Electric Ireland - Free Nest Heating Thermostat + Installation

keith_d99

Noticed this when shopping around for Electricity

Free Nest and Installation worth €374

2 year contract

Looks a nice piece of kit ...
Nest Site

Reviews on Amazon are excellent

Looks a genuine bargain to me!
Been meaning to get a thermostat for yonks ... so it's a no brainer for me!

TitianGerm

keith_d99 wrote: »

Noticed this when shopping around for Electricity

Free Nest and Installation worth €374

2 year contract

Looks a nice piece of kit ...
Nest Site

Reviews on Amazon are excellent

Looks a genuine bargain to me!
Been meaning to get a thermostat for yonks ... so it's a no brainer for me!

Would this be someone with storage heaters ?

Yggr of Asgard

keith_d99 wrote: »

Noticed this when shopping around for Electricity

Free Nest and Installation worth €374

2 year contract

Looks a nice piece of kit ...
Nest Site

Reviews on Amazon are excellent

Looks a genuine bargain to me!
Been meaning to get a thermostat for yonks ... so it's a no brainer for me!

It's not for yonks, you pay full energy prices, you do not get any discount on the usage, so check you usage first. Check how much you would pay on the plans with discounts, only if that saving is less than 374€ than it's really (partially) free.

MaceFace

No.

I have been using a NEST since October and its an interesting concept that other vendors offer solutions for - controlling your central heating based on temperature rather than time.

Most of us set our timing to come on for some time in the morning, then time it to come on before we think we will come home.

This thing is different. You set the temperature of what your house should be at any given time. So, for example, I have my house set to 18C in the evenings, 14 all other times.
If the temperature in the house ever drops below 14, the heating automatically comes on.
The NEST also senses if you are not in the house (it has a proximity sensor) so it can tell if you are out of the house and will set it to Auto-Away. You configure what the temperature is when this is set (maybe 14 as well).

Its all controlled and configured through a browser, app or the device itself. Meaning you can turn on and off your heating from anywhere you have an internet connection.

Nice thing about NEST as well is it learns your patterns, so you can manually change the temperature any time and if you tend to set it to say 18C at 12 on a weekday for a number of days running, it will automatically put that into the schedule.

Living with the thing 3 or 4 months now and its fine is all I would say. Its great to control heating through your phone. I also never come back to a cold house as I can set it to warm the house if I am going to be home at an odd time.

What will be interesting is when the summer comes in as in Ireland we heat out water using the boiler and generally switch off all the radiators (or from the tank) so even though you will tell the NEST to heat the house to 18C, it will never get there so all you are doing is heating the water.
Should not be an issue as you set your schedule to say - set heat to 22C from 6am to 7am and then set heat to 10C. As your house will not drop below 10C during the summer, it never comes on outside of those times.

keith_d99

Yggr of Asgard wrote: »

It's not for yonks, you pay full energy prices, you do not get any discount on the usage, so check you usage first. Check how much you would pay on the plans with discounts, only if that saving is less than 374€ than it's really (partially) free.

Yeah had checked through Bonkers ... It's not their cheapest tarriff (they do have a 1 year that is 2c per KWH cheaper), but still cheaper than what I am currently paying with Airtricity due to standing charge.

That saving together with the €374 (which is a genuine price) makes it a good deal for me!

FobleAsNuck

€99 for existing customers

JDxtra

Nice device, but not a great deal really when you factor in the electricity rates you'll be charged. You'd be better off just buying it yourself and moving to a discounted electricity plan. Nest were for a time at least offering free installation. It's also possible to self-install.

randombar

Hi Guys,

I currently have the climote (Got it free with a 2 year contract) controlling 2 zones and the hot water, heat supply is a boiler in the garage. Have two thermostats (http://www.esicontrols.co.uk/our-products/room/es-rsm-mechanical-room-thermostat/), one upstairs and one downstairs.

Works great for turning on the heat when you're out etc. etc.

Just wondering how the nest would replace what I have? What controls what etc.

Love the idea of their smoke alarm / carbon monoxide detector too, if only I was rich!!!!

// Gary

adam88

GaryCocs wrote: »

Hi Guys,

I currently have the climote (Got it free with a 2 year contract) controlling 2 zones and the hot water, heat supply is a boiler in the garage. Have two thermostats (http://www.esicontrols.co.uk/our-products/room/es-rsm-mechanical-room-thermostat/), one upstairs and one downstairs.

