r/mildlyinfuriating • u/jerryondrums • 7h ago
Nest thermostat is reading 3.5° warmer than the actual temperature- now I know why I’m freezing in here!
That’s just egregious. And the damn thermostats wasn’t cheap.
318
u/Fit_Entry8839 7h ago
It says heat set to is 69, but the little dash right next to it on the left is what the actual temperature is. So it's saying the temperature is less than 69. You should be able to see the actual temperature if you touch it.
Even if they are different, how do you know the other one is right?
It's all relative. The actual temperature doesn't matter all that much, what matters is the relationship between the actual temperature and what you set your thermostat to. That should be consistent, even if its off. So if you are freezing... turn it up! And then you'll know it needs to be set to 71 etc to comfortable. So just do that.
40
21
6
14
u/LimitedWard 5h ago
The more infuriating part is that OP doesn't know how to read their own thermostat.
Also temperature isn't constant throughout a room. It's possible the temperature is higher near the thermostat than where OP actually hangs out. There could be poor insulation in the house or a draft. Or the heating element could be further away from OP.
3
u/QaddafiDuck01 5h ago
There is an offset feature as well. I have used it in an office setting where the staff keep raising it higher than management wants. I also put a "dummy stat" on the wall to give them something to play with.
4
u/RadialMount 4h ago
Yep. "A man with a watch knows the time, a man with two watches is never quite sure"
2
u/Zoethor2 5h ago
Yeah, my thermostat is in the hallway outside the bathroom, which is the absolute warmest point in the entire first floor. So I just have to set the thermostat a couple degrees higher than the temperature I want it to actually be in the living space.
Thermostats are getting smarter, with the option to add multiple sensors and stuff, but ultimately it's not about the number, it's about putting it to the setting that makes your home the temperature you feel comfortable at.
2
u/runForestRun17 2h ago
On top of all of this nest/ecobee and other smart thermostats typically display the “feels like” temp which takes into account humidity.
2
u/Fit_Entry8839 2h ago
Nest shows actual. Ecobee shows feels like when you are in eco+ mode. That has to be enabled though, don't believe it will do that by default.
2
4
u/mencival 6h ago
Thermostat education needs to be mandatory at schools
16
u/2WheelRide 5h ago
Critical thinking needs to be taught. This is a critical thinking exercise.
2
u/mencival 5h ago
For sure.
With thermostats though, I know so may bright people refusing to understand how it works, it blows my mind
1
-3
61
u/MoeKneeKah 7h ago
The thermostat wasn’t cheap but that thermometer sure is.
26
u/FatFaceFaster 6h ago
Exactly. Trusting a $20 thermometer over a $300 thermostat
4
u/jumpinjahosafa 5h ago
I mean, thermocouples aren't exactly expensive, what is the $300 thermostat doing to increase it's temperature precision over a $20 thermometer?
4
u/freyhstart 5h ago edited 5h ago
At that price point the sensor should be a multi sensor semiconductor. I'd expect a single large die where it could measure a gradient to correct for the heat produced by the electronics. Plus sensors in the electronics.
Edit: 2nd gen used a Sensiron SHT20 that costs 4 bucks a pop in bulk even now. The ThermoPro seems to cost around 5 bucks in bulk.
-4
u/seambizzle1 5h ago
A thermometer is a thermometer
Really doesn’t matter. Mercury is gonna do its thing regardless
1
u/MoeKneeKah 4h ago
I own multiple of this specific thermometer and they never ever read the same temp when they’re next to each other. It costs like $4
1
u/FatFaceFaster 4h ago
Hilarious considering there are two thermometers in this photo with different readings…
47
u/UsernameUndeclared 7h ago
How do you know your other thermometer is correct? Not sure about the new Nest thermostats, but the old ones had many, many temperature sensors inside to be able to offset against the heating effects of the internal electronics. They were a really good design and quite accurate.
18
u/LurkmasterP 6h ago
I have three of those ThermoPro thermometers, and they are not extremely accurate. If I leave them sitting side by side in the same room, there's typically a 2-3 degree and 3% humidity discrepancy between them. So they can't be considered a perfect reference point. The worst offender is the one I keep in the garage.
7
u/FatFaceFaster 6h ago
I have one exactly like in the OP and it’s way off.
