The Nest thermostat is one of the most popular smart thermostats you can buy. And for good reason. It figures out your temperature preferences and develops an energy-efficient schedule to match. And by geofencing with your phone, the Nest Learning Thermostat and Nest E know when you’re at your home or gone and can change settings to help you save even more.
The Nest works with a wide range of 24-volt heating and cooling systems, but it’s always a wise idea to check the Nest thermostat compatibility checker before purchasing one. Don’t forget to talk with your energy supplier for valuable rebates, since you might be able to get a Nest for free or close to it.
Once you’ve made sure it’s compatible, you can either wire it on your own or contact a HVAC pro like Ambient Air. If you’re installing it without help, you’ll see a terminal for the C-wire, or common wire. This wire is just used for powering your thermostat. If your home or HVAC system is older, you might not have one of these wires. Most of the time, Nest says this isn’t a setback since the thermostat can pull ample power from other heating and cooling wires.
Sometimes, your heating and cooling system might have to have that C-wire. And here’s why.
Why Your Nest Keeps Losing Power and Other Malfunctions
The Google Nest Thermostat is an improvement from outdated programmable thermostats that rely on a combination of wiring and AA batteries for power. It uses a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and wiring to connect to Wi-Fi, power its digital display and turn on your heating and cooling system.
8 Common Nest Thermostat Issues
If it can’t get adequate juice, Nest says you could experience some of these troubles:
- Short battery life.
- Thermostat motion sensing won’t operate.
- Your thermostat sometimes disconnects from Wi-Fi.
- Your system unexpectedly turns on or off, or won’t shut off.
- Your system is producing 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 notice on your Nest thermostat’s screen, like “heating is delayed for 2:30 minutes.”
- The system fan is always working, won’t run or turns off and on rapidly in a short period of time.
You may believe something is suspect with your heating and cooling system, but if you just got the Nest, we suggest you check your thermostat initially. This is especially true if the weather is moderate, and you haven’t been running 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 problem, a smart thermostat professional like one from Ambient Air can provide assistance. We can determine the problem and add a C-wire, if required.
Smart thermostats like the Nest are created to make your life more convenient, through automatic energy-efficient programming and the option to keep an eye on temps while you’re away from home. It’s an annoying experience when yours won’t operate correctly, but our heating and cooling specialists at Ambient Air can resolve the trouble in no time.
If you’re running into strange heating and cooling behavior with your new Nest, call us at 520-357-4912 to request your appointment right away.