Works great for turning on the heat when you're out etc. etc.

Just wondering how the nest would replace what I have? What controls what etc.

Love the idea of their smoke alarm / carbon monoxide detector too, if only I was rich!!!!

// Gary

I wonder can the two work together,,,as in with the climate you still need w thermostat for each zone. !!!! B

ted1

GaryCocs wrote: »

Hi Guys,

I currently have the climote (Got it free with a 2 year contract) controlling 2 zones and the hot water, heat supply is a boiler in the garage. Have two thermostats (http://www.esicontrols.co.uk/our-products/room/es-rsm-mechanical-room-thermostat/), one upstairs and one downstairs.

Works great for turning on the heat when you're out etc. etc.

Just wondering how the nest would replace what I have? What controls what etc.

Love the idea of their smoke alarm / carbon monoxide detector too, if only I was rich!!!!

// Gary

It won't, it only does one zone. Yu would need to get multiple units

adam88

Where does this fit in with regards to your existing 3 zone programmer that you'd have to control yor heating. I.e. Does the nest override this and turn on your "programmer" or do you leave the "programmer " on all the time and let the nest do its thing or do you bypass the programmer all together ??

dingding

A couple of comments. The nest thermostat works with the next protect in a couple of ways. The nest protect has proximity sensors which inform the thermostat if the house is occupied or not.

If there is a CO2 alarm, the nest protect will tell the nest thermostat to turn off the heating.

I think the way it works is that it connects wirelessly to a set of contacts that can be connected to the boiler / valve.

In this case I would imagine that you would leave your existing heating system on all the time and allow the nest to take over.

I have the climote and this can be got with wireless thermostats. This is also an excellent solution.

I am not sure how well the two systems would work together. The climote is connected to the mobile network and there is a charge of 36 euro per year. This means that you can text the climote as well as connect to it over the web and via phone apps. I dont have any experience of the nest.

podge3

Quick back-of-the-stamp calculation is that the "free" Nest will cost about €300 with average-ish use due to the loss of discount.

Existing customers pay €99 so thats about €400 in total.

firestarter51

stop the debate
just read the old thread


http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=92258415

brightkane

dingding wrote: »

A couple of comments. The nest thermostat works with the next protect in a couple of ways. The nest protect has proximity sensors which inform the thermostat if the house is occupied or not.

If there is a CO2 alarm, the nest protect will tell the nest thermostat to turn off the heating.

I think the way it works is that it connects wirelessly to a set of contacts that can be connected to the boiler / valve.

In this case I would imagine that you would leave your existing heating system on all the time and allow the nest to take over.

I have the climote and this can be got with wireless thermostats. This is also an excellent solution.

I am not sure how well the two systems would work together. The climote is connected to the mobile network and there is a charge of 36 euro per year. This means that you can text the climote as well as connect to it over the web and via phone apps. I dont have any experience of the nest.

Any more info in the wireless thermostat for the climote ding ding? If you get it can you monitor the temp remotely?

ted1

brightkane wrote: »

Any more info in the wireless thermostat for the climote ding ding? If you get it can you monitor the temp remotely?

What type of monitoring are you looking for?

makeorbrake

podge3 wrote: »

Quick back-of-the-stamp calculation is that the "free" Nest will cost about €300 with average-ish use due to the loss of discount.

Existing customers pay €99 so thats about €400 in total.

The other issue....


oil price has plunged dramatically in recent months - but none of the 4 electricity suppliers have cut their rates. They are going to come under pressure to do that in the weeks ahead and reluctantly, you'd imagine they will have to give way to some extent.

If you lock in to a 24 month contract, they have you by the balls for that 24 months. i.e. when rates go down, you're screwed.

Reviewed my own lecky earlier this week - with BG at the moment - with no minimum contract. 15% cheaper elsewhere (but with 12 month contract) - but decided to leave it be for right now - and just take 30 quid cashback from BG. If there's a price drop in the weeks ahead, then I'll move.

brightkane

ted1 wrote: »

What type of monitoring are you looking for?

Climote is being installed with airtricity. Just want to be able to review the tempature remotely. I know nest does that bit not an option flat to MO. Basically I will have remote access to turning heat on and off with the climote and would need separate remote access to monitor the temp. If that makes sense

yankinlk

makeorbrake wrote: »

If you lock in to a 24 month contract, they have you by the balls for that 24 months. i.e. when rates go down, you're screwed.

