What To Do If Your Honeywell Thermostat Fan Won’t Turn Off

What To Do If Your Honeywell Thermostat Fan Won't Turn Off

Do you have a thermostat that you use to control the temperature in your house? If so, there is a chance you are using a Honeywell thermostat. Honeywell is one of the oldest companies in this industry, and they have had a significant amount of time to fine-tune their products. Even though their products usually work well, they can still experience problems from time to time. For example, you may be frustrated if your Honeywell fan is not turning off as it should.

There are numerous reasons why your Honeywell thermostat might not turn off. There could be an issue with the sensors, your house may be experiencing extreme temperatures, and there may be a manual override system that is engaged. You need to go through several steps if you would like to stop your Honeywell fan from malfunctioning.

Are you tired of dealing with a Honeywell fan that is running too often? If so, we are here to help you. We have taken a close look at Honeywell thermostats to figure out some of the most common reasons why they don’t work properly. Take a look at the results of our research below, and get your Honeywell fan working again. 

Common Reasons Why Your Honeywell Fan Will Not Turn Off

  • There are several reasons why your Honeywell fan will not turn off as it should. A few possible reasons include: 
  • There might be a problem with the temperature sensor of your Honeywell thermostat. This means that your Honeywell thermostat is thinking it is hot in your house when it is actually not. Therefore, the fan keeps running even though it should shut off.
  • There could also be extreme temperatures in your house. It is possible that your Honeywell thermostat fan is still running because your house is too hot.
  • There could be a manual override system engaged. What this means is that your Honeywell thermostat has been told manually to keep running the fan even though your house might be cold. (The Fan icon would show in the ON position).
  • You should take a look at the settings on your thermostat to see what they are currently set to. There is a chance that your Honeywell thermostat is set to cool your house to an extreme degree.
  • There could be a manual switch to turn on the fan. If this is set to “on” instead of “auto,” this could be the reason why your fan is still running.

Fortunately, there are solutions to address all of these issues. It is time to take a closer look at the steps you need to follow if you want to fix your Honeywell thermostat fan.

Materials Needed To Address a Honeywell Thermostat Fan

If you would like to fix your Honeywell thermostat fan, there are a few materials required. These include:

  • First, you need to make sure you have access to your thermostat. Make sure you know where the thermostat is located, and be prepared to possibly take it apart.
  • You need to have a screwdriver with you in case you need to unscrew something.
  • You should also have your manual with you so you can figure out where the individual parts of your thermostat are located.
  • You may also need to have some cleaning solutions to clean your thermostat accordingly.
  • You could have a thermometer with you to cross-check this with the thermostat of your Honeywell thermostat. 

Once you have collected all of these materials, it is time to get to work troubleshooting your thermostat. What are some of the steps you need to follow if you want your Honeywell thermostat to behave appropriately? 

5 Steps To Fix a Honeywell Fan That Will Not Turn Off

The fan controlled by your Honeywell thermostat is responsible for transferring hot and cold air from the thermostat system to your home. If the thermostat senses that the target temperature has been reached, the fan should turn off.

If that’s the case for you, here’s how to troubleshoot the issue.


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Step 1: Reset Your Honeywell Thermostat

The first thing you should try is to reset your Honeywell thermostat. That way, you may be able to remove any improper commands from your thermostat, getting it to start working again.

Here we’re talking about a quick power reset, not a full software reset to factory settings. Don’t do the latter unless you’re confident enough to ‘reinstall’ the thermostat’s settings.

To reset your Honeywell thermostat, you should start by pushing the off button. That way, you can turn off your thermostat completely. Then, you may want to use a small object to help you open the battery door to remove the batteries.

After this, you should cut the power via your circuit breaker. Your thermostat is typically powered via the air handler or furnace, so turn that off and it should disable the thermostat completely.

The function of powered by batteries or by the HVAC system itself will vary depending on your thermostat’s model and age.

Give it a few minutes, then turn it all back on again.

You should give the Honeywell thermostat a few minutes to boot up again. Then, see if the fan turns on again. If the fan does not turn on, this is a sign that your Honeywell thermostat is probably working properly.

Hands changing thermostat batteries
Resetting a Honeywell thermostat by removing the batteries is a simple solution that could fix the issue.

For more specific reset and troubleshooting instructions, check your thermostat’s manual.

