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Nest Question--Fan Mode?

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dasadab

Nest Question--Fan Mode?
« on: March 27, 2016, 01:12:01 pm »
Thanks.  I know zero about the Nest, but I am interesting in buying one to try Echo integration.

With my existing Honeywell thermostat, I often use my home air conditioner's fan mode to circulate room temperature air in lieu of AC cooling.  Also, I sometime set the nighttime thermostat for AC "cooling" to say 72 degrees along with turning on the separate fan mode.  When the AC reaches the target temperature the cooling stops, but the fan remains on all night regardless of the cycling of the AC/cooling mode. 

Does anyone know if the Nest allows a Fan mode without cooling or heating?

Specifically, can I tell Alexa to turn on or off the fan on a Nest regardless of what I tell "her" to set the temperature at?

Basically, I am a "fan" of fan use. 

Re: Nest Question--Fan Mode?
« Reply #1 on: March 27, 2016, 04:38:31 pm »
I cannot answer your question but I read that honeywell is supposed to be integrated with the echo before the end of the month.  might want to wait before getting the nest. 

http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-echo-alexa-smart-home-upgrades-include-nest-honeywell-integration-2016-3


Offline jwlv

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  • 1487
Re: Nest Question--Fan Mode?
« Reply #2 on: March 27, 2016, 07:18:18 pm »
http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-echo-alexa-smart-home-upgrades-include-nest-honeywell-integration-2016-3

I was reading the above article at Business Insider and saw this excerpt:

Businesses will be the top adopter of IoT solutions because they will use IoT to 1) lower operating costs; 2) increase productivity; and 3) expand to new markets or develop new product offerings.

Governments will be the second-largest adopters, while consumers will be the group least transformed by the IoT.


What are they talking about???

Government offices are the last to adopt new technology. Many government offices are still running Windows XP. Some still even have a COBOL based back-end.

Businesses? Some will leap ahead but I believe most will stick with what they have. Just look at the Smart Chip (EVM) credit cards. It have been available for over a decade. How many businesses used it? None! Magstripe credit cards have been around since the 70's. It took businesses 45 years to adopt new technology. And they are just only doing it because it is being mandated by Visa and Mastercard. EVM was supposed to have 100% deployment by October 2015. It is now 6 months later, and I see only about 40% of the businesses I shop at are using it. Costco, Albertsons Supermarket, McDonald's, Jack In The Box are some of the places that are still using magstripe instead of EMV.

The article puts consumers last. I believe we are first. It is us who explore new technology because it benefits us. We want it. Government and businesses don't want it. They only do it because they have to.
« Last Edit: March 27, 2016, 07:25:18 pm by jwlv »

Offline jwlv

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  • 1487
Re: Nest Question--Fan Mode?
« Reply #3 on: March 27, 2016, 07:24:23 pm »
Thanks.  I know zero about the Nest, but I am interesting in buying one to try Echo integration.

With my existing Honeywell thermostat, I often use my home air conditioner's fan mode to circulate room temperature air in lieu of AC cooling.  Also, I sometime set the nighttime thermostat for AC "cooling" to say 72 degrees along with turning on the separate fan mode.  When the AC reaches the target temperature the cooling stops, but the fan remains on all night regardless of the cycling of the AC/cooling mode. 

Does anyone know if the Nest allows a Fan mode without cooling or heating?

Specifically, can I tell Alexa to turn on or off the fan on a Nest regardless of what I tell "her" to set the temperature at?

Basically, I am a "fan" of fan use.

That was the first thing I was trying to figure out. Unfortunately, there is no direct fan mode through Echo. The next best thing is to set up your own fan mode using IFTTT. That is, you would create a recipe on IFTTT to turn on the fan. I have mine set up to respond to "Alexa, trigger turn on the fan."  For some reason, IFTTT doesn't have a turn off fan action. But in your Nest settings, you can define how long the fan will run for, up to 8 hours, after which it will shut itself off.
« Last Edit: March 27, 2016, 07:39:02 pm by jwlv »

dasadab

Re: Nest Question--Fan Mode?
« Reply #4 on: March 28, 2016, 12:10:08 am »
Bummer.  It would be so useful to be able to turn on the HVAC fan with a voice command.