Charge 3 is not tracking heart rate and battery life is draining too quick

[KGPack8508]

My charge 3 stopped tracking heart rate and at the same time, the battery life went to about 10 hours even with no activity.  I have tried restarting and cycling the settings on and off, but still no green light.  Previously, no issues with heart rate tracking and battery was lasting 5-6 days. 

Moderator edit: updated subject for clarity

[NellyG]

Hi @KGPack8508 I will flag your post for a moderators assistance

[MarreFitbit]

Welcome on board @KGPack8508, it's nice to see a new member around! 

I was wondering if you recently updated your Charge 3? If your Fitbit device doesn’t show your heart rate, try the following troubleshooting tips in the order shown. After each tip, view your heart rate to see if you solved the problem.

• Confirm heart-rate tracking is turned on:
  
  • Open the Settings app and find Heart Rate. Make sure Heart Rate is On. 
  • Make sure your device is positioned correctly on your wrist:
    • Tighten the band just enough so it doesn’t slip on your wrist. Your device needs a solid contact with your arm to reliably track your heart rate.
    • Heart-rate tracking may not work with certain accessory bands, especially if they’re loose fitting. Move the band to a slightly different position on your arm—a little higher or a little lower.

In regards to the battery life, I'd recommend restarting your Charge 3 one more time. Then, let your device to run out of battery to charge it again. Keep an eye on it to see how the battery goes. You can also see, Can I improve my Fitbit device's battery life? 

As a side note, we recommend to charge your trackers via the USB port over a wall adapter. However, it is also possible to charge your Fitbit tracker with a UL certified wall adapter. What may actually cause damage to the tracker's battery (either on a computer or a wall adapter) is the charging time, which if excessive over time may damage the battery and therefore cause quick battery drain or prevent the tracker from charging at all. 

Tips to best charge Fitbit trackers are:

• Use only genuine Fitbit charging cables
• Use only UL-certified wall chargers
• Avoid USB battery packs
• Charge at room temperature

For charging purposes, your charging cable can be plugged into any USB power source, including but not limited to:

• A computer
• A Wall A/C to USB adapter, commonly found with smartphones
• A DC to USB adapter (vehicle power port)

Hey @NellyG, thanks for helping out!

Let me know how it goes, I'll be around.

[KGPack8508]

Thanks Marre, for the Heart Rate monitoring, it actually stopped mid day a week and a half ago.  I've been troubleshooting on my own since then. I've restarted multiple times and cycled the monitoring off and back on multiple times with no result. The green light is not working, not simply no good reception of heart rate.  

For the battery issue, I have actually tried the charge and drain method in hopes it would trigger some type of hard reset, still no change there.  I only charge the device through a wall charger.  After charging, I unplug the device and place on the a counter top.  Just sitting there with no activity, it loses about 10% per hour. Again this started suddenly after about 1.5 months with no issue.  I was getting a solid 5-6 days consistently. I will try again, but I have already done it a few times. I unplugged this morning, so I expect it will be dead tonight when I return from work. 

Please let me know if you have any additional suggestions. 

Thank you. 

[MarreFitbit]

Hello there @KGPack8508, thanks for coming back and for proving more details about your experience with your Charge 3.

I went ahead and created a case for you with our Support Team. Someone will reach out to you soon to offer their assistance. Please keep a lookout in your inbox to the email address associated with this account.

Please let me know if there's anything else I may do to assist in the meantime. 

[elkscat]

My Fitbit just started suffering a similar problem on Saturday (it's now Monday). However, in my case the heart rate sensor LEDS quit flashing and I only have a solid red LED and no real time heart rate. At the same time, the battery started draining very fast. Prior to Saturday a charge lasted for almost a week. Now I'm having to charge it twice a day. I've followed all the steps in the Fitbit post listed below. I've drained the battery completely a couple of times since Saturday without trying. I've rebooted it several times using the Settings/About/Reboot and pressing the button while charging reboot. It was full an hour ago and is now at 28%. Something is seriously wrong and my Fitbit Charge 3 is only 8 months old.

[MarreFitbit]

Welcome to the Community Forums @elkscat. Thanks for the steps you've tried so far in order to solve the issue with your Charge 3.

I've created a case to get you in contact with our Support Team about this. They will be able to work with you and review your options. Please keep a lookout in your inbox to the email address associated with this Fitbit account. Someone will be in contact with you soon! 

Let me know if you have any questions present. 

[elkscat]

By 8/21 the Fitbit folks agreed my Charge 3 was toast and are sending me a new one. The online form for ordering the replacement was easy to use. Now awaiting delivery.

[MarreFitbit]

Great news @elkscat! I'm very happy to hear that our Support Team replaced your Charge 3. 

Don't forget that you can set up the new Charge 3 on your currently Fitbit account without losing any previous data by following the steps below: 

1. Tap the Today tab, and tap your profile picture.
2. Tap Set Up a Device.
3. Choose your device and follow the on-screen instructions to continue.

I would like to invite you to visit our Discussions board where you will find great tips and encouragement from other members and if there's anything else I can do for you, please keep me posted!

