Nest thermostat no longer sets Eco mode using Alexa

[rleather]

Until recently, it was possible to set the heating mode of a Nest thermostat using Alexa, and change this to Eco or heating:
"Alexa, set the THERMOSTATNAME to heat mode"

"Alexa, set the THERMOSTATNAME to Eco mode"

For some reason, while setting to heat mode still works, setting to Eco mode no longer does this, even though Alexa responds to say that she has done it and so the command has been executed.
It looks as though something has changed behind the scenes. Can someone find out what has happened, and if possible fix this?

[Markjosephp]

Hello rleather,

Thank you for taking the time to let us know about your inquiry. I'd love to help.

Alexa can't control your Nest Thermostat if it's set to an Eco Temperature, is in Off Mode, uses Emergency Heat, or if there's an Emergency Shutoff. Please take a look at this article and let me know if you have more questions.

Regards,
Mark

[rleather]

Hi Mark,
Thanks for this, but that is not the answer. The article you link to includes the following text:

Switch your thermostat's mode

You might want to change your thermostat's mode when the seasons change, or you might want to switch to an Eco Temperature before everybody leaves.

"Alexa, set the [thermostat name] to ___ mode."

Your available modes depend on the equipment you’ve installed. These modes could be Heat, Cool, Heat•Cool, or Eco.

---

Until recently this worked to switch Nest between modes, but at some time in the last couple of months the command to set to Eco mode has stopped working, though the command to set to Heat mode still functions. This is not dependent on whether the Nest is set to Home or Away.

If you ask Alexa to set the thermostat to Eco mode, it replies with "It is set to energy saver", but the command is not implemented.

Can I suggest you try this to see if the same thing happens for you?

Robin

[Markjosephp]

Hi there,

I'm sorry for the late response. The Control Google Nest products with Amazon Alexa article with some sample commands is still up-to-date and supported. If, for instance, a specific Alexa skill is removed, this might be due to changes on their end. Please try reaching out to Amazon Alexa support for an update and see if any additional steps are required without making any changes to your Nest Thermostat.

Let me know how it goes.

Regards,
Mark

[Tom17]

I was on the phone with Alexa support team for about an hour and after resetting my Amazon Echo, disabling, and enabling the Nest Skill, it STILL doesn't work and they have suggested booting it back over to Google. Now what? Alexa has no problem making the Nest Thermostat go from ECO to Cool and it has no problem making the temperature adjustments once in the Cool mode. The problem is asking Alexa to put it back in the "ECO Mode", she replies like she did it, but the AC is still running. What did Google change in the last 30 days for the Nest Thermostat?

[Markjosephp]

Hi Tom17,

Thanks for the update. I appreciate you reaching out to Amazon Alexa support for additional information. With this, please contact our internal support team so we can point you to the right department for additional help.

Also, let me know if you have any additional questions or concerns before I close this thread in 24 hours.

Regards,
Mark

[rleather]

Let me paraphrase: "you are not going to do anything except close this thread". The problem has not gone away and results from a change that has been made recently. Please can you escalate this, not just close it down and hope we go away.

[Tom17]

Agreed. Closing the thread does nothing except help your metrics. What did Google change in the last month or two on the Nest Thermostat? It STILL doesn't work correctly.

[Markjosephp]

Hello everyone,

I understand your thoughts. We really want to get your Nest Thermostat back on track with your Amazon Alexa speaker. The next possible option is to contact our team internally so we can direct you over to our team, which handles the integration. With this, additional steps will be provided by them.

Please give it a try, and I'll leave this thread open. Keep me posted on how it goes.

Thanks,
Mark

[rleather]

"The next possible option is to contact our team internally"

How do we do this? Can you not escalate it to them on our behalf?

[Markjosephp]

Hi rleather,

To ensure that your devices are communicating with each other, we'd suggest performing the process onset of the call. A certain team that handles linking third parties for home automation will provide those steps.

Regards,

Mark

[SHash1206]

Still there was no information on how to get in contact with that team. I have the same exact issue. Functionality has been broken from the google nest end. How do we escalate our issue.

[rleather]

"we'd suggest performing the process onset of the call"

Sorry, I don't understand what that means. Can you explain please?

[Tom17]

Mark  - Your internal support team is useless. They don't know what to do. They are convinced that since I can change my Nest thermostat using my Nest App on my phone, that it's not a software issue. They don't know what to do, and they have no intelligent response as to why so many others are seeing this same problem. It's still not fixed, and the internal support team apparently has to ability to escalate this. What kind of support does Google think they have? This is ridiculous! 

[Su28]

mines been exactly same for weeks. Am moving home soon and was gonna get a Nest cos previously been brilliant but think I’ll be getting a different brand now!!!

[Tom17]

Oddly enough, I also have Google Home Mini's most places I have my Amazon Echo. The Google Home Mini controls the Nest Thermostat fine (oddly enough since they are the same company). This is starting to look like a move from Google to me - they are trying to make the Nest incompatible with the Amazon Echo's so that we are forced to buy THEIR product.

[rleather]

Remarkable... it seems that the command is working again! Try it and see... perhaps someone did fix it.

[Tom17]

Maybe it's a "rolling" patch distribution? Tried last night and still same problem: Alexa SAYS she is setting it to Energy Saver, but nothing changes on the Nest Thermostat.

[Tom17]

Now mine is working again too. Must been a software change because I didn't change anything from my side.

[rleather]

Ugghhh.... and now the 'Alexa, set the [thermostat name] to ___ mode.' is not even recognized. The response is "I don't have that".
Just to be clear, the official Nest page is here:
Control Google Nest products with Amazon Alexa - Google Nest Help

According to this, it should be possible to set the thermostat mode. A few months ago it was, now it isn't.
I bought what I thought was a "smart thermostat"... seems it not only is rather dumb, but you can't even depend on what is working now continuing to work in future.

[SHash1206]

Damnit same here, I bypassed the issue by using a typed in custom command that would be like Alexa repeating it. It started to work as part of another routine, setting eco mode directly never came back, now it’s all gone again and the custom command doesn’t work. Google says it Amazon, but Amazon stands to lose/gain by screwing this up, however google gains by making their product only usable on their platform. So I think they just lie about who makes the skill…. Generally the product maker creates a skill for integration to another product…. Therefore google makes the works with nest skill that Amazon uses.

[Tom17]

Now I'm wondering if I can create an Alexa command so when I say "Alexa, set thermostat to cool", Alexa will say "Hey Google, set thermostat to cool". It pays to have the Amazon Echo and Google Home Mini sitting next to each other!

[Tom17]

Maybe that's the same as I see. I have to tell Alexa to set "Thermostat Name" to Eco (as in EEEEE KO) mode. She responds as "Setting "Thermostat Name" to Energy Saver". Which I find odd because if I ask her to set it to Energy Saver, she doesn't understand. So I always say "EEEEE Ko" Mode.

[rleather]

I won't guarantee that you will have that working for long. I used to get that response, but now Alexa just says "I don't have that...".