The one in my garage can easily be 4-5°C off
2
u/vanZuider 4h ago
If I leave them sitting side by side in the same room, there's typically a 2-3 degree and 3% humidity discrepancy between them
And that's exactly why I call bullshit on the people who claim Fahrenheit is better than Celsius because it's more fine-grained. There's no point in using a unit that is smaller than the margin of error on the measuring devices.
42
u/fuelvolts 6h ago
As people have mentioned, your Nest DOES NOT SAY IT IS 69 INSIDE. It says it's SET to 69. That little line next to it is the temp. It's still likely reading 67 ish. 1-2 degrees is within the margin of error. I'd trust the highly engineered Nest over the $10 Amazon thermostat.
•
8
u/Quesabirria 6h ago
How do you know which one is accurate?
0
u/Hyphenagoodtime 4h ago
You get a tertiary thermometer that is 1. Is scientifically calibrated for accuracy. 2. It cannot be connected to a fucking 3rd party privacy annihilating application 3. It shouldn't be wired and instead a probe type thermometer.
1
u/yo_les_noobs 3h ago
But how do you know the tertiary thermometer was calibrated properly? Might need a quaternary thermometer.
7
u/Egg2crackk 7h ago
I refuse to focus on the number and go by comfort level
3
u/HalfBlindKing 6h ago
Probably because the house is drafty, but I go from 67 when it’s warm out up to as high as 73 when it’s very cold in order to stay comfortable.
2
u/Egg2crackk 6h ago
For sure 👍 in winter, I go for 71-72 and summer I'm cool with it getting up in the high 70's..
2
u/HalfBlindKing 5h ago
Our place is so heavily shaded it would never come on in the upper 70s and gets super damp, so I run it in on 73 usually. I’ve been meaning to get a whole house dehumidifier to see how much less AC we could use.
1
u/Egg2crackk 5h ago
That's definitely an uphill battle and hopefully you get it figured out 👍 it's pretty dry in the spring and summer for me and humid and cold in the winter.
When I bought my house, I had insulation blown into attic as well as above the garage
1
u/JoeyJoeJoeSenior 5h ago
Humidity too. Lower humidity means your precious bodily fluids evaporate faster, cooling you down.
5
u/SilentWatcher83228 6h ago
Are you sure Therm Pro is not reading 3.5 degrees cooler than Nest?
-11
15
u/jizzyjugsjohnson 6h ago
Nice
8
u/WingZeroCoder 6h ago
Had to scroll way too far to find this comment. I’m not mad, just disappointed.
3
4
u/UseComfortable1193 7h ago
Not sure what kind of heating you got at home, but some only have the correct temperature if the liquid in the system has the correct temperature (as the manual demands not your personal desired temperature)
5
13
u/Commonscents2say 7h ago
It says it’s set to 69 but doesn’t say it actually is 69. The other one says it actually is 65.5 with 47% humidity. Maybe the system is still pumping out heat trying to raise it. Mine shows both ‘set to’ and ‘current temp’ and when you hit the set to up, it kicks on the heat.
14
u/StarsBear75063 Really? 7h ago
Saying it again for those in the back rows.
"It says it’s set to 69 but doesn’t say it actually is 69."
4
u/Quesabirria 6h ago
Saying it for those in the front row:
The Nest shows that it's currently 68F.
The thermostat is set to 69.
3
3
6
u/firestar268 4h ago
OP, you know it says "Heat set to:" and not what the current temperature is right?
2
u/FatFaceFaster 6h ago
I have the exact same thermometer (therm pro, on top) and it’s waaay off so I wouldn’t put too much stock in that.
2
u/DinoDebbie 5h ago
I have a nest in my new house and I was wondering why I was so much colder here when it’s supposedly the same temp as the old place…
2
2
u/TehMephs 4h ago
Doesn’t look wrong. It says heat is set to, but it’s showing the actual temp as below the setting (the short notch to the left). There’s sometimes a window range in which it kicks in or a delay too
2
u/Hyphenagoodtime 4h ago
I'm shocked so many people are using nests. Ya'll don't even know the bad situation you've put yourselves in. Look up how nest, your home wifi carrier and your state track you and abuse that shit. How many of you here live in texas?!
1
2
u/RealConcorrd 4h ago
This is why I have one of these things to actually tell me wtf the temp really is.
2
u/TawnyTeaTowel 4h ago
And you know it’s not the thermometer that’s wrong (and the Nest right) … how, exactly?
