The Nest thermostat is one of the top-selling smart thermostats you can get. And for good reason. It picks up on 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 residence or out and about and can adjust temperatures to help you save even more.
The Nest can be used with a vast range of 24-volt heating and cooling systems, but it’s always a good idea to use the Nest thermostat compatibility checker before installing one. Don’t forget to talk with your energy company for valuable rebates, because you could be able to get a Nest for free or close to it.
Once you’ve confirmed it’s compatible, you can either hook it up yourself or hire a HVAC specialist like Strine's. If you’re installing it without help, you’ll notice 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 problem since the thermostat can get adequate 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 Issues
The Google Nest Thermostat is a step up from 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 run your heating and cooling system.
8 Common Nest Thermostat Problems
If it can’t get enough electricity, Nest says you may have some of these issues:
- Short battery life.
- Thermostat motion sensing won’t operate.
- Your thermostat sometimes disconnects from Wi-Fi.
- Your system abruptly turns on or off, or won’t turn off.
- Your system is creating odd 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 message on your Nest thermostat’s screen, along the lines of “heating is delayed for 2:30 minutes.”
- The system fan is always running, won’t run or turns off and on repeatedly in a short period of time.
You may believe 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 true if the weather is mild, and you haven’t been running your heat or air conditioning much.
Our Pros Can Solve Nest Thermostat Issues
If you’ve gone through Nest thermostat troubleshooting without help but can’t solve the issue, a smart thermostat specialist such as one from Strine's can assist you. We can pinpoint the issue and install a C-wire, if necessary.
Smart thermostats such as the Nest are created to make your life simpler, through automatic energy-efficient programming and the option to keep an eye on temps while you’re on the go. It’s a frustrating experience when yours won’t work like it should, but our heating and cooling experts at Strine's can resolve the trouble quickly.
If you’re going through atypical heating and cooling behavior with your new Nest, reach out to us at 717-383-4479 to schedule your appointment today.