Error H72 - support person asks to test using multimeter which I don't have!

[tanves]

My Nest 3rd Gen Pro thermostat starting showing an H72 error today morning. On contact the Nest support team over a phone call, I got told that I need to check the power to the thermostat using a multimeter, almost assuming that I would have a multimeter lying around in the house! I had to tell the technician that I do not have a multimeter and were there any other options available to which I got told "borrow one from your friends or neighbours" or call an electrician! Is there anyone who can guide me as to how to deal with this situation? As you can imagine, I am a bit annoyed and frustrated and am wondering whether it was the right decision at all to get a Google Nest installation done by spending £500!

[LarisaL]

Hi there, thanks for reaching out! I'm so sorry to hear about this situation. Could you please tell me, on the Heat Link, do you see any lights?

[tanves]

Heat link has green light on it. Interesting thing, today morning the thermostat didn't show the error message and the power showed 10.48 V in the power menu. Then in the afternoon it started showing the error message again. If there was a power supply issue, shouldn't it be a continuous problem?

[Vladut]

Hello @tanves , this perticular situation does not have to be a continuous one. This may be because of short power outages, wires and/or relays (just to name a few). Hence why the support agent asked you about the multimiter. In this situation I would definitely recommend one in order to do some troubleshooting.

[tanves]

So as a customer of Google nest I need to have a multimeter to troubleshoot issues! That's weird, to put it mildly. Expecting customers who may not be well versed with how to use a multimeter to fiddle with units that are powered electrically is just dangerous in my opinion. Is there no other choice left for me as customer other than spending another £100 just to get the testing done by a proper electrician? Seems to be an expensive affair especially when the wiring worked for almost 4 months and there was no specific reason it should have stopped working all of a sudden! As you can imagine I have lost all faith in Google's customer support, for you all it may be as simple as "oh the customer is just being nasty and not willing to work with us to troubleshoot" but for a minute put yourselves in the customers shoes, especially when they have already spend £500 going with your product over others.

[Vladut]

I do understand the situation and I'm very sorry for any inconvenience caused by this. I'm just trying to offer you the best solution available. In this situation if you are not comfortable in using the Multimeter, the only one remains is to contact an installer. 

[tanves]

I guess it's best to replace nest if it's going to be costing more money to maintain than its saving. Irony is the manual override doesn't even allow just to use the water heating function, it's both heating and water or neither! So it's restricting the customer completely just cos they don't have a multimeter! Wish I would have known this is the kind of customer service and features I was going to get before I made the choice to go with Google nest.

[Vladut]

I realise the inconvenience about this situation but as the power going to the thermostat it's not stable in this case I would definitely recommend a multimeter or an installer to come and have a look. In regards of the Manual Mode of the thermostat, this is how it was designed to work in order for you to have access to heating and hot water even if the display is not working. You can find more details here.

[tanves]

Thanks Vladut, you are simply making my experience even worse! You are suggesting that I had not read that link and figured out the manual option. I did figure it out and on using the manual option realised either I can heat my house and boil water and not chose to do one or the other! Guess Google and you expect customers to heat their house during summers as well! Great customer service and product design! 

[Vladut]

I'm so sorry for any inconvenience caused by this. If you need anything else, just let me know.

[LarisaL]

Hi there, just checking in. Did you see the message from above?

[tanves]

Yes LarisaL. I did read the insincere apology from Vladut. Have resigned to the fact that Google customer service and support is as good as non-existent. Should have really done my research before spending £500 with the Google nest setup only for it to stop working abruptly within 4 months. Would have figured out how Google expects customers to use multimeters to troubleshoot issues on live electrical connections!! Not just reckless but actually quite dangerous. Now I have to spend another £300 to get an electrician to come and replace the Google nest system with the trustworthy Honeywell setup I had earlier. Rest assured, I will ensure all those who know me well know that they should not buy Google products lest they want to face horrible customer service which may end up putting their safety at risk.

[AlexD]

I am sorry to hear you feel this way and for any inconveniences caused. Rest assured me and my colleagues are always here and on all our contact channels to assist however possible. If you have a case number to provide me with I would also be happy to have a look at everything that was discussed with my colleague. 

I do see your point here, not everyone is comfortable doing electrical troubleshooting and it can be expensive to get one to come over and check it as well. 

Now I don't know all the details of your case that you discussed with my colleague over the phone but since you mentioned the Heat Link has a green LED on it, that would indicate that it has power and is connected to the thermostat, at least at that particular point. 

Now if the Heat Link has power there are a few possibilities for the H72 message. This code indicates a lack of power to the display. This could be because the power is not getting from the Heat Link terminals to the thermostat correctly, a problem with the wires, having a break or short somewhere along the line or the thermostat base not delivering the power to the display. 

If you have a case number to share I can have a look at the case to get a better idea what was discussed so far but depending on the behaviour of all the components a test with a multi-meter might be needed. 

For example, if something was going on with the wiring between the Heat Link and the display, even if we were to replace all the components, you would still get the same behaviour. That is why tests like these with a multi-meter are needed in some situations to make sure we determine what's going on.  

Again, I do see your point about having to test it yourself or having someone to do it but such tests are sometimes required to properly diagnose what's going on.

I do want to thank you for all the information and feedback provided. We're always looking for ways to improve both our products and services. 

[OannaCG]

Hey there, since we haven't heard from you for a couple of days, we'll close this conversation for now. If you still need help, let us know so we can continue. Thanks!

[Paul_R]

HI there, just checking. Would there be anything else that you'd need assistance with?