Why Nest is the next iPhone

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Thermostats haven’t ever made the most fascinating dinner conversation – until now. The new Nest Learning Thermostat is beautiful, functional, and efficient, and since its developers founded their own company after working for Apple, it comes with the hipster-seal-of-approval. After designing iPods, iPhones, and their software, these guys know a little about convincing us we can’t live without something we’ve never needed before – but thermostats?

The rationale behind this suprising product line is simple: Heating and cooling account for about half of a home’s energy use. Properly programmed thermostats can cut heating and cooling costs by 20%, but as many as 90% of programmable thermostats are rarely or never programmed.

Their solution is a thermostat that’s Apple-inspired elegant and can:

Learn your preferred temperatures and schedule.
Sense when you left the house or came home.Give you tips and feedback on your energy use.
Connect to Wi-Fi so you could control it from anywhere.
Look good (of course).
Make you feel proud to own it.
Have a positive impact on the world.

Nest can do that.

Is Nest the coolest thing that’s ever happened to thermostats? Absolutely. But Nest retails for $249 – at least five times the price of a good-quality programmable thermostat – and you need one for each heating zone. Is it really worth it? It’s too soon to tell – but then again, I’m happily paying for a smart phone that seemed ridiculously unnecessary a few years ago.

Energy efficiency geeks can become early-adopters and keep the rest of us posted. In the meantime, I’ll follow Energy Star’s guidelines for my boring-but-efficient programmable thermostat – and keep investing in improving my home’s thermal envelope. Insulation and air-sealing aren’t as flashy as Nest, but I know they’ll work.

Contact us today to learn more!

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Evergreen Home Performance shows its expertise from start to finish. Evergreen did three house projects in winter/spring/summer 2020 for me, attic insulation, crawl space under a porch insulation, and basement foam/vapor barrier. From my initial discussion with Bryan, I understood the reasons for choosing different types of insulation, the associated costs, and time estimates. Evergreen scheduled in advance, came when they said they would, and the crews were highly professional in their work and demeanor.

Iris S.

Portland

The Evergreen Team did a fabulous job and was very tuned and responsive to the particular needs we had. The job was done right on budget and we are thrilled with the improved warmth and energy efficiency.

Ira M.

Rockland

Evergreen is a terrific company to deal with. Polite and efficient crews, meeting deadlines and major reduction in our heat bills. They corrected a lot of issues we suffered from doing work with a shoddy building contractor. We would recommend them to anyone.

Mary Carey

Evergreen did everything they said they would and more. I actually don't mind going into the basement now since they sealed it. The air quality in the house is noticeably better and it's warmer in the winter. We can even store clothing down there where before, whatever was in there would mildew. Even the spider population declined! I used to vacuum so many of them from the corners of the ceilings in the house. Not any more!

Loriel Van Dusen

We had a fantastic experience working with Evergreen to insulate our roof this winter. Everyone was extremely friendly throughout the process - the crew at our home worked hard, were approachable with questions, and the team leader even showed me around the project to point out specific areas they were working to improve.

Joel Wentz

Bryan, Dave and the entire Evergreen team are wonderfully professional, prompt and thorough. I enjoyed working with them and look forward to continued work as we upgrade our home! Thank you so much for your professionalism, fairness, time and diligence.

Cait

Yarmouth

Evergreen completed the work at my home thoroughly and professionally. An inspector from Efficiency Maine came to inspect afterwards and described it as "state of the art" and "outstanding". The crew was very pleasant and considerate during the project. Their cleanup each day was perfect. Communications with the office were easy and reliable. I am very satisfied.

Catherine H.

South Portland

The folks at Evergreen did a great job fixing a rather major insulation problem in my house, which they helped identify with a great audit. When the work began, they were thorough, upbeat, and -- dare I say it -- efficient. I strongly recommend them.

Michael Williams

Thanks Evergreen Home Performance for helping to make our home more efficient. Many thanks as well to Bryan for the initial walk through and recommendations to make our home more efficient and to Dave, Roland, and Jacob for a job that was done professionally and courteous. We were amazed at the level of efficiency and everyday they made sure to protect our floors, carpets, and furniture. We had daily discussions with Dave about progress and what was being done and where they were at in the project.

Carol Fink

A thorough inspection of our (older) house and its energy needs. Competent and personable work crew.

Jacob Watson

We just finished a large project of air sealing and reinsulating our 1890s basement and attic which had been completely renovated 8 years ago but still felt cold and lacked proper energy assessment and corrections. We met with Justin in December and were very impressed with his knowledge, professionalism and communication skills and knew Evergreen was who we wanted to work with. Dave was our on hands project manager and was excellent. The office staff has been quick to respond and helpful as well when needed.

Emily Gallant

We just finished a large project air sealing and reinsulating our 1890s basement and attic. It had been completely renovated 8 years ago, but still felt cold, and lacked proper energy assessment and corrections. We met with Justin in December and were very impressed with his knowledge, professionalism and communication skills and knew Evergreen was who we wanted to work with. Dave was our on hands project manager and was excellent. The office staff has been quick to respond and helpful as well when needed.

E Gallant

Kennebunk

Update 12/2018: Evergreen has completed Phase II of my house (insulating and installing air/moisture barrier on exterior walls, replacing old windows) and now that heating season is upon us, the difference is astonishing. The house is tight as a drum and so easy to keep warm. Worth every penny. Thank you all! Working with Evergreen was a positive experience from start (no charge energy audit) to finish (a MUCH more comfortable home). Brian Robinson spent a lot of time with me on the audit, explaining clearly what he was finding in my ca.

Rebekah W.

Rockport

I was extremely pleased with the professionalism and quality of service that I received from the Evergreen team. I met Richard to discuss options for insulation. I knew immediately that I wanted to do business with them because he did not try to over-sell extra services that I did not need. Dave was the project manager. He was not only kind, but very respectful of my home. I would highly recommend this company.

Darlyann M

Bath

We initially contacted Evergreen through Efficiency Maine for an energy audit, which was conducted promptly and professionally by Justin McEdward, one of their Energy Advisors who is BPI-certified. After a thorough inspection of our newly purchased home, Justin explained in great detail what we needed and did not need. It was agreed that Evergreen would remove all of the existing attic insulation, which was not adequate, and replace it with blown in cellulose, to a rating of R-60.

Thomas W.

Scarborough

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