Internet of (some) Things - Nest Thermostat

So we got a leak, a proper dripping ceiling leak that signalled the end of our 40yr old heating system with its banging boiler and various tanks in the loft.  At this point I also decided that this might also be a good time to think about installing a smart thermometer and get on board with some 'Internet of things' compatible devices.

Researching smart thermostat though presented a bigger challenge than I realised.  I knew that the new Google Home device would be released at the same time that my new heating system was being installed so decided to make sure that whichever device that I decided it would be compatible with that which meant that we went with the Nest Thermostat over the Worcester Bosch Wave.  I knew with certainty that Nest is compatible with Google Home assistant and so I would be able to control and monitor the temperature of my house with voice commands - but more on that later on.

Four days later I had one new Worcester Bosch 38cdi combi-boiler installed in the loft with a lovely Nest transmitter box next to it.  Since we had removed the original boiler this meant that it wasn't going to be a simple case of installing the new Nest thermostat where the old one was.  With Nest there is the option so you don't need to run a new thermostat cable though and basically run it via the wi-fi and plugged into the mains.  Granted this means that there is a white cable into the back of the unit but you could have it mounted on a stand so the cable can be hidden.  In our case though with toddler twins running riot around the house I decided that the safer option would be to mount it high on the wall out of reach.

After the plumber had installed the transmitter box I did the installation and setup of the thermostat unit.  I found it fairly straight forward.  There are three pieces to consider; the unit, the mount and the power cable.  There is an additional mount plate that I did not use.

Once you attach the thermostat to the mount the unit switches on.  You then complete the setup by downloading and following the instructions on how to add the device to your Nest account.  In all this took me less than 10 minutes. Two screws into the wall and a click to mount the unit onto the mount.  The interface has a 'far sight' function which means that you can see it from afar and set it to only switch on when you approach it - very nifty!


Now it is working we can control the thermostat from our mobiles via the Nest App.  Computer via home.nest.com and via voice command with our Google Assistant.

I am now planning to have a play with integrating a Nest Protect camera but so far the first one has had to be returned to Google as having worked fine for a week and being throughly impressive it stopped working and has become throughly annoying!  

I am also thinking of controlling some of the lights through some LIFX bulbs - particularly in the hallway where it would be nice if the light would switch on as we open the door but budget restrictions mean I need to save some pennies before making this purchase and sort the Nest Cam!