How to Install and Install the Nest Protect Smart Smoke Alarm

If you’re looking to add a little more convenience and security to your home’s smoke alarm setup, Nest Protect comes with some great features to make that a reality. Here’s how to do it and what can be done about it.

If you’re not familiar with Nest Protect (or smart smoke detectors in general), they act like any other regular smoke alarm, but they also connect to your Wi-Fi network to send you alerts on your phone if you’re away from home. You can also mute the alarm without finding the step chair to mute it on the alarm itself.

Smart smoke detectors such as the Nest Protect can also communicate wirelessly with each other. That way, if one alarm goes off, everyone else in the house goes off too, which is great for larger homes where you won’t be able to hear a particular alarm through the house.

Either way, if you’re thinking about grabbing Nest Protect, or already have one and want to learn how to install and set it up, just follow the instructions below!

Step One: Set Up Nest Security Using the Nest App

Before actually installing the Nest Protect on a ceiling or wall, it’s much easier to set up as long as it’s right in front of you. So, the first thing you want to do is unzip it and launch the Nest app on your phone. If this is your first Nest product, you’ll need to download the app (for iPhone and Android) and create an account.

Once you launch the app, open it and tap the big plus button on the home screen. If you already have the app and have some Nest products set up, swipe down and tap the plus button in the top right corner of the screen.

Scroll down and select «Add Product» down.

You can then scan the QR code on the back of the Nest Protect or enter its code manually.

Follow the instructions in the app to set up Nest Protect, which only takes a few minutes. Keep in mind, however, that it needs to test the alarm, so make sure you’re prepared to hear a few loud sounds for a few seconds during the installation process.

Once your Nest Protect is set up, it’s ready to go and will start monitoring smoke and carbon monoxide. At this point, you are ready to install it.

Step Two: Install the Protect Socket

The Nest Protect is similar to most other smoke detectors when it comes to installation — you screw the mounting plate to the wall or ceiling and then attach the Nest Protect to the mounting plate.

Start by gripping the mounting plate and, turning the black foam ring outward, screw the plate to the wall or ceiling with a drill. If you want the Nest Protect to point up and be perfectly straight, make sure the Nest logo on the mounting plate is oriented to the top left corner with the screw holes forming a cross straight and across (as in the picture below). You may also need to drill holes for the pilots first if you are driving on a stud, but for plain drywall, you can screw in the screws without a problem.

Once the plate is in place, all you have to do is line up the notches with the notches on the Nest Protect, making sure you first position the Nest Protect so that the top of the logo is pointing to the left and slightly down, just the light in the picture below. From there, push it in and then turn it clockwise about a quarter of a turn until it stops.

Your Nest Protect is now ready to go, but there is one more thing you need to do to complete the setup.

Step Three: Adjust Settings

Overall, the Nest Protect is a pretty boring device and you don’t need to mess with it too often (hopefully never, but the world isn’t perfect). However, whenever you need to use it, it’s a good idea to optimize and tweak your settings.

You can access the Nest Protect settings in the Nest app by selecting it and then clicking on the settings gear icon in the top right corner of the screen.

There are a few things you can mess around with. You can change the time of day when you want the «Sound Check» to happen, it’s just a quick sequence that checks the alarm, power and connection every month. You can also disable «Silencing Alarms» if you like, which takes away the convenience of turning off the alarm from your phone, forcing you to do it on the device itself.

By clicking on a specific socket protection at the bottom of the list, you can access additional settings. Here is a summary of what each selection offers.

Pathlight: this is a small night light built into the Nest Protect that can glow at night when it detects motion, allowing you to walk down the hallway without having to turn on the light.
Night Promise: this feature makes your Nest Protect glow green for a few seconds when you turn off the light, letting you know it’s working properly.
Steam check: When this feature is enabled, Nest Protect attempts to minimize false alarms when it detects steam from a nearby shower.
Heads Up: This feature first gives you a more discreet warning when it detects that the smoke or CO levels are rising.
Brightness: this parameter adjusts the brightness of the LED ring for the Pathlight and Nightly Promise functions.

All of the above settings are enabled by default, so be sure to go in and disable any features you don’t want to use.