[Venus49]

I swam with it one once, now I have no heart rate.

[MarreFitbit]

Welcome to the Community Forums @Venus49.

If your Fitbit device doesn’t show your heart rate, try the following troubleshooting tips in the order shown. After each tip, view your heart rate to see if you solved the problem.

• Confirm heart-rate tracking is turned on:
  
  • Open the Settings app and find Heart Rate. Make sure Heart Rate is On. 
  • Make sure your device is positioned correctly on your wrist:
    • Tighten the band just enough so it doesn’t slip on your wrist. Your device needs a solid contact with your arm to reliably track your heart rate.
    • Heart-rate tracking may not work with certain accessory bands, especially if they’re loose fitting. Move the band to a slightly different position on your arm—a little higher or a little lower.

I'll be around, keep me posted.

[pauserob]

Hi

I have had my Charge 3 for a little over 4 months. The heart rate worked fine and the battery generally lasted over a week. Monday (Labor Day), I hiked about 5 hours for over 30,000 steps and that evening, the display was flashing on a lot and the vibrate bumping. I was at over 50% charge and when I went to bed it was down to 17%. I also saw the heart rate was greyed out. I synced with the phone  and saw the heart rate was blank since mid hike. The next morning, there was a picture of the battery, but no percentage. By 9am (which was yesterday), the battery completely died. I didn't have my charger with me so I charged it when I got home last night. This morning it was 84%, now its 60%. I think it will be dead before the end of the day. It sounds like the same problem experienced by several people on this conversation (https://community.fitbit.com/t5/Charge-3/Charge-3-is-not-tracking-heart-rate-and-battery-life-is-dra...). It sounds like the Fitbit solution has been to replace the watch.

In addition to the heart rate not working and battery life draining too quickly, the watch no longer tracks sleep. I have restarted it many times while connected to the charger by holding the button for 8 seconds. I also uninstalled and re-installed the App.

I see fairly quick responses to others that have similar problem when I look back earlier in this conversation. i am a little disappointed that I have not gotten a response in almost 24 hours.

Moderator edit: merged reply

[MarreFitbit]

Hi @pauserob, welcome to the Community Forums. I'm sorry for the late response. I appreciate your efforts in troubleshooting your Charge 3 prior to contacting us.

I was about to create a support case on your behalf, but I've seen you contacted our Support Team after posting here and that they have helped you with this. Please keep an eye on your inbox for updates on your case. 

Let me know if there's anything else I may do to assist you with.

[Virtualsara]

Hi

At about midday today I have suffered the same problem. I do t have any LED lights flashing on the back and my heart rate is not being monitored and my battery life is draining after only half a day! I have tried all the resets recommended and turned heart rate monitor off, then done a reset and turned it back on. Also have cleared all user data and done multiple more resets and still no luck.  My charge 3 is only 9 mo this old and I got for an Xmas present from my family in the UK - but I live in Egypt - so how will I get this fixed or replaced?!

Any help please? Much appreciated! 

[pauserob]

Virtualsara,

Customer support recommended a procedure called long reset, though I tried and it didn't help. They then recommended replacement. Below is the procedure. If it doesn't work, I recommend calling customer support. The warranty period is 1 year if you live in the US

To long restart your Charge 3, please follow the step below:

1. Connect the Charge 3 to the charging cable.
2. While the tracker is plugged into the charging cable, press and hold the button down for 15 seconds.
3. The tracker turns on and shows a battery icon. Two vibrations occur: first a short vibration, then a medium vibration.
4. The tracker turns off.
5. The tracker turns on and shows a progress bar and short vibrations occur. The progress bar completes. Note: A total of seven short vibrations will occur.
6. Remove the tracker from the charging cable. The tracker shuts down.
7. Plug the Charge 3 into the charging cable again.

[Virtualsara]

Hi

Thanks for the advice - but I tried this already and as I said in my post, I live in Egypt, although my Fitbit was bought for me as a gift at Christmas in the UK - I won’t be returning to the UK until next Easter now - so need an alternative resolution to replacing my Fitbit - which btw - cost a lot of money for my son!

Thanks


Sent from my iPhone

[Chan_Nyein]

Spoiler

 Hello, The heart rate sensor of my Fitbit Charge 3 LEDS stopped flashing, before it happened I had noticed a solid red LED light and now it is not measuring heart rate. I also notice that the battery is draining very fast. I tried rebooting the device several times, but still the issue is not fixed. I think something is seriously wrong with my Charge 3. Please suggest me. Thanks in advance. 

[JoBelf]

This has also happened to me today. Tried resetting and nothing works. I need the heart rate monitor as I have heart condition. How do I fix this and why is the battery draining so quickly? 

[elkscat]

Let Fitbit trouble shoot it but they may need to send you a new one.

Sent from my iPhone

[JoBelf]

Thanks for replying. After running itself down v quickly last night I’ve recharged it and heart rate is back! Let’s see how we go with the battery but I think earlier advice was good. Let it run down completely. I left it overnight and then charged in the morn. 🙏🏼