Saturday, March 16, 2013

Nest

I got a Nest thermostat for Christmas. I'm all about saving money and this thermostat has lived up to it's claims. Very easy to install and setup. It connects wirelessly to your internet and you can control it from your laptop or smartphone.

Once up and running I programed it to fit my habits and after a while it learned my pattern and started to operate on it's own. I leave my heat set at 67f during the day while I'm home and down to 63f at night. That might be too cold for some but for me it's comfortable. I also travel a lot for work and while I'm out of town it drops down to 58f on the "away" option.

If I leave the house during the day while it's currently set to 67f and the Nest detects no one is home (how it does this I don't know) it will switch itself to the "away" option and take the heat down to 58f. Before coming back I get on my IPhone and turn off the away option and by the time I get back home it's back to the temperature I want.

I installed it in January and on my February bill the gas company did an "estimate" reading and my bill was $96. I just got my March bill which was an "actual" reading of the meter and my gas bill for March was $6 and some change. This was the result of what they estimated I would use and what I actually used in January and February.

Now I travel a lot so my bill will be lower than most but even so that's pretty darn good. My last home (a Ryan) built in 2004 never saw a gas bill under $100 at this same time of year. That just goes to show just how energy efficient Ryan Homes are now and along with the Nest thermostat helps you improve on that efficiency. I recommend this product to everyone.

You can buy this online or at Lowes or Homedepot. We have the 2nd generation Nest and paid $198.

8 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing your experiences with the nest! We looked at them last year and I think the price was 300+ still. At 200, I'm tempted. I just wonder whether it can keep up with our bi-polar temperature wars! Scott turns it up, I turn it down, he turns it up, I turn it down.... Keep us posted as to whether it works as well in the summer!

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  2. This also includes running the fire place (not a lot) some days for a few hours as well.

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  3. I just ran across your blog about building in waite farms, and I had a couple of questions for you if you don't mind.

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  4. Sure ask away or you can email me at 2nlehigh@gmail.com

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  5. I'm currently building a Palermo in upstate NY. I realize the HVAC companies are different for us, but do you mind telling more about the connection wires you had for hooking up the Nest? I got a list of the the expected wires from my SR, but the compatibility tool on Nest's webpage tells me it won't work in my house. Just curious if your wires worked right off or it took some effort.

    Thanks!

    For reference here are the wires I was told I'd have:
    W, Y, G, O, RC, R, B, C

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  6. We are building in Waite Farms too and just started a blog!!
    buildingourpalermo.blogspot.com

    I think we are right across the street from you 2nlehigh!

    Tunseeker1 - are you blogging as well??

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  7. These kind of article spreading awareness in energy efficiency. Thanks for sharing such informative article. Heating and Cooling Mississauga

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