Charge 4 is tracking too many floors

[Ralpher]

My Fitbit charge 4 is overestimating my stair climbing.  Can that be corrected?

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[LizzyFitbit · Accepted solution]

Hi @Ralpher, welcome. It;s great to see a new face around.

Before anything else let me explain that your Charge 4 has an altimeter which is a sensor that calculates altitude based on atmospheric pressure to track your floors. However, it may give you credit for extra floors while doing everyday tasks such as opening doors, driving, AC, or riding elevators or escalators, or from abrupt weather and atmospheric pressure changes. Exposure to excess moisture can also result in extra floors.

While there isn't an option to remove those floors, my best suggestion is to manually log a driving activity to negate those details. Additionally, you can restart your Charge 4 to refresh its performance, wear it snug on your wrist and monitor its behavior.

[pickinrick]

What do you mean by “manually log a driving activity”?

[Hex5000]

I have the same issue. It worked perfectly for me when I got it then one day it's started over counting the stairs by about 10 times what I actually do. I have reset device but it did nothing. I wish this is something fitbit can fix soon.

[SunsetRunner]

@LizzyFitbit I added a driving activity (per your suggestion) at the same time that my extra floors were added, but this didn’t get rid of the extra floors. Even after closing the app and refreshing. I’m getting extra floors added while in bed and sitting at a table. Is the company doing anything about this issue? It wasn’t happening when I was using the Charge 2, only with the Charge 4 it’s a problem.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @pickinrick @Hex5000 and @SunsetRunner Welcome to the Community Forums.

@Hex5000 and @SunsetRunner Thanks for trying the suggestions from my post. I understand how important this data is for you and I'm sorry that you're having this experience. Because your Charge 4 continues counting too many floors on its own, I'd suggest you to get in touch with our Support team so they can evaluate your tracker's behavior and provide you with a solution. Please click here to get connected with them via chat or phone.

@pickinrick Thanks for joining this thread. About your question, by manually log a driving activity I meant to log that activity, which isn't step-based, directly on the Fitbit app to override your data. The link hyperlinked above will take you to a help article which describe the steps to do this process.

[joytown]

Same here. I'm 50 something (active but not tremendously athletic) and live in a single story house; yet I routinely clock in 25-50 floors a day. I have received the rollercoaster badge- that's 125 floors in a day (the empire state building has 106 floors). I've tried rebooting. I'm hoping it corrects with the new update...

[Ralpher]

I just got the hot air balloon badge (for services unearned!)…

[LizzyFitbit]

@joytown Welcome to the Community Forums. @Ralpher It's good to see you around.

Thanks for taking the time to troubleshoot your Charge 4. I'm sorry those amounts of floors are affecting your data. Because the suggestions posted above didn't help, I'd recommend contacting our Support team and share the steps tried so they can look into this matter, and bring you back on track. You can get connected with them via chat or phone by clicking here.

Have a great day.

[sherryow]

Same issue. The last 3 days it’s logged 172, 249 and 128 floors climbed. Not sure why. I re started the unit on the second day and still recording high. How can this be fixed? 

[LizzyFitbit]

Welcome, @sherryow. It's good to see you here in the forums.

Thanks for letting me know that your Charge 4 is having this behavior, as well for restarting it prior to posting. Given this situation, please get in touch with our Support team and share every step tried so they can evaluate your options, and bring you back on track. You can get connected with them via chat or phone by clicking here.

See you around.

[illest23]

I figured I would chime in as well. My charge 4, which I’ve own less than a year, also counts way too many floors. I maybe climb 3-4 in a day but it counts well above that most days. My floor count last week was 897 floors! I’ve managed to get the space ship achievement because of these errors.

I have performed numerous resets but nothing works. My charge 4 did not always act this way. It seems to have started a month or so ago, after an update. 

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @illest23. Welcome on board.

Thanks for joining this thread and for every step tried prior to posting. I'm sorry your Charge 4 is overcounting floors and if you've reviewed the information posted above, I'd recommend to get in touch with our Support team so they can evaluate your tracker's behavior and provide you with further assistance. Please click here to get connected with them via chat, and make sure to share the steps you've tried.

[hajenius]

I have had this with several charges always broiugh them back to the store, have always gotten a new one!

[gavinwells]

Hi Lizzy
I used Fitibit 2 from 2017 to the end of last year and it counted floors pretty well - averaging 10--20 a day, which was about right. In January I got a Charge 4. Now my floors regularly show over 100 a day, and Im still doing 10-20, probably less since lockdown means working from home and not using the stairs at work.`

Manually overwriting these each day as you suggest above seems a poor response for a product flaw.

How can I fix my fitbit please?
Thanks
Gavin

[SunsetRunner]

Gavin, manually overwriting the floors per the suggestion above does not
work. The response I have received from Fitbit customer service was
[nothing]. The same response I got when I told them the app had changed the
nutritional data for almost every custom food I created. Same response to
the issue of not wanting the location services to be always on just for the
app to function at a minimally acceptable level. Same response to the
charging dock not working properly. Same response to the mystery tile on my
profile that hasn’t loaded in… ever. I have always been told, “We will
forward your issue to our technical team, and they will respond to your
issue via email “. I have yet to receive a response to any of my technical
issues regarding the app or my malfunctioning Charge 4. This is how Fitbit
treats its customers and supports its product.

[gavinwells]

Thank you.  I finally got a response - they are replacing my fitibit 4 for free, or offering me 50% of any other fitbit except the 5.

In light of the number of issues reported with the 4 I am disinclined to get another.

I appreciate your comments.  Good luck

[gavinwells]

They sent me a replacement charge 4 - and guess what...on a lazy sunday yesterday i climbed 67 floors....  no wonder i'm tired when i wake up, i must be sleep walking 😂

I'm going back to customer services

----------------

Worse to come...i just spoke to Michael gave him the case number for last year's issue which resulted in me getting a replacement.

He said that in their system the issue is recorded as "display not working". I explained this was not the case - it was inaccurate floor and step counts. It seems fitbit recorded my issue as something else.  Perhaps because they don't want to admit that Charge 4 is flawed and has issues in its floor count?

[Ruthy3]

This and the advice I received  from tech support  does not solve the problem.  My fitbit  counts floors  when I'm in bed or sitting  watching television.  There is clearly  a major design fault.  I shall not be buying  another Fitbit ...

[gavinwells]

My latest conversation with the Fitbit chat

I said 

Hi 

On 20th September last year I contacted you to explain that my fitbit was counting the wrong number of