Select Network.
  • After your Nest is finished scanning for local networks, find your Wi-Fi and, if you have one, put in your password.

3. Does a Nest Thermostat Have a Battery and How Long Does It Last?

Nest thermostats are powered indirectly through HVAC system, but they also include a rechargeable lithium-ion battery for backup in situations where the power cuts out. According to Google, Nest's manufacturer, a Nest Thermostat battery will generally last several months. The Nest's battery is rechargable with a USB cable included with the thermostat.

4. Shutting Off a Nest Thermostat

If you aren’t going to be in your home for a long time, it's a good idea to set your Nest Thermostat to Off mode, though Eco mode is also a good option. Off mode shuts down all your regular heating and cooling schedules, although the Nest will still use your Safety Temperatures to keep your home from getting particularly hot or cold.

To choose Off mode on the thermostat:

  • Press and hold the touch bar until it displays “Turn Off” and then slide the bar to highlight Turn Off, and then touch the bar to select.
  • You can also go to Mode from the main menu and select Off.

Off mode is available on the Google Home app as well:

  • Select Thermostat from home screen
  • Tap Temperature mode
  • Select Off

5. Is Alexa Compatible with a Nest Thermostat?

Yes, Amazon's Alexa is compatible with a Nest Thermostat. Alexa can also be integrated with with Nest doorbells and cameras. You can even operate a Nest Thermostat with Google Assistant.

6. Will My Nest Thermostat Function Without Wi-Fi?

Yes, your Nest Thermostat will still be able to adjust the temperatures without Wi-Fi. However, being disconnected from Wi-FI means the Nest doesn’t have the ability to use the smart functions that most people enjoy.

7. Can You Lock a Nest Thermostat?

When family members can't stop bickering over temperatures, Nest offers a handy feature that keeps things simple.

A user can 'lock' the Nest to prevent others from adjusting the settings or changing the temperature outside of a preset range. This won't mean you have to make do with just one temperature—a locked Nest still has access to programmed settings—but simply keeps these settings from being changed.

If you want to lock your Nest:

  • Tap the Settings icon, scroll to the bottom and find Lock.
  • Enter a 4-digit pin number you can remember, and then enter it twice.
  • If locking in Heat or Cool mode, fine-tune your maximum and minimum temperature range and then tap Lock at the bottom of the screen.

For unlocking it, open the settings and choose Unlock. After you've entered the 4-digit pin, your device will be unlocked.

8. Adjusting a Nest Thermostat from Your Phone

You can control the Nest through your Google Home app, which can be accessed from your phone or desktop computer. Other versions of Nest, including the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat, are also controllable through the Nest app.

Before you can make adjustments for a Nest on your phone with Google Home or the Nest app, you need to follow a few steps:

  • Download the Google Home app or, if you have an advanced model, the Nest app to your phone.
  • Plug in your Nest Thermostat.
  • Access the Google Home app on your phone and follow the instructions to select your account, link to your new device and connect to Wi-Fi.
  • There is a guided setup tool on Google, for those needing extra assistance in connecting.

As soon as you've connected the Nest to your Home app, you can access it by clicking Thermostat on the home screen. Once you do that, you can make changes to the temperature by dragging your finger along the screen or tapping on a plus or minus sign.

You also can change preset Nest temperatures on the app. From the home screen, find your Thermostat before selecting Settings. At this screen, select Temperature Preferences and then Temperature Presets. The display will show your preferred Comfort, Eco and Sleep temperatures. Choose the appropriate setting to change the temperature for that preset.

9. Creating a Nest Thermostat Schedule

Your Nest allows you to schedule temperature programming either on the device or on the Google Home app. More advanced versions of the Nest, such as the Nest Thermostat E and Nest Learning Thermostat, also can be controlled via the Nest app.

The two easiest ways to schedule your Nest are:

  • Quick Schedule: Quick Schedules are based on the national average schedule for energy efficiency. As you set the thermostat up, the Google Home app enables you to set the temperature with a schedule. If you choose that option, it displays a preset schedule for you to customize as you wish. Once setup is complete, that’s the schedule it uses.
  • Temperature Presets: If you prefer other basic preset options, open the Google Home app and select Thermostat. Then, tap Presets and select Edit. As soon as you're finished making updates, select Done.

If you already have a schedule and want to change it, open the Google Home app, select Thermostat and then tap on Schedules. You can then pick the day of the week that you want to add a temperature. Once you pick the day, tap Add and find the preset you want. Finally, select Time before touching and dragging the numbers to change the time. Your update won't be applied until you select Done.

10. Setting a Temperature Range on a Nest Thermostat

Your Nest's Eco mode is great for setting temperature ranges. Your Nest will adjust the temperature depending on if you're at home or away.

To customize the Nest temperature range in Eco mode, go to Settings and select Eco. The thermostat's display should list existing “Heat to” and “Cool to” temperature settings. You can select each and make your preferred changes. Once you're finished, select Done.

11. What to Do if a Nest Thermostat Is Not Compatible

Nest thermostats can be integrated with most HVAC systems. Google, Nest's manufacturer, offers a compatibility tool that shares questions concerning your location and current setup to determine which Nest model is compatible with your system.

If you have a Nest and believe it’s not compatible with your system, it’s best to reach out to a professional for smart thermostat installation in Omaha. An experienced technician will be able to evaluate your system and, if your Nest is compatible, get it installed and on the road to saving you money in no time.

12. How Do I Manually Control My Nest Thermostat?

Nest Thermostats are loaded with innovative features designed to increase comfort and decrease costs. However, you have the ability to turn off the smart features if you want to control a Nest manually like a normal thermostat.

Remember, by doing this you are turning off all of your temperature schedules and letting the Nest work like any other thermostat—it will display the temperature and allow you to make changes, but that’s about it.

Setting your thermostat to manual controls can be accomplished with the following steps:

  • Auto-Schedule: From the main screen, go to Settings and then scroll to Nest Sense. Go to Auto-Schedule, select No and click Done.
  • Eco: From the main screen, go to Settings, scroll to Eco. Once in Eco, select Off for both the current Heat to and Cool to temperatures, before selecting Done.
  • Home/Away Assist: From the main screen, go to Settings and select Home/Away Assist. Then, select Stop Using and click Done.
  • Reset: After you've cleared the settings, reset your nest. From the main screen, go to Settings and select Reset, highlight Schedule and then select Reset to clear out any saved scheduling data.