The Nest thermostat is one of the best-selling smart thermostats on the market today. And for good reason. It learns your temperature preferences and creates an energy-efficient schedule to match. And through geofencing with your phone, the Nest Learning Thermostat and Nest E know when you’re at your house or away and can change temperatures to help you save even more.

The Nest works with a vast range of 24-volt heating and cooling systems, but it’s always a wise idea to visit the Nest thermostat compatibility checker before getting one. Don’t forget to check with your energy company for valuable rebates, as you may be able to get a Nest for free or close to it.

Once you’ve made sure it’s compatible, you can either install it without help or call a HVAC professional like Stephen Hurst Pack Heating and Cooling. 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 problem since the thermostat can draw ample power from other heating and cooling wires.

Sometimes, your heating and cooling system may 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 rely on a combination of wiring and AA batteries for power. It uses a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and wiring to sync with Wi-Fi, power its digital display and run your heating and cooling system.

8 Common Nest Thermostat Problems

If it can’t receive enough power, Nest says you could have some of these issues:

  1. Bad battery life.
  2. Thermostat motion sensing is disabled.
  3. Your thermostat every now and then disconnects from Wi-Fi.
  4. Your system abruptly turns on or off, or won’t stop running.
  5. Your system is creating weird noises, such as 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, such as “heating is delayed for 2:30 minutes.”
  8. The system fan is continuously running, won’t turn on or turns off and on frequently 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 check your thermostat first. This is especially pertinent if the weather is temperate, and you haven’t been running your heat or air conditioning frequently.

Our Specialists Can Fix Nest Thermostat Troubles

If you’ve gone through Nest thermostat troubleshooting by yourself but can’t fix the dilemma, a smart thermostat specialist like one from Stephen Hurst Pack Heating and Cooling can provide support. We can diagnose the malfunction and add a C-wire, if required.

Smart thermostats including the Nest are designed to make your life more convenient, with automatic energy-efficient programming and the opportunity to keep an eye on temperatures while you’re out. It’s a time-consuming experience when yours won’t run like it should, but our heating and cooling specialists at Stephen Hurst Pack Heating and Cooling can resolve the trouble quickly.

If you’re going through atypical heating and cooling behavior with your new Nest, reach out to us at to schedule your appointment right away.