Smart thermostats are growing in popularity as more and more homeowners search for ways to scale back their energy costs. These accessories can be programmed to conveniently adjust the temperature in your home in line with your weekly schedule. They also have the capability to learn your preferences over time. Subsequently, you can make big savings on your energy bills by making sure 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 all-around efficiency. But one feature–the Seasonal Savings program–might be making trouble instead of helping your HVAC system. Lasting issues are driving homeowners to find out how to shut off this feature. We’ll present the concerns some people are having with Seasonal Savings and include instructions for how to opt out of the program.
Many Homeowners Claim the Seasonal Savings Program Isn’t Working Correctly
Google developed the Seasonal Savings program to help homeowners boost their energy efficiency. During peak HVAC use in the summer and winter, it is supposed to automatically adjust the thermostat to balance your preferences with energy efficiency. The program is designed to run without disrupting your sense of comfort, implementing the biggest changes when you’re away or asleep. Sadly, this isn’t the case for many people participating in the program.
In fact, there are claims that the program is contradictory and irritating to use. Homeowners are concerned that the program is really increasing their energy bills instead of shrinking them. And when they try to disable or opt out of Seasonal Savings, they’ve found the way to do so is difficult to find or outright absent. In several cases people have even noticed it being flipped back on after it was disabled.
Smart thermostats are expected to enhance the efficiency of your HVAC system. While automatic temperature changes are a common feature in smart thermostats, it shouldn’t bypass your preferred settings. If the Nest refuses to accommodate your comfort preferences, opting out of the Seasonal Savings option is the correct move.
But First, Why Is This A Problem?
Homeowners are complaining that the Seasonal Savings setting was running on their Nest thermostat without their consent. Why should a smart thermostat you control neglect your settings and opt in for the program? It might be because of an energy-efficiency agreement you subscribed to with a utility company.
These agreements help you boost your home’s energy efficiency. They will sometimes offer rebates on new products or special promotions for renewable energy systems. But many people are surprised to hear they also permit 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 change the temperature. You could be having problems with the Seasonal Savings program due to the fact that a utility company is using this remote access.
But what if the setting is malfunctioning or just ignoring your preferences? Whatever the reason could be, you don’t want a feature to double your energy use without your consent. We’ll explain 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 documented trouble disabling the Seasonal Savings feature. While the location of this setting might be different according to your specific Nest model, other users are worried that Google is purposely making it harder to disable 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 setting the temperature should supersede the Seasonal Savings program, but numerous users have observed this isn’t the case. If you note your Nest constantly undoing your changes, you’ll probably prefer to shut off the feature completely.
- Disabling the feature from the Nest app: Your phone or tablet’s Nest app is supposed to have a History option and a Settings option. Google points users to their History to disable Seasonal Savings, but other users have found this option within Settings. Once disabled, the program is temporarily off until the subsequent 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 many homeowners report the disable option is missing.
- Opting out before the program launches: 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 start, allowing you the time to opt out.
When Seasonal Savings is on, your Nest should display a small yellow symbol of a leaf. If a Nest is struggling with issues and the Seasonal Savings icon is not visible, your predicament could be with a different setting entirely.
Sometimes the Issue Isn’t Seasonal Savings but a Different Setting or Program
Additional options on Nest smart thermostats besides Seasonal Savings can lead to unwanted temperature changes. If these features are active during Seasonal Savings, even shutting off the program may not keep the thermostat from making changes. Fortunately, these settings can be switched off. You’ll also have options if the headache is a third party like your 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 define the ideal schedule. Going into Settings and switching off Auto-Schedule should stop other automatic changes such as Seasonal Savings.
- Disabling auto switching: Nest thermostats may still shift to eco temperatures if you use an auto-switching feature like Home & Away Routines or Home/Away Assist. These functions automatically control the temperature when the thermostat assumes that no one is home.
- Negating the utility company’s energy agreement: Because your energy provider could be remotely controlling a Nest thermostat, negating the agreement should take away remote access. You can locate the complete details of these agreements through your energy provider.
- Calling Google support: If everything else fails, contacting Google’s technical support could be of service. Staff can steer you to resetting the Nest or finding the appropriate setting to switch off Seasonal Savings.
If the Problem Continues, Your Thermostat May Be Faulty
There’s always the chance the Nest smart thermostat is just malfunctioning. Electrical damage or software glitches can cause all sorts of trouble, including an inconsistent Seasonal Savings program. If you think the problem is isolated to your personal thermostat, a knowledgeable technician might be able to help. After all, smart thermostats are still a worthwhile investment for your home’s energy efficiency.
If you need local service for your smart thermostat in Knoxville, get in touch with the HVAC experts at R & M Climate Control Service Experts. They can help you determine the best way to shut off a stubborn Seasonal Savings program on your Nest thermostat.