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Is your Ecobee heating instead of cooling? If so don’t worry, shortly will be learning about issues that can cause your Ecobee thermostat to heat when it shouldn’t. These include
- Wrong thermostat settings
- Wrong thermostat wiring
- Problems with the reverse valve
Why Is My Ecobee Heating Instead of Cooling?
When you notice that your ecobee is heating when it should be cooling, there are a few things that you need to consider when troubleshooting this problem. These include:
1) Wrong Thermostat Settings
The first thing you want to do when you face an Ecobee cooling problem is to double check your thermostat settings.
If your ecobee is heating instead of cooling, double your thermostat settings. Heat pumps have reverse valves that switch between heating and cooling so, if there is wrong thermostat setting, your thermostat could be heating when it should be cooling and the other way round.
If you are using a heat pump for cooling and heating, your reverse valve might just energies on the wrong setting. To be sure that there is no problem with the reverse valve, try putting your Ecobee on heat mode and if it cools on heat mode, put it on cool mode. And if your Ecobee heats on cool mode, there is definitely a problem with the reverse valve setting.
Read also: How To Reset Ecobee Without Access Code
To verify and correct settings for the reverse valve, go on your thermostat and follow these steps.
- Click Main Menu
- Press on Settings
- Go to Installation Settings
- Then select Equipment
- Pick Heat Pump
- Then O/B Reversing Valve
- Malfunctioning Control Board
The reverse valve setting problem can easily be corrected by simply switching the current setting to the opposite. If the problem doesn’t stop, you might want to go back to your thermostat wiring and verify that all wires are in order.
2) Wrong Thermostat Wiring (A common cause for any Ecobee cooling problem)
Wrong thermostat wiring could be the reason your Ecobee is heating instead of cooling. If you recently changed or upgraded your thermostat, it’s a good idea to double check your thermostat wiring.
To verify your thermostat, do this:
- Pull off your ecobee from the wall
- Ensure that your Y1 terminal has a wire connecting to it and the same wire is connecting to the Y terminal at your furnace control board.
If you are using a heat pump and not a conventional system, ensure that the O wire goes into the correct terminal (O/B) terminal. A common mistake many homeowners make is put the O wire on the W1 terminal.
It’s worth noting that the W1 terminal is for use with conventional systems while the O/B is for heat pumps. But if your heat pump has auxiliary heat, it can have a W2 wire connected to a W1 terminal of your Ecobee.
On other thermostat brands, the O wire (orange in color) is connected terminal labelled W on one side and O or O/B on the other side.
Not sure whether you have a heat pump or conventional system? You can verify whether you have a heat pump or not by checking on your thermostat if there is:
- A wire in the O/B or if w2 wire is connecting W1 terminal on Ecobee terminal (for a heat pump with aux heat). This O wire is typically orange and is for the reverse valve. This is an indication that you have a heat pump.
- A white wire going into any terminal in AUX/E. This wire if for your auxiliary heating. If you don’t have wires in theses terminals, then you probably have a conventional system.
3) Problems With the Reverse Valve
Another thing that could make your Ecobee to blow heat on cool setting is a reverse valve that is stuck in one position. Although this is rare, it happens often than thought.
A reverse valve in your heat pump is a small device that reverses the flow of the refrigerant so that your heat pump can heat your home when you need heat and can also cool when you need cooling.
Over the years a reverse valve can wear out and get stuck in one position, either in the cooling or in the heating position. When the valve sticks in the heating, you’ll not have cool air blowing into your home.
To check whether the problem is with the reversing valve try changing your thermostat heat pump settings. Try switching between the two settings, cooling, and heating and if on both setting, there is only heat coming, then you could be dealing with a malfunctioning reverse valve.
Solution
To resolve the problem of the reversing valve, you might want to call a professional who can come and asses the problem. A reverse valve is replaceable although Some HVAC parts might require you to have a license to buy them.
Read also: Sensi Thermostat Not Cooling [Solved]
4) Malfunctioning Control Board
After trying out all the troubleshooting tips above and your system keeps blowing heat on cool, your system control board might need a reset.
A control board is like the brain of your HVAC system. It receives information and instructions from a thermostat and relays them to every other component of your HVAC system.
When the control board malfunctions or dies, this can make it hard to respond to thermostat adjustments on your thermostat. This could be the reason your ecobee is heating instead of cooling.
An irresponsive control board might need a reset for it to start working properly. You can reset your furnace or air handler by tripping the switch that lies near your system (a switch that typically looks light a light’s switch. If you need to reset the whole system, you’ll need to go the circuit breaker and reset the breakers.
Why Is My Ecobee Only Heating?
If your Ecobee is only heating but not working on cooling, it could be due to a few reasons. These include, wrong thermostat wiring, outdoor condenser unit problems.
If you are heating with a heat pump, you could have a reverse valve that is stuck in the heating position. So how could these issues make your ecobee to work only in heat mode?
Let’s briefly look at each of these issues below:
1) Thermostat Wiring
If your Ecobee is only heating but not cooling, then there could be a problem with your thermostat wiring. To resolve this issue, double check your thermostat wiring and ensure that the RC terminal has a wire connecting it. Ensure also that the Y1 terminal is connected to a wire. The Y1 terminal is responsible for engaging the heat pump or ac compressor.
2) Outdoor Condenser Unit
Another reason you have heating only from your thermostat could be that your condenser unit has no power connection.
If you are using a furnace and an air conditioner but your air conditioner has no power connection, your system can’t cool your home, but you can only have heating from your furnace.
Find out if your air conditioner has power connection. If it isn’t, look at the power switches and reset any tripped circuit breakers.
3)Malfunctioning Reverse Valve
Are you using a heat pump for your cooling and heating? A heat pump’s reverse valve switches between heating and cooling. If this device is stuck in the heating position, then you won’t have cooling in home but only heat.
Also read: Luxpro Thermostat Not Turning on AC [Solved]
How Do I Set My Ecobee Thermostat to Cool?
If you want to set your Ecobee to cooling, here are the steps to follow:
- On your thermostat, click on the icon that is there above the temperature reading. If cooling is activate there should be a snowflake icon on display and if heat is active, a flame like icon should display.
- Tapping the icon will take you to options for heat, cooling auto and off.
- To set your thermostat to cool tap the cool option
How Long Do Ecobee Thermostats Last?
Ecobee thermostats can last up to 10 years. But with proper care and maintenance, you can expect and Ecobee to last up to 12 years.
Does Ecobee Thermostat Need C Wire?
If you are using a heat pump for your cooling and heating, the C wire will be required. But don’t worry, even if you don’t have a c-wire, all Ecobee thermostats come with (PEK Power extender kit) that provide the C- wire connection.
However, if you are using separate systems for heating and cooling (furnace and an air conditioner) then a C-wire is not necessary.
Final Thought
We hope that after reading troubleshooting tips for an Ecobee heating instead of cooling, you have found a solution. If not, its perhaps time to call professionals to come and help solve the problem. Thanks for reading.
Reasource: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-JX5jCzSH4
HVAC tech with over 30 years of experience. Retired and doing repair work on the side around Madison County, AL.