Reviewed my own lecky earlier this week - with BG at the moment - with no minimum contract. 15% cheaper elsewhere (but with 12 month contract) - but decided to leave it be for right now - and just take 30 quid cashback from BG. If there's a price drop in the weeks ahead, then I'll move.

i looked at the offer too. i worked out how much the free nest was gonna cost me and i decided not worth it for the gimic that it is. the manual boost button is the best money saver, as heat is off if i dont hit it. its not like we live in a polar region, winter has been crazy mild so far.

yankinlk

i ended up ringing my supplier , airtricity... i was with them over a year, so the original discount had run out. i said i was thinking of switching, could they do anything for me... they put me back on the 15% discount. how bad.

i recon i saved the price of a nest plus 15%...

savemejebus

Anyone know if the install on this is very specialised or if a regular gas installer could do it without too much hassle?

heebusjeebus

I understand the offer as being for a fixed term (24 months) rather than a fixed price per kWhs.
Is that right?

Furzy

makeorbrake wrote: »

The other issue....


oil price has plunged dramatically in recent months - but none of the 4 electricity suppliers have cut their rates. They are going to come under pressure to do that in the weeks ahead and reluctantly, you'd imagine they will have to give way to some extent.

If you lock in to a 24 month contract, they have you by the balls for that 24 months. i.e. when rates go down, you're screwed.

Reviewed my own lecky earlier this week - with BG at the moment - with no minimum contract. 15% cheaper elsewhere (but with 12 month contract) - but decided to leave it be for right now - and just take 30 quid cashback from BG. If there's a price drop in the weeks ahead, then I'll move.

Not sure about other companies but my current 12m contract with Airtricity says 14% discount on standard rate so I would expect any reductions to be passed on when the standard rate changes....

ted1

brightkane wrote: »

Climote is being installed with airtricity. Just want to be able to review the tempature remotely. I know nest does that bit not an option flat to MO. Basically I will have remote access to turning heat on and off with the climote and would need separate remote access to monitor the temp. If that makes sense

No it doesn't make sense, why would you need separate access? Climote has wireless stats which I assume would have display the current temperature along with the set temperature.

Monitoring of temperatures would be something different

ted1

See the screenshot attached, real time temp is displayed in bottom of screen

ted1

savemejebus wrote: »

Anyone know if the install on this is very specialised or if a regular gas installer could do it without too much hassle?

Very straight froward, far from specialised.doesn't have to a gas installer as it is external to the boiler

tooth*grinder

It should be pointed out that the Nest will not manage heating your hot water.
Based on that I went with Tado during the summer and loving it it has to be said.

uli84

How much is Tado?

Delboy5

tooth*grinder wrote: »

It should be pointed out that the Nest will not manage heating your hot water.
Based on that I went with Tado during the summer and loving it it has to be said.

My heating system is zoned into 3, upstairs, downstairs and water, ive no thermostats.......will tado work for me?

MaceFace

tooth*grinder wrote: »

It should be pointed out that the Nest will not manage heating your hot water.
Based on that I went with Tado during the summer and loving it it has to be said.

This is not true - at least I hope.

During the summer months, assume you want hot water in the morning and the evening.
Turn off your central heating (radiators) as you normally would (either at the radiators or a central switch).

Then, set a schedule for heating to come on at a certain time and off at another.
With NEST, because there is no concept of ON/OFF but only temperature, to have it switch off, set the temperature to something like 30C at 6am and 8C (as I assume no house will go down to this temperature during the summer months) at 7am.

As the NEST has a concept of pre-heating, where it decides to come on earlier than you said (well, all i would have said in the earlier example is to have my house at 30C at 6am), as it needs to get to that 30C by 6am so may come on at 4am.
But - I can set the temp to be 8C at 5:59am and 30C at 6:00am. Therefore, there should be no pre-heating.

This is what I am hoping and expecting, but I guess time will tell...

connundrum

I have gas and electricity with BGE - both on a standard rate (2 year discount deal has lapsed).

I have a new-ish (timed) heating system with 3 zones, upstairs, downstairs and water.

The timed element of our heating is the biggest waste IMO, and I believe that the gas we'd save by not using it unnecessarily would save far more than a discounted rate from BGE, Airticity or Energia. I'm not concerned about wasting gas on heating water as our boiler is great for retaining the heat for hours, so the water is only on for 90 minutes a day.

Our electric bill isn't very high so I'm not concerned about saving on that.

