The Nest thermostat is one of the best-selling smart thermostats you can get. And for good reason. It learns your temperature preferences and develops an energy-efficient schedule to match. And through geofencing with your phone, the Nest Learning Thermostat and Nest E realize when you’re at your house or gone and can adjust temperatures 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 smart idea to use the Nest thermostat compatibility checker before purchasing one. Don’t forget to contact your energy supplier for valuable rebates, as you may be able to get a Nest for free or close to it.
Once you’ve checked it’s compatible, you can either hook it up yourself or call a HVAC specialist like Gilray Heating and Cooling. If you’re putting it in yourself, you’ll see a terminal for the C-wire, or common wire. This wire is solely 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 as the thermostat can get ample power from other heating and cooling wires.
Sometimes, your heating and cooling system might require that C-wire. And here’s why.
Why Your Nest Keeps Losing Power and Other Malfunctions
The Google Nest Thermostat is better than aging programmable thermostats that have a combination of wiring and AA batteries for power. It has a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and wiring to sync with Wi-Fi, power its digital display and operate your heating and cooling system.
8 Common Nest Thermostat Issues
If it can’t receive adequate power, Nest says you might run into some of these issues:
- Bad battery life.
- Thermostat motion sensing won’t work.
- Your thermostat every now and then disconnects from Wi-Fi.
- Your system suddenly turns on or off, or won’t shut off.
- Your system is creating strange noises, including 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 continuously working, won’t run or turns off and on rapidly in a short period of time.
You may think something is suspect with your heating and cooling system, but if you just installed the Nest, it’s best to check your thermostat initially. This is especially timely if the weather is mild, and you haven’t been running your heat or air conditioning consistently.
Our Professionals Can Resolve Nest Thermostat Troubles
If you’ve gone through Nest thermostat troubleshooting without help but can’t repair the issue, a smart thermostat professional including one from Gilray Heating and Cooling can provide support. We can pinpoint the problem and add a C-wire, if required.
Smart thermostats including the Nest are made to make your life more convenient, with automatic energy-efficient programming and the opportunity to check temperatures while you’re on the go. It’s a time-consuming experience when yours won’t run like it should, but our heating and cooling pros at Gilray Heating and Cooling can fix the problem quickly.
If you’re running into weird heating and cooling behavior with your new Nest, reach out to us at to set up your appointment now.