What is the Nest Thermostat?

Thermostats are devices that turn the heat up or down, or the air conditioning up or down, depending on the indoor temperature you want for your home. Usually, you can just turn your thermostat on and adjust the temperature to whatever feels comfortable. What makes the Nest thermostat different is that it is fully capable of programming itself. Here’s how:

As you adjust the temperature in your home throughout the day, Nest takes notice. In fact, it keeps a record of the times that you prefer more heat and the times you prefer less, eventually building a schedule for you. Within a few days, you won’t have to interact with Nest in order for it to change the temperature to your personal preferences throughout the day. So it becomes a very automatic way for your home to be heated or cooled to your exact preferences without you having to continually set and re-set the thermostat yourself.

Once the schedule is set, you can still make quick, one-time alterations without disrupting the overall program. However, should you continue to make regular changes, the thermostat will adapt and create a new schedule to fit your new needs.

Nest’s Auto-Away Setting

Nest is just as useful when you’re not home as when you are, maybe better, because you won’t have to worry about paying for unnecessary climate control while you’re away. The “Auto-Away” feature can do the following:

·       Uses sensors and algorithms to sense if you’re away from home

·       Reduces heat or AC use when it senses occupants aren’t home

·       Tracks and memorizes any times you may consistently be away from home

How the Nest Thermostat Saves Money and Energy

The end result of all of this innovation isn’t just increased thermostat autonomy. Nest designed its learning thermostat so that homeowners could waste less energy when they heat and cool their homes.

The end result is that users can save as much as 20% on their monthly heating and cooling bills according to Nest. And, as they say, what’s good for the goose (your wallet) is good for the gander (the environment). Considering that 44% of the energy in the United States comes from coal-burning power plants – the single largest air polluters in the country – anything we can do to  reduce energy consumption can only help keep the planet healthy.

The Nest Leaf

Nest takes it one step further by including a feature called “Nest Leaf.” This feature does the following:

·       * Acts as a guide to help you save energy

·      *  When you decrease energy use, a small icon appears to let you know you’re saving more energy

·       * Encourages you to make any changes that might save extra energy

        Installing the Nest    

       There are videos available on YouTube that make installing the Nest yourself look easy. If you’re pretty handy, go ahead and do it yourself. I’m not that comfortable when it comes to wiring, so I’d probably get the help of one of my DIY friends or neighbors who is. Otherwise, you can buy the Nest at most hardware stores, big box stores, and online.

       Here’s more information on the Nest.

NOTE: While the learning thermostat has certainly been making waves, Nest’s other attempt at innovative home automation recently hit a snag. The Nest Protect smoke and carbon monoxide detector was pulled from the market due a design flaw that could possibly allow users to accidentally deactivate the alarm function, which in turn could lead to property damage, personal injury, or even death. Still, despite this apparent hiccup, Nest remains committed towards revolutionizing environmentally friendly home automation.

   David Glenn taps his 30 years of experience owning his own home-building business to review promising new technologies that offer consumers the opportunity to save energy and money and live greener lives. Connect with him on Twitter @davidglenn97.

The post The Nest Thermostat Can Help Build Your Nest Egg by Saving You Energy & Money appeared first on Big Green Purse.

1. Caulk or weatherstrip windows and doors. Heating accounts for the biggest chunk of most utility bills – and offers the most opportunities for money and energy savings. Did you know that the energy used by the average home generates twice as much pollution as the average car? Materials for the average twelve-window, two-door house could cost about $25, but savings in annual energy costs might amount to more than 10 percent of your yearly heating bill. According to the Department of Energy, if every gas-heated home were properly caulked and weather-stripped, we’d save enough natural gas each year to heat almost 4 million more homes. You can find weatherstripping at most hardware stores. To minimize indoor air pollution from the weatherstripping materials you use, try water-based caulks like Quick Shield VOC-Free Sealant or Polyseamseal.

2. Install storm windows and doors. Combination screen and storm windows and doors are the most convenient and energy efficient because they can be opened easily when there is no need to run heating or cooling equipment. Installing high efficiency Energy Star windows can reduce heating and cooling costs by 15 percent; you can save from $125-$340 a year when you replace single pane windows with their Energy Star equivalents. If you don’t want to buy new windows, cover existing window with a heavy-duty, clear plastic sheet on the frame. You can buy a ready-made kit again at most hardware stores. A third alternative? Thermal draperies, made with a thick, fiber-filled backing to fit snugly against the entire window frame, can reduce heat loss by as much as 50 percent and save you $15 per window each winter. Even simple heavy drapes can save about $10 per window annually.

3. Insulate. You can reduce your energy needs by as much as 20 to 30 percent, and save about four months’ worth of household energy, by investing in insulation. Focus on your attic floor or top floor ceiling, crawlspace, exterior walls. basement ceilings and walls, and rooms over unheated spaces, like garages. The “Simply Insulate” website maintained by the North American Insulation Manufacturers Association will tell you how much insulation you need in the different parts of your house, depending on where you live. Think about using cotton insulation made from recycled cotton or denim scrap that will have no impact on your indoor air quality, unlike the formaldehyde ingredients in fiberglass insulation.

4. Install a programmable thermostat. A programmable thermostat allows you to predetermine temperatures for daytime and evening comfort as well as energy savings. It can save you as much as 20 percent if you opt to reduce temperatures by 5 degrees at night and 10 degrees during the day when most people are out of the house.

5. Get an energy audit. At low or no cost, your local utility may provide a specially trained auditor to examine your home and explain what inexpensive and free energy conservation actions you can take to save money and energy immediately. The auditor may also take an infrared photograph of your home to help you pinpoint exactly where heat is being lost. You can also use this do-it-yourself audit tool developed by the city of Seattle.

6. Set your water heater to 120 degrees. If you currently heat your water to 140 degrees, you may save as much as 10 percent on water-heating costs by dialing the thermostat down a bit.

7. Wrap your hot water pipes in insulating tape or foam. You’ll reduce the loss of heat through the hot water pipes that move hot water from your water tank to your faucets.

8. Use less hot water. Wash laundry in cold water. Install low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators. Fix leaky faucets. Wash full loads of laundry and dishes.

9. Maintain your furnace. If you heat with oil, have your furnace serviced at least once a year to save 10 percent in fuel consumption (if you do this in summer, you’ll get cheaper, off-season rates). Clean or replace the filters in your forced-air heating system each month. Dust or vacuum radiator surfaces frequently. If you must replace your furnace, buy the most energy-efficient model you can afford. If you have a fireplace, keep the damper closed to avoid losing as much as 8 percent of your home’s heated or cooled air.

10. Upgrade your appliances. When you replace your appliances, choose Energy Star models, which use 10-50% less energy and water than the standard alternatives. If just one in 10 homes used ENERGY STAR qualified appliances, the environmental benefit would be like planting 1.7 million new acres of trees.

Here are more energy-saving tips that save money, too.

Can “clean” coal or nuclear power solve our climate change problems. I don’t think so.

Here’s why climate change matters to women in particular.

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