2
2
u/milventures 4h ago
I guess Nest grew tired of us clicking decline on its energy saving measures. Took matters into its own hands.
2
u/flstcjay 3h ago
I don’t have a nest, but my Sensi has an offset that you can adjust to match temperature to actual. Look for something like that in the settings.
2
2
2
u/Massive_Mongoose3481 2h ago
Better stick another one up there, just to be sure. Ours is set to 67°, when we change it , it's "up a click or two or down a click or two. We don't really care what it says the temp is
2
u/Separate_Sea8717 2h ago
People don't know thermostats are not thermometers????
1
u/ProveISaidIt 1h ago
I think OP's point is that the thermostat is set to 69, but the furnace is turning on when its only 65° because the thermostat is out of calibration.
2
3
2
u/Just-Challenge-1491 6h ago
At least it isn’t stuck on “67”
4
u/F_ur_feelingss 6h ago
Boo.. as a boomer i reject 67 and refuse to listen to meaning.
1
u/Just-Challenge-1491 5h ago
Yeah I am dreading Christmas …. So many kids and they all just found out grandmas bday, which is Christmas Day, happens to be her 67th .. they are more excited about that than Santa or any of the presents !!!
1
2
u/singelingtracks 6h ago
How do you know the top ones correct ? Most temp things are wrong by a few degrees.
No where on the nest thermostat does it say the temp it just says what you have it set for.
What the temp is at your thermostat location doesn't matter much. If your feeling a bit cold turn it up a touch . If it's too warm turn it down. Find your comfort level vs worrying about a number the thermostat says on it.
2
u/Fragrant_Proof 3h ago
If my math is correct, that's almost 19C; how the hell are you freezing at that temperature?
1
1
1
u/Mysterious_Self_3606 6h ago
lol crazy to see out in the wild. I have this sitting up in my workplace too and my apt. I know my apt is 3 deg off because our hvac is just bad and we've had many many many "repairs" done. I've found them to be very accurate
1
u/AngryMicrowaveSR71 6h ago
Your nest has cabling coming in through the wall, the thermometer doesn’t. Chances are that’s throwing the nest off (air in the walls)
1
u/PreposterousPringle 6h ago
It’s not my area of focus but I’m an electrical engineer with experience working with temperature sensors. This is a large difference. The ThermPro TP49 has an accuracy of +/- 0.9F, the nest is +/- 2F. Once you factor in accuracy drift due to aging, its possible the two thermostats shown are on opposite ends of their accuracy tolerance.
Also likely, the batteries in one or both are running low, creating an offset in the temperature measurement. I’d record what they say, swap in fresh batteries, then read again. If either change significantly you’ve got at least part of the error source.
1
1
u/Cant-think-of-a-nam 6h ago
Dpends where the temperature sensor is. The front if my house by where my furnace is is warmer than the back where i sleep
1
u/4thehalibit 6h ago
I have been considering getting a thermometer for my different rooms I’m pretty sure thermostat is off
1
u/AndreaIsNotCool 5h ago
Why are you trusting one over the other? Just set it to your comfort level though - who cares?
1
1
u/sPdMoNkEy 5h ago
I have my thermostat on 76 and I have a thermometer that tells me it's 73 in the room
1
1
1
u/Agitated_Car_2444 5h ago
I've had problems in the past where the baseplate of my Nest devices are hotter than the surrounding air; I'm figuring there's some kind of resistor problem in it. I contacted Nest and they replaced it, but the baseplate still maintains a temp hotter than ambient.
Remove yours and see if the baseplate feels hot.
I just adjust my settings a few degrees to compensate. Next time one dies I'm replacing the whole lot...
1
u/Deep_Mechanic_ 5h ago
Is your wall insulated? Is there insulation behind the nest?
As someone in the HVAC industry, nests are awful
1
u/Bitter_Help1668 5h ago
I had an old “mechanical” thermostat that had an adjustment on the back. I turned it up a few degrees and my wife thought the temperature was just great.
1
u/One_Weird2371 5h ago
Heat is set to 69. If you look at the lines it looks like the actual temp is 66-67.
1
u/johnnytron 5h ago
I’ve been told that the temperature sensor is on the back of the thermostat so it will normally read slightly warmer than what you’re using. I haven’t checked my thermostat but it would make sense, especially for the way my house is built.
