Vivint Thermostat Battery (Life time | Replacement | Warnings )

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Written By Dinu Sri

Dr H. T. D. S. Madusanka is an electronic expert with 10 years of experience, involved in the research and development of SMART HOME systems.

So you own a Vivint panel and want to know more about its batteries? You want to understand the battery’s functions, battery’s capacity, and how to replace the battery.

Well, if these are the questions you want the answers to, then keep reading. While this post is mainly about Vivint’s Thermostat’s battery, we’re going to talk about other batteries and their functions as well. 

Actually, we’re going to kick things off with the batteries. What type of batteries is in the Vivint thermostat, how many of them are there, and what is their purpose?

We’ve got a lot to cover, so let’s start.

Are batteries required for the Vivint panel to work?

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The answer to this question is a big astounding YES. The reason is without the right batteries, the Vivint panel can’t perform any of its functions.

The battery provides the energy the system needs to perform its functions. Without the battery, the panel can’t get the energy that it needs to operate, therefore it doesn’t operate. 

There are various types of batteries that are used in the Vivint panel, and all of them serve different purposes. Because all of them serve a different purpose, each of them is essential.

In this section, we’re going to talk about all types of batteries that are required in a Vivint’s panel. We’ll tell the function of each battery as well.

This section is going to be interesting, so pay close attention, because this is important. Ok, without further ado, let’s talk.

  • Three AAA batteries: These batteries provide energy to the smoke detector.
  • Four AA batteries: These are required for the door-lock feature.
  • R123A or DL123A battery: Any one of these batteries will do the job. They are used for detecting carbon monoxide (CO).
  • Two CR2032 batteries: These batteries are used for sensors. One is used for the window sensor and the other is used for the door sensor.
  •  One CR123A battery: This battery is used for providing energy to the motion sensor.
  • One CR2 battery: The purpose of this one is to provide energy for the recessed door function.
  • Two CR123A batteries: These batteries are used for the glass sensor. If the glass gets damaged, this feature will pound the alarm.

These were all the batteries that are essential for the Vivint panel to work properly. Now that we’ve talked about what type of battery we need and for what purpose, let’s talk about whether your Vivint’s thermostat has a low battery.

Why does my Vivint thermostat say low battery?

Before we talk about how to check whether the Vivint thermostat has a low battery and what to do about it, let’s talk about why a low battery is bad.

The reason why a low battery is bad is that your thermostat won’t work properly. It’ll either won’t provide good cooling/heating or it would keep going to the delay cycle after every few minutes.

In this section, we’re not going to talk much about the delay cycle. Instead, we’re only going to explain it in simple words. So if you’re interested in finding out more about the delay cycle, read this post.

So, in simple words, here is what the delay cycle means. If your thermostat only runs for 1-2 minutes and then gets turned off for about 3-5 minutes, it means your thermostat is experiencing the delay cycle.

Now, with that said, let’s talk about how to identify whether your thermostat has a low battery or not.

To identify whether your thermostat has a low battery or not, take these 3 steps:

  1. Check whether the power is out
  2. Check if the panel is plugged in
  3. See if the outlet has power

You can check if the power is out by turning on the air conditioner. If it doesn’t even turn on, it means the power is out.

See if the power cable of the thermostat is attached to the panel. If the power cable is detached completely or is not attached properly, it’s an indicator that the thermostat’s battery isn’t getting the energy it needs therefore it’s low.

If the outlet isn’t working, then the battery of the thermostat can’t get the energy it needs. To see whether your outlet is working or not, do this.

Attach some other equipment with the outlet. Such as your phone or laptop charger. If they’re working on this outlet, it means the outlet is fine, if it’s not the case, then you need a new outlet.

Now you’ve identified whether the battery is low or not. Also, if the battery is low, you’ve identified the cause behind it so you can fix the problem.

There is one more thing to note, though. This sign has to be there otherwise the battery isn’t low and something else is wrong with your Vivint thermostat. In such a case, you should contact customer support.

