Thermostats help homeowners save money by monitoring temperatures in their homes. But, low batteries in thermostats pose several challenges in monitoring efforts, affecting our daily lives differently. That’s why when you start to notice your thermostat acting strangely, it’s time to check the batteries!
Low or dead batteries affect the thermostat’s functions. The low batteries cause erratic behavior ranging from not reporting a temperature and the thermostat screen going blank. Your heating and cooling system won’t respond accurately or times if they don’t receive commands for changes in temperature because of low battery power.
You may also experience other malfunctions such as lights turning off prematurely when using light bulbs with motion sensors, security systems being unable to alert anyone about an intruder. Or (if there is one), double-hanging windows swinging open without wind gusts.
So what should you do? Just like changing oil every 3 months helps cars run better – replacing those old worn-out AAAs batteries will fix the problem of thermostats once and for all.
How to know if your thermostat needs a battery?
Losing power at home is a stressful event, but replacing your thermostat batteries can help you maintain the temperature in your home when other systems fail.
Low-battery digital thermostats are one of the most common causes for heating and cooling not to function as they should be capable of doing.
If your thermostat is not providing the proper temperature information to your furnace and air conditioning unit, this can lead to a variety of problems.
It’s always your heating or cooling system that suffers when the thermostat batteries die. That’s why you need to make sure that you make it a habit to change your thermostat batteries regularly.
As a general rule of thumb, watching out for erratic temperature reporting is how you know if your thermostat needs batteries replaced. You’ll also see a black display screen or a warning light flickering to warn you that your thermostat needs a new battery change.
When To Replace Thermostat Batteries?
Generally, you should replace your thermostat batteries immediately after or before your heavy use season all year round. The best time to replace your thermostat batteries is spring and Fall.
With the cooler weather approaching, regular usage of your heating and cooling system can drain the power out of your thermostat batteries pretty quickly.
A good trick is to change or check the batteries in your thermostats twice a year – Spring and Fall. This way, you’ll have a better idea if any changes need to be made right away so that you don’t have any surprises come Wintertime.
One of the easiest ways how you can tell whether or not it’s time for a new temperature thermostat battery replacement is by monitoring the thermostat’s response time.
If you notice that the temperature settings or heating and cooling systems are not responding quickly or accurately, this is most likely due to dead thermostat batteries.
How long do thermostat batteries last?
8-12 Months is how long thermostat batteries last. However, the average lifespans for thermostats battery vary by brand and usually run effectively between 6 months to 12 months (1 year).
The best way to avoid disruption in your home is to check your battery’s energy levels regularly, using a voltmeter or digital multimeter (DMM) so that you can know what condition the batteries are really in and if it’s time for a replacement.
If your thermostat batteries are not replaced or don’t get recharged soon enough afterward, there won’t be any temperature commands for the unit to respond to!
Typically, all thermostats need to have their batteries replaced every 3 -6 months as a good housekeeping practice. Leaving it longer than 6-12 months, you are risking the batteries dying before changing.
So don’t forget to keep an eye on those simple low battery signs- because without them in place, you could find yourself being left with no way of controlling your own house temperatures.
Thermostats batteries are usually quite easy to replace, as most use AA or AAA batteries that can be picked up at any local store. They’re pretty cheap too, which is good news when you consider the amount of time you’ll get out of them! You should note how often you need to change your thermostat batteries so you don’t forget next time.
The reason I say this is because there’s nothing worse than trying to work out which ones have run out in the heat of the moment and not being able to switch the heating back on when you need it the most.
Will A Honeywell Thermostat Work Without A Battery?
Your Honeywell thermostat will work without a battery if they are wired into the main electric grid. Still, Honeywell smart thermostats need batteries as they are designed to also work with batteries in the event of total power outages.
So, to ensure that your home has a reliable temperature at all times, even during an outage, the device will run on batteries for up to 10 days where power loss is persistent and they will still monitor indoor temperatures as well as sending reports about changes back to the home owner’s servers so they can be analyzed and take action where applicable.
The majority of programmable thermostats on the market today are designed to work even when the main electric grid goes down, and in order for this function to be realized, you’ll need a set of batteries.
Honeywell and other thermostats widely use either AAA or AA batteries, depending on what type of device is being powered by it. These types of batteries can usually last up until 3-6 months without needing replacement if they’re used as needed!
