The Nest thermostat is one of the best-selling smart thermostats you can get. And for good reason. It figures out your temperature preferences and develops an energy-efficient schedule to match. And using geofencing with your phone, the Nest Learning Thermostat and Nest E realize when you’re at your residence or gone and can raise and lower temps to help you save even more.
The Nest can be used with a wide range of 24-volt heating and cooling systems, but it’s always a wise idea to visit the Nest thermostat compatibility checker before getting one. Don’t forget to talk with your energy company for valuable rebates, since you might be able to get a Nest for free or close to it.
Once you’ve checked it’s compatible, you can either wire it on your own or contact a HVAC pro like Watts Electric & AC. If you’re wiring it without help, you’ll notice a terminal for the C-wire, or common wire. This wire is solely used for powering your thermostat. If your house or HVAC system is older, you might not have one of these wires. In the majority of cases, Nest says this isn’t a problem because the thermostat can draw enough power from other heating and cooling wires.
Sometimes, your heating and cooling system may have to have that C-wire. And here’s why.
Why Your Nest Keeps Losing Power and Other Malfunctions
The Google Nest Thermostat is better than older programmable thermostats that have a combination of wiring and AA batteries for power. It uses a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and wiring to link to Wi-Fi, power its digital display and turn on your heating and cooling system.
8 Common Nest Thermostat Problems
If it can’t receive enough juice, Nest says you might have some of these problems:
- Short battery life.
- Thermostat motion sensing is disabled.
- Your thermostat sometimes disconnects from Wi-Fi.
- Your system unexpectedly turns on or off, or won’t shut off.
- Your system is making strange noises, like chattering, stuttering, clicking or thumping.
- Heating or cooling is short cycling, or repeatedly turning on and off in a short period of time.
- There is a delay notification on your Nest thermostat’s screen, along the lines of “heating is delayed for 2:30 minutes.”
- The system fan is always on, won’t switch on or turns off and on frequently in a short period of time.
You might think something is suspect with your heating and cooling system, but if you just installed the Nest, we recommend you start with your thermostat initially. This is especially timely if the weather is temperate, and you haven’t been using your heat or air conditioning much.
Our Professionals Can Solve Nest Thermostat Problems
If you’ve gone through Nest thermostat troubleshooting on your own but can’t repair the dilemma, a smart thermostat professional such as one from Watts Electric & AC can support you. We can determine the problem and add a C-wire, if required.
Smart thermostats including the Nest are created to make your life more convenient, with automatic energy-efficient programming and the option to keep an eye on temps while you’re out. It’s a frustrating experience when yours won’t work correctly, but our heating and cooling specialists at Watts Electric & AC can fix the trouble quickly.
If you’re running into weird heating and cooling behavior with your new Nest, call us at 601-736-7362 to set up your appointment today.