Now back to the sign. The sign is a beep. If the battery is low, your thermostat must be beeping. Alright, now you can know for sure whether your thermostat’s battery is low or not.

If your thermostat battery is low, you’ll need to recharge it. But still, you’ve got to deal with the beeping otherwise it won’t go away for hours until the battery of the thermostat is nearly charged to %50.

So how do you stop the beeping?

How do I turn off Vivint’s low battery?

Here is how. By taking these two steps, you’ll stop the beeping immediately.

  1. Go to the home screen of your Vivint panel and tap the alert button on the middle left of the screen.
  2. Tap on the low battery alert to read the full message.

After tapping the low battery alert button, the panel will take about one minute to read the full message and once it’s done, the beeping will stop.

If for some reason your Vivint thermostat battery isn’t charging, the thermostat will start making the beeping noise again after an hour or two.

How to change the Vivint thermostat’s battery?

Changing the battery of your Vivint thermostat is a simple process and takes only about 2-3 minutes of your time. The process requires low effort and can be easily done by anyone who has read this section.

So are you interested in changing the battery of your Vivint thermostat, so you can live a life of comfort and security? Awesome!

Before we get into the process, let’s talk about what you need. You need only two items to complete this process successfully. Here are the names of both items:

  1. Phillip’s screwdriver
  2. Non-rechargeable alkaline AA batteries (if all your batteries are empty, then you’ll need 4 AA batteries).

If you’ve got everything ready, let’s start.

Step 1: Unmount the thermostat. This is very simple. Grab the thermostat from the top and bottom with the tip of your fingers. Make sure to be gentle, otherwise, you risk hurting the mount.

Now slightly push the thermostat and then lift it up until it’s completely detached from the mount.

Step 2: Grab the screwdriver. Move the thermostat’s front side backward and then unscrew all 4 screws. First, do the upper ones and when you’re finished, unscrew the bottom ones.

Step 3: Take out the old batteries. Only remove the batteries that are empty. If all 4 batteries are empty, take all of them out and insert the new ones.

It’s important to make sure that the new batteries are positioned correctly. Therefore, double-check that both ends are positioned at the right ends and they sit properly.

If any of them are not sitting firmly, take it out and then put it back again. It’s important to take the battery out because if you try to fix the battery while it’s already sitting inside the thermostat, you risk damaging the heads inside the thermostat that transfer the energy from the battery to the thermostat.

Step 4: Put the screws back on. First the bottom ones and then the upper ones. Doing it in this exact manner is essential.

Step 5: Mount the thermostat. Put it on top of the mount. The front of the thermostat should be facing toward you. Now move it downwards and pull it just a little bit towards yourself. Again, make sure to be gentle, otherwise, the mount can get damaged.

By following this step, your thermostat should start working. If the thermostat still doesn’t work, contact Vivint customer support.

How long does Vivint’s battery backup last?

The backup battery will keep the panel up and running for 4-24 hours. Whether the battery lasts for 4 hours or 24 hours depends on 2 factors.

How much is the battery charged? And how much stuff you’re running? If the battery is fully charged and you’re using everything, you possibly can on the Vivint panel, the backup battery will easily last about 8-9 hours.

If the battery is only half charged and you’re running all the appliances, then it’ll only last about 4 hours. If the battery is fully charged and you’re not running a ton of appliances, it’ll run for about full 24 hours.

Vivint thermostat shows low battery even after replacing the new battery

There are two reasons behind this problem. Either the second battery is not charged or something is wrong with your thermostat.

In the first case, make sure to keep the battery charged so the next time you won’t run through this problem. If the second case is your problem, then contact Vivint customer support.

Conclusion

By reading this post, you’ve become really familiar with Vivint batteries. You’ve become familiar with how to change the battery, how many batteries and what type of batteries are used in the Vivint system, what is the purpose of each battery, and much, much more.

We hope you’ve found this post helpful, if you haven’t let us know in the comment section why and we would love to help you out. If you have found it helpful, feel free to share it on social media so more people could benefit from it.