Why Do The Batteries In Thermostat Keep Dying?
Old and defective thermostats are a common cause of regular drained batteries that lead to dead batteries more often than normal.
If you’ve noticed the batteries in your thermostat dying off more than usual, then the chances are that it could be an issue with the device.
You’re also going to want to check and see if you have a power outage timer in place that is forcing your thermostat to overuse batteries unnecessarily.
Depending on how large your home is, one or two minutes of power outages can drain a good amount of power from devices like these, so make sure that they’re all set use batteries as needed!
Do you have to reset the thermostat after changing batteries?
Your thermostat does not need to be reset after changing batteries. You only have to reset the thermostat’s settings after changing batteries when you have hard the fuse or circuit breaker that regulates your HVAC system has been changed. If you are quite sure that this is not the case, then don’t worry about it!
What kind of batteries do thermostats use?
There are several different kinds of batteries used in devices like these. Thermostats mostly use AAA, AA lithium, or A23 alkaline batteries while others require C or D size batteries.
When looking for a home improvement store to purchase your new thermostat battery, check their selection first to see if they carry any rechargeable batteries – these are definitely more cost-effective over the long run! –
If nothing else works but your old thermostat relies on expensive specialized batteries, call a professional HVAC technician and ask him/her for advice.
If a new battery is placed in an old one and blown fuses are replaced with fresh ones, there will likely be some confusion as you try to figure out why it wasn’t working before.
What would cause a thermostat to stop working?
It’s amazing how one little thing like a blown fuse can cause a thermostat to stop working. And there are a lot of causes why your thermostat can suddenly stop working. Here are the most likely:
- Memory flushing– You put a new battery into an old thermostat but forgot to clear the memory. So when you turned on the power, it read “99” degrees instead of “68.”
- Loose Thermostat Wire Connections– The wires connected to your thermostat are loose and need to be secured more firmly with wire nuts or electrical tape. Also check that none of them have come out from behind your thermostat.
- Blown Fuse– A fuse blew because something else was using too much current in your house (such as another piece of automatic equipment). For example, if you have multiple switches that turn on outdoor landscaping lights, they might have been all turned on at once — which is a problem with the thermostat fuse
What is wrong when your thermostat goes blank?
When thermostats run out of batteries, the monitoring screen goes blank and the temperature reading accuracy is erratic.
Typically, when the thermostat goes blank, batteries are dead and need replacing immediately. The majority of thermostat brands use widely available batteries available at your local store near you. Honeywell, Nest thermostats all use either AAA, AA23, and Alkaline batteries.
Troubleshooting Thermostat After Changing Batteries.
There’s a lot that can go wrong when new batteries replace the old ones in your thermostat. Many of my readers often encounter a common problem: how nothing works after Changing batteries in the thermostat after changing batteries.
Thermostat memory flushing or lack thereof can cause a newly changed battery thermostat not to work. This can be solved by flushing the memory, and it will fix the thermostat to start working again. The other issue that can also cause your thermostat not to work is interfering with the thermostat’s circuit board.
It is always advisable NOT to touch any circuit boards or the circuit board connectors when replacing batteries. The old batteries are always at fault, and if you have replaced them, then don’t attempt touching wires or the internal fixtures.
Thermostats typically need new batteries once or twice a year depending on how often you adjust your thermostat and how hard extreme temperatures are pushing it.
It would be best to change them as soon as you notice a significant difference in temperature between what is displayed on your thermostat compared to what’s actually being maintained inside the house.
The best practice now is that if there’s a big discrepancy, replace the old batteries immediately because they might die quickly, leading to malfunctioning of your thermostat, causing much bigger problems.
Thermostat says low battery with new batteries
When the thermostat’s batteries are changed but the memory has not flushed, the thermostat may sometimes say it still has a low battery even with new batteries replaced the old bad ones.
Generally, flushing your thermostat soon after replacing old dead batteries is the best practice. It helps the thermostat start fresh with enough memory, free from outdated temperature readings or commands.
Typically, thermostats do not require a reset after changing batteries, but it’s essential to flush the memory, again check the fuse and circuit breaker before flipping those switches back on.
If your house has experienced power surges or just blown fuses as recently as last week, you may end up with a thermostat that says low battery with new batteries after turning the thermostat up!
