Does a “Delayed” message appear on your Nest thermostat, causing heating or cooling problems? You don’t need to panic – there are two common ways to fix a Nest thermostat delayed message.

In the future, it will be necessary to repeat this fix for Nest thermostat “delayed” messages. As for the other option, it is a bit more technical, but it will resolve your problem permanently.

Is there a reason for Nest thermostat “Delayed” Message?

Your Nest thermostat will display a “Delayed” message if there is low power available. Plugging the Nest thermostat display into a USB port and charging it for 2 hours is a temporary fix. You will need to connect your Nest and furnace with a common (C) wire for a longer-term fix.

What causes the “Delayed” message on the Nest thermostat?

There are two new Nest thermostat models that come with rechargeable lithium-ion batteries (Learning and E). There is nothing more to these batteries than a back-up.

Nest’s backup batteries will keep your Nest data and settings safe if there is a power outage.

These batteries cannot be replaced (the first Nest had AAA alkaline batteries that could be removed and replaced).

In the case of the newer models, it is not possible to access the batteries. To gain access to your Nest, you’d have to start taking it apart piece by piece.

If the rechargeable batteries in your Nest start to die, it is likely that your Nest will start to malfunction.

Moreover, you might have noticed that your Nest thermostat is now showing the message “Delayed” on it as one of the first signs of this.

You can charge your Nest thermostat to fix the delayed message in the short term.

A quick fix will fix the “Delayed” error on your Nest thermostat, and get it working again.

The only thing you need to do in order to fix the delayed message, all you need to do is charge your Nest thermostat.

As a first step, you will need to take off the Nest thermostat display in order to do this. When you turn the device over, there is a USB port on the upper back of the device.

You will need either a micro-USB or mini-USB charging cord depending on the model of Nest you own.

Start charging your Nest by plugging it into a wall charger (or your laptop’s USB port).

Ensure that the Nest is blinking red, as this is a sign that the charging has been successful.

The average time it takes your thermostat to charge is about half an hour. It will take two hours for your battery to be fully recharged if the battery is completely drained.

The Nest has now finished charging, so you can connect it to the wall once it has finished charging. The battery will eventually die, and you’ll have to recharge it again after some time.

It is important to continue reading if you want to find a more permanent solution to the Nest thermostat delayed issue.

Long term Fix – connect C wire to Nest thermostat and furnace to resolve “delayed” issue.

As a general rule, Nest draws a small amount of power from either the heating or cooling wires. The Nest is powered by this power for as long as it is on and running.

However, sometimes the Nest doesn’t receive enough power from the heating and cooling wires. It is in those cases that you need a common wire, also known as a C wire.

We will begin by going to the Settings section on your Nest and scrolling over to Equipment.

Your Nest will be able to show you a live view of the wires that it is detecting as they are being detected. Your cooling wire is yellow, your heat wire is white, your fan wire is green, and your power wire is red.

You are looking for the blue wire, the common wire, that plugs into the connector marked “C ”.

To power your Nest, a tiny amount of low voltage power will be pulled from your furnace via the common wire.

The Nest display won’t show a blue common wire unless you read this section.

1) Turn off the circuit breaker that controls your Nest thermostat and unplug your furnace (or unplug it). All power should be turned off.

2) Remove the display case from the Nest and examine the wires. You will see that all of the wires are connected, except for one. There might be a blue common wire somewhere in there, but you might have to dig a bit to find it.

3) After you find and confirm the common wire, it’s time to check the furnace.

4) In the furnace, you will find a motherboard that is connected to all of the wires that are low voltage. The motherboard may need to be accessed by removing a metal panel from the furnace. A few screws will probably need to be removed first.

5) You will probably find two main wires that split off from the low voltage wires inside your furnace. 2 off-shooting wires come from one main wire, and 5 off-shooting wires come from the other main wire.

Fixing Nest thermostat delayed message error.

1) Don’t make any changes to the main wire with two off-shooting wires. This one is connected to your outside air conditioning unit and is not the one we are looking for.

2) Another main wire with five offshooting wires is our Nest thermostat wire. Among those 5 offshooting wires, one is blue and not connected, and that is your common wire. There should be a common wire connected to the motherboard where it says “Com”.

3) “Comm” might already have a wire connected and that’s fine, it can handle two wires.

4) Turn off the furnace and Nest and connect the blue common wire to Nest’s “C” port while keeping the furnace and Nest off.

5) Reconnect the furnace and Nest by turning back on the power. Replace the Nest display cover by going to Settings and scrolling to Equipment. You should presently be able to see the blue C wire on your Nest thermostat.

6) That’s it, your Nest should get a steady stream of power now, and you should never get a Delayed error again.

Common problems that a C wire fixes

If you’re still not convinced about adding a C wire to permanently resolve the “Delayed” error message. Besides fixing the above issues, a C wire also fixes the following five.

• It appears that your Nest thermostat is making unusual noises, such as loud chirping, stuttering, clicking, or thumping.
• A heater or air conditioner is always on and won’t turn off.
• In a short period of time, heating or cooling turns on and off repeatedly.
• There is always a running fan on the system or it won’t turn on at all.
• In a short period of time, the system fan turns on and off repeatedly.

Consistent power is essential for Nest thermostats, and C wires are the only way to get it!

Nest Thermostat Customer Support Can Help If You Still Get “Delayed” Error Messages.

For power issues, you should contact a Nest Pro in your area if you aren’t sure what’s wrong or don’t feel comfortable fixing it yourself.

Your system and thermostat installation can be diagnosed and fixed by them.

They can also connect your Nest thermostat with a C wire or a C wire accessory, such as a Nest Power Connector.

Conclusion

When your Nest thermostat displays the “Delayed” message, your Nest battery is low.

In order to fix the Nest thermostat “Delayed” message, there are two fixes available.

You can do it temporarily by removing the Nest display case and plugging it into a USB charger. To fully recharge your Nest, it may take up to two hours.

Nest’s battery will drain again after a while, so you’ll need to recharge it again.

The blue common wire can be connected to your Nest and furnace for a more permanent fix.

Your Nest thermostat will always have low voltage power and you won’t have the delayed issue again.

Please let me know in the comments if this guide was helpful to you.

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