Don’t have it to hand? Don’t worry. We’ve got a great guide to finding any manual online (for free).

Step 2: Take a Look at the Controls

If your Honeywell thermostat is still running the fan too often, then you may need to take a closer look at the controls. There are probably several options available. When you find the setting for the fan, you should see an off switch, an on switch, and an auto switch. You probably want your fan set to the auto switch. Make sure the switch is set to this setting.

If you set your thermostat to the off position, it will keep the fan off entirely. This means that the fan will never run. In contrast, if the switch is set to the on setting, this means that your fan is going to run constantly. This could be the reason why your fan will not turn off. 

You want your fan to run only when the house is not at a target temperature. Therefore, make sure you have the switch set to the auto setting. This should keep the fan from running when it should not, but it will also keep the fan running when it should.

Newer models also have a ‘CIRC’ setting. This stands for circulation, and it will turn on a fan to move the air around your home even on days where you’re not using any heating or cooling.

If this is what’s bugging you, you should be able to disable it via the settings. You’ll need to find your manual for that – if you don’t have one to hand, check out our guide to finding manuals here.

Step 3: Look at the Temperature Settings of the Thermostat

After this, you should take a look at the temperature settings of the thermostat if the fan is still not operating as it should. If the fan is still running too often, take a look at the temperature to which your thermostat has been set. 

For example, if the thermostat has been told to cool the house to an unusual temperature, the fan is going to keep running in an effort to reach that temperature. Therefore, enter the thermostat settings of your Honeywell thermostat. You should be able to figure out how to do this based on your manual.

Then, make sure the temperature settings are reasonable. If the temperature settings are not appropriate, this could be the reason why the fan is running so often. You may need to adjust the temperature settings if you want the fan to stop running constantly. 

Hand setting thermostat temperature
Make sure to set the thermostat’s temperature to a reasonable value, otherwise the fan will keep running constantly.

Step 4: Check the Temperature Sensors

There is also a chance that your temperature sensors may not be working as they should. Your temperature sensors are responsible for telling the Honeywell thermostat what the temperature of the room is. If the sensors are not working appropriately, your Honeywell thermostat may feel like the room is hot when it is actually not. 

Therefore, you should get a digital thermometer. Then, use the digital thermometer to figure out what the temperature of the room is. After this, compare this to the digital reading of your Honeywell thermostat. If the two numbers are the same, this is a sign that the temperature sensors of your Honeywell thermostat are working properly.

On the other hand, if your digital thermometer is not reading the same temperature as your Honeywell thermostat, this is a sign that the Honeywell thermostat sensors are not working as they should. You will need to use the manual to figure out what type of sensors you need for your Honeywell thermostat.

Then, you may need to compare the price of the sensors to the price of a new thermometer.

Unfortunately for this case it may be easier to replace the entire thermostat. 

Step 5: The Wiring System of Your Honeywell Thermostat Is Not Proper

Finally, if you have found the temperature sensors are still working as they should, there could be a problem with the wiring system of your Honeywell thermostat. Take a look at the manual to see how the wires are supposed to be laid out in the back of your thermostat. Then, remove the back cover of your thermostat to take a look at how the wires are laid out.

Even though you may be able to tell that something is wrong, you might not be able to fix it. If you need to do anything with the wires of your Honeywell thermostat, you need to reach out to an electrician who can help you. That way, you can reduce your chances of getting injured or damaging your Honeywell thermostat further.

Fix Your Honeywell Thermostat

These are a few steps you need to follow if you are looking for a way to troubleshoot your Honeywell thermostat. You want your fan to run to keep your house cool, but you do not want the fan to run inappropriately. Otherwise, your utility bills could go up significantly.

You should take a look at the fan setting, the temperature settings, the sensor readings, and the wires in the back of the thermostat. You may also want to try resetting your thermostat to see if this fixes the issue. If you ever have any issues working on your Honeywell thermostat, you may want to reach out to a professional who can help you. You may be able to get the thermostat working again more quickly, and you can reduce the chances of getting hurt or damaging the thermostat. 

I've been helping homeowners with appliance repair since 2016. Starting out as an enthusiastic amateur, I've since worked with many Appliance, HVAC, and DIY experts over the last 7+ years. My mission is to help fix your appliances and prevent future issues - saving you stress, time, and money. Visit my author page to learn more! Read more
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