The Nest thermostat is one of the best-selling smart thermostats on the market today. And for good reason. It figures out your temperature preferences and makes an energy-efficient schedule to match. And by geofencing with your phone, the Nest Learning Thermostat and Nest E realize when you’re at your house or gone and can change temps to help you save even more.
The Nest is compatible with a wide range of 24-volt heating and cooling systems, but it’s always a smart idea to visit the Nest thermostat compatibility checker before getting one. Don’t forget to talk with your energy provider 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 yourself or hire a HVAC specialist like Central Heating & Plumbing. 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 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 setback as the thermostat can draw enough power from other heating and cooling wires.
In some cases, your heating and cooling system may require that C-wire. And here’s why.
Why Your Nest Keeps Losing Power and Other Problems
The Google Nest Thermostat is better than older programmable thermostats that have a combination of wiring and AA batteries for power. It has a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and wiring to connect to Wi-Fi, power its digital display and run your heating and cooling system.
8 Common Nest Thermostat Malfunctions
If it can’t draw enough power, Nest says you may run into some of these problems:
- Short battery life.
- Thermostat motion sensing won’t work.
- Your thermostat sometimes disconnects from Wi-Fi.
- Your system suddenly turns on or off, or won’t stop running.
- Your system is producing strange noises, such as chattering, stuttering, clicking or thumping.
- Heating or cooling is short cycling, or constantly turning on and off in a short period of time.
- There is a delay notification on your Nest thermostat’s screen, like “heating is delayed for 2:30 minutes.”
- The system fan is always working, won’t switch on or turns off and on repeatedly in a short period of time.
You could worry something is wrong with your heating and cooling system, but if you just installed the Nest, we suggest you check your thermostat initially. This is especially timely if the weather is mild, and you haven’t been using your heat or air conditioning much.
Our Pros Can Solve Nest Thermostat Problems
If you’ve tried Nest thermostat troubleshooting by yourself but can’t fix the issue, a smart thermostat specialist like one from Central Heating & Plumbing can assist you. We can determine the malfunction and install a C-wire, if necessary.
Smart thermostats such as the Nest are designed to make your life simpler, with automatic energy-efficient programming and the opportunity to keep an eye on temps while you’re out. It’s a time-consuming experience when yours won’t operate like it should, but our heating and cooling pros at Central Heating & Plumbing can resolve the trouble fast.
If you’re going through weird heating and cooling behavior with your new Nest, reach out to us at to request your appointment now.