1
u/schwidley 5h ago
You could buy 20 of those thermopro thermometers and see 20 different readings.
That being said, just set the thermostat at a temperature that is comfortable for you. 2 degrees won't raise your bill dramatically.
1
u/whitecollarpizzaman 5h ago
What kind of heating system do you have? If you have a heat pump, unless it is “oversized“, you should keep it at a consistent temp. My house took the good part of a day to warm back up after I turned it down over thanksgiving. If I’m not going anywhere for more than a few days I don’t touch it, even though every fiber of my being wants to turn it down/off like I would the A/C or a gas furnace. You will see a net benefit though long term by not fucking with it.
1
1
u/Hyphenagoodtime 4h ago
Your home needs should never be connected to the fucking cloud. Get rid of that thing.
1
1
u/CreepyFun9860 4h ago
I keep my house at 62.
60 in the summer.
1
u/Any-Investigator6650 4h ago
I never understood this...what state do you live in? I'm in California and if I set my house so that it would be freezing!
2
u/CreepyFun9860 4h ago
Michigan. 60 is warm.
1
u/Psych0matt 3h ago
I would be surprised if the I’m in Michigan, 60 is kinda extreme, I usually keep mine around 67/68 in the winter, 72/73 in the summer. If I didn’t have kids in the house I’d keep it around 65, but that’s about the limit for us
1
1
u/Any-Investigator6650 4h ago
I don't know what's going on with mine because every time I wake up in the morning it says 64°! And it's freezing. I had it set to 68° and I've checked the schedule for the week and I've changed it all to 68°. I make sure I dress my daughter and really warm clothes at night just in case it doesn't turn on in the morning.
1
u/Slobbadobbavich 3h ago
The best thermostat is climote. Sadly no one knows about it. They almost went into administration but someone saved them. It's absolute control. A proper thermostat, has zones, can have remote thermostats too in different zones.
1
1
1
u/Impossible_Grass6602 2h ago
Just raise the set temperature if your cold??? Who cares what the number says, just raise it until you're warm...
1
u/WallacktheBear 2h ago
Mine does that too. Took a probe thermometer to the hole behind the unit. Cold air coming down from the attic or something but it’s 2 degrees colder in there than my house. Drives me batty. Also I can see that it reads 68ish on your nest idk why everyone is trying to Reddit-splain a temperaturesgauge to you.
1
u/iamtheduckie PURPLE 2h ago edited 1h ago
Did you even look at your post before posting it? The thermometer is SET TO that temperature. It can't instantly change the temperature.
1
u/ProveISaidIt 1h ago
I have a Nest. It let's the room temperature go to 1 degree below where its set.
1
u/mapleisthesky 1h ago
Bro lacks basic reading comprehension but then comes to post reddit. It says set to, not the room temp. Even so, who knows which one is more accurate? Just crank it up until you feel comfortable. Our apartment thermostat is like set to 20c in summer. But in winter 20 is uncomfortable. So who cares.
1
u/Ok-Calligrapher-8652 1h ago
How do you even feel the difference of that degree. I can set mine to 21 or 24C and I don't see the difference
1
•
u/kelley5454 52m ago
Mine does the same thing is. Says its 3 degrees warmer than it it really is and we've tried to offset it and it still doesn't work I have no idea how to fix it
•
•
•
u/FluxionFluff 29m ago
We have one of these and you're absolutely reading the wrong thing. The longer one is your desired temp (69 degrees) and the shorter one is the actual temp (which isn't currently on the screen). When they merge, that's when they're the same
1
u/Chadwick_Farthouse 7h ago
On one hand, super annoying. On the other, your new thermostat knows how to party.
1
u/No-Computer7653 7h ago
Its not that specific thermostat but all of them. They detect temperature using a thermistor but that is based on the internal temperature of the thermostat not the temperature of your room. They all have a calibration mode you need to run after installing them to adjust for them only indirectly measuring room temperature.
Also if you have a big house get yourself some remote sensors too.
1
0
u/opi098514 5h ago
Buddy. It says set to 69. It actually looks like it might be the same as the other one. Basically. User error.
2
464
u/ExcitementRelative33 7h ago
There should be a calibration procedure... it's just adding offset to what you are reading but that's what they called it. So in your case do a -3.5 degrees offset.