Taking the above into consideration - is there anything else I should take into account before going for the Nest deal?

yankinlk

heebusjeebus wrote: »

I understand the offer as being for a fixed term (24 months) rather than a fixed price per kWhs.
Is that right?

It is a fixed term contract, at a standard rate. So you are locked in to the STD rate now, for 24 months.

If, like suggested, costs come down - then you lose that - PLUS you dont get the discount rate that already exists right now ( and has done for the last few years) at at least 15%.

... nothing in life is free.

MaceFace

connundrum wrote: »

I have gas and electricity with BGE - both on a standard rate (2 year discount deal has lapsed).

I have a new-ish (timed) heating system with 3 zones, upstairs, downstairs and water.

The timed element of our heating is the biggest waste IMO, and I believe that the gas we'd save by not using it unnecessarily would save far more than a discounted rate from BGE, Airticity or Energia. I'm not concerned about wasting gas on heating water as our boiler is great for retaining the heat for hours, so the water is only on for 90 minutes a day.

Our electric bill isn't very high so I'm not concerned about saving on that.

Taking the above into consideration - is there anything else I should take into account before going for the Nest deal?

Yes - each zone requires a separate NEST. Actually, I don't know how your water zone works so can't comment on that.

After about 4 months of living with one in a single zoned house, I am happy with it, but I would look at alternatives as well.
Much of its popularity is down to it "looking nice" and being owned by google. It has nice features as well but I would expect the same from any alternative.

connundrum

Just looking through the Electric Ireland site and specifically at the Climote offers, only to see this:

https://www.electricireland.ie/ei/residential-energy-services/home-services/Climote.jsp#ex-q2

Option 3 – Climote Price Plan

2 year offer
Free Climote worth €399 RRP for new customers
Free installation
2 years remote connectivity fee worth €36 per year

*Terms and conditions apply. Prices quoted are correct as of 1st of November 2012

As it's still on the page, but not being advertised, am I to assume that this offer is finished?

brightkane

ted1 wrote: »

No it doesn't make sense, why would you need separate access? Climote has wireless stats which I assume would have display the current temperature along with the set temperature.

Monitoring of temperatures would be something different

It's just been installed today. They gave me a battery operated wireless thermostat so I can monitor the temp real time. I didn't know this was included at the time but am delighted now!

tooth*grinder

MaceFace wrote: »

This is not true - at least I hope.

During the summer months, assume you want hot water in the morning and the evening.
Turn off your central heating (radiators) as you normally would (either at the radiators or a central switch).

Then, set a schedule for heating to come on at a certain time and off at another.
With NEST, because there is no concept of ON/OFF but only temperature, to have it switch off, set the temperature to something like 30C at 6am and 8C (as I assume no house will go down to this temperature during the summer months) at 7am.

As the NEST has a concept of pre-heating, where it decides to come on earlier than you said (well, all i would have said in the earlier example is to have my house at 30C at 6am), as it needs to get to that 30C by 6am so may come on at 4am.
But - I can set the temp to be 8C at 5:59am and 30C at 6:00am. Therefore, there should be no pre-heating.

This is what I am hoping and expecting, but I guess time will tell...

Nest will do that all right (keeping a target temp). If, like me however your boiler does room heating and water heating, you'll need to either a) manually turn on and off your water heating or b) have another separate control to automate it in some way.
Tado was better for me as it was a single box (that was installed under my boiler) that I was able to set up water heating times and room heat targets. Its horses for courses of course, but in my case the Nest wasn't a fit and I'd urge folks to make sure their system is before taking the plunge.

As some one else asked, I ended up taking a punt with Tado who have a pay by the month option after 12 months you can send it back if you don't want it. I'm keeping it, but I'd like to get the newer version (mine doesn't have that dot display). They have a really excellent customer support as well how walk through your system with you to make sure its compatible before they take any money off you.

bazmc35

Ive been with Airtricity for about 2years now so looking to change supplier or ring them for a discount.
My bill is on average 180euro per month rural customer paying by direct debit.
Is this worth changing for this? or should i sign into a different contract

makeorbrake

bazmc35 wrote: »

Ive been with Airtricity for about 2years now so looking to change supplier or ring them for a discount.
My bill is on average 180euro per month rural customer paying by direct debit.
Is this worth changing for this? or should i sign into a different contract

Log on to your airtricity account - have a bill in front of you - and then visit both bonkers.ie and uswitch.ie . Input the info - and it will tell you which plan you should be on.

