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Thermostat Explained

ecobee thermostats: messages and settings explained

An ecobee shows whether it is asking for heat or cooling with color: an orange flame or ring for heat, a blue snowflake or ring for cooling. Everyday settings sit under Main Menu, and the equipment settings called thresholds can only be changed on the thermostat itself, not in the app. This page links to a page for each topic.

How do you tell what an ecobee is doing?

Look at the icons and the ring around the screen. ecobee's heating FAQ says that when the thermostat is calling for heat, the flame icon turns orange or an orange ring appears around the edge of the screen. A white flame with no ring means it is not trying to run the heating. Cooling works the same way in blue: a blue ring or a blue snowflake means it is calling for cool, and a white snowflake with no ring means it is not.

That one check settles a lot of confusion. If the icon is white, the thermostat has not decided to run the system yet, and the reason is in its settings. If it is orange or blue and nothing happens, the thermostat is asking and the system is not answering.

Where are the settings on an ecobee?

There are two main areas, and they behave differently:

  • Preferences, under Main Menu, then General, then Preferences (on the Smart Thermostat Lite and Essential, Main Menu, then Preferences). This is where you find the hold action, the heating and cooling ranges, Smart Recovery or Pre-Heat and Pre-Cool, and screen brightness.
  • Thresholds, under Main Menu, then General, then Settings, then Installation Settings, then Thresholds (on the Lite and Essential, Main Menu, then Settings, then Installation Settings, then Thresholds). These control the equipment: temperature correction, the heat and cool differentials, compressor minimum on and off times and auxiliary heat limits.

ecobee says thresholds can only be changed on the thermostat itself and warns that if you are unfamiliar with your equipment, you should contact ecobee Support before making changes.

Why does an ecobee sometimes ignore its schedule?

Usually because of a hold or eco+. ecobee says any manual temperature change places a hold that overrides the schedule, and changes from Alexa, HomeKit or other integrations set a manual hold too. A hold stays active even with the system mode set to Off. To cancel one, tap the small x in the hold bubble.

Smart Home and Away can also change the temperature without a schedule change. Our page on a thermostat that is not following its schedule covers this across brands.

Which ecobee topics have their own page?

Every ecobee page on this site

Frequently asked questions

Why can I not find the threshold settings in the ecobee app?
Because they are not there. The ecobee support site says adjustments to thresholds can only be made on the thermostat itself, under Installation Settings, then Thresholds. That includes temperature correction, the heat and cool differentials and the compressor timers.
Can I remove the schedule from an ecobee?
No. The ecobee support site says the schedule cannot be removed. Any manual temperature change places a hold that overrides the schedule, and the hold action setting decides how long that lasts.
Why did my ecobee switch to Away while I was home?
That is usually Smart Away. During a scheduled Home period, the thermostat switches to Away after it detects no occupancy for two consecutive hours. Smart Home can switch it back to Home once Away has been active for at least one hour.
What does Smart Recovery do on an ecobee?
It starts heating or cooling early so the home is already at the setpoint when a scheduled period begins. Newer models call it Pre-Heat and Pre-Cool. It can only be turned on or off on the thermostat, not in the app.