The Nest thermostat is one of the top-selling smart thermostats you can get. And for good reason. It learns your temperature preferences and creates 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 away and can adjust settings to help you save even more.

The Nest is compatible with a full range of 24-volt heating and cooling systems, but it’s always a smart idea to check the Nest thermostat compatibility checker before getting one. Don’t forget to contact your energy provider for valuable rebates, since you might be able to get a Nest for free or close to it.

Once you’ve confirmed it’s compatible, you can either wire it on your own or hire a HVAC pro like E.B. Air. If you’re wiring 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 as the thermostat can draw enough power from other heating and cooling wires.

In some cases, your heating and cooling system could need 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 connect to Wi-Fi, power its digital display and run your heating and cooling system.

8 Common Nest Thermostat Problems

If it can’t get adequate juice, Nest says you may encounter some of these troubles:

  1. Poor battery life.
  2. Thermostat motion sensing won’t operate.
  3. Your thermostat every now and then disconnects from Wi-Fi.
  4. Your system abruptly turns on or off, or won’t shut off.
  5. Your system is making odd noises, including chattering, stuttering, clicking or thumping.
  6. Heating or cooling is short cycling, or constantly turning on and off in a short period of time.
  7. There is a delay message on your Nest thermostat’s screen, along the lines of “heating is delayed for 2:30 minutes.”
  8. The system fan is always running, won’t turn on or turns off and on repeatedly in a short period of time.

You might worry something is suspect with your heating and cooling system, but if you just got the Nest, we suggest you begin with your thermostat right away. This is especially timely if the weather is mild, and you haven’t been using your heat or air conditioning consistently.

Our Professionals Can Fix Nest Thermostat Problems

If you’ve attempted Nest thermostat troubleshooting without help but can’t solve the dilemma, a smart thermostat specialist such as one from E.B. Air can support you. We can determine the malfunction and add a C-wire, if needed.

Smart thermostats including the Nest are designed to make your life easier, through automatic energy-efficient programming and the option to check temperatures while you’re out. It’s a frustrating experience when yours won’t work like it should, but our heating and cooling experts at E.B. Air can resolve the trouble quickly.

If you’re running into odd heating and cooling behavior with your new Nest, reach out to us at to request your appointment now.