N.B. oil prices have plummeted - but none of the 4 electricity suppliers have passed this on......yet. If you get tied in to a minimum contract, then you may miss out on savings in the week ahead.


I know someone has suggested this isn't the case - can anyone else corroborate that? Perhaps my understanding is inaccurate in this regard??

bk

makeorbrake wrote: »

N.B. oil prices have plummeted - but none of the 4 electricity suppliers have passed this on......yet. If you get tied in to a minimum contact, then you may miss out on savings in the week ahead.

I don't understand how this could be the case. All the plans seem to be x amount (e.g. 20% off the standard rate) off the standard rate. If the standard rate goes down, then so does your bill, you just get 20% of whatever the new standard rate is. The reverse is also true, if the standard rate goes up, so do your bills.

adam88

In the box there's no thermostat so how does the unit know what the temp is in the zone. Or does it use the existing thermostats that are in your house

yankinlk

bk wrote: »

I don't understand how this could be the case. All the plans seem to be x amount (e.g. 20% off the standard rate) off the standard rate. If the standard rate goes down, then so does your bill, you just get 20% of whatever the new standard rate is. The reverse is also true, if the standard rate goes up, so do your bills.

that makes sense. But the 15% or 20% runs out after set time, so make sure you call them and get it back or switch!

makeorbrake

bk wrote: »

I don't understand how this could be the case. All the plans seem to be x amount (e.g. 20% off the standard rate) off the standard rate. If the standard rate goes down, then so does your bill, you just get 20% of whatever the new standard rate is. The reverse is also true, if the standard rate goes up, so do your bills.

Ok, thanks. Looks like I've misunderstood that. Will give it a month (seeing as BG are giving me 30 quid cashback) and either give them the opportunity to match EI or I'll switch.

Graham

adam88 wrote: »

In the box there's no thermostat so how does the unit know what the temp is in the zone. Or does it use the existing thermostats that are in your house

The controller is the thermostat, as it's connects over wi-fi you just place it anywhere in the zone you're controlling (within reach of a power supply).

makeorbrake

makeorbrake wrote: »

Ok, thanks. Looks like I've misunderstood that. Will give it a month (seeing as BG are giving me 30 quid cashback) and either give them the opportunity to match EI or I'll switch.

Sounds like to are about to commit to a fix term contract to get the 30 cashback? You won't be able to switch if you do that though I expect?

bk

yankinlk wrote: »

that makes sense. But the 15% or 20% runs out after set time, so make sure you call them and get it back or switch!

Yup, I set a calendar reminder for a year later to switch contracts or call them up and threaten to leave and get back the reduction.

makeorbrake

reick wrote: »

Sounds like to are about to commit to a fix term contract to get the 30 cashback? You won't be able to switch if you do that though I expect?

No, they offered the 30quid with no strings. I'll take the 30 and once that's banked, I'll switch.

Galego

uli84 wrote: »

How much is Tado?

Got myself a Tado plus extension kit for 200eur on the bay (new).

Bountyfour70

Hi ,
@Galego : where did you buy it? and is it a good deal?
What do you think otherwise about tado thermostat?
Thx

Galego

Bountyfour70 wrote: »

Hi ,
@Galego : where did you buy it? and is it a good deal?
What do you think otherwise about tado thermostat?
Thx

Bought it from eBay.De
I could have got it directly from tado for 300 shipped. They are currently doing 15% off till mid-fed.
I am yet to fit it so can't really talk much about it. I have already the app installed in my mobile, my wife's and my tablet but the presence detectition doesn't seem to be working rightly for me. It takes too long to realise that I have left or come back home. I need to talk to tado and see if I need to change something in my settings or it is just tesco mobile connection that is sh**e.
Which smart thermostats are you considering? If any?

Bountyfour70

I don't know really :
- Nest
- Tado
- Qivivo (French ) but I don't know if it works in ireland with my boiler.
- Honeywell
- Ecobee3
we have a lot of choices ...

Galego

Bountyfour70 wrote: »

I don't know really :
- Nest
- Tado
- Qivivo (French ) but I don't know if it works in ireland with my boiler.
- Honeywell
- Ecobee3
we have a lot of choices ...

There are few choices out in the market at the minute. I was so close to buy the Hive Active but British Gas really pissed me off so gave up at the end.
But all depends on your needs.
Is your boiler a combined or you hsve , like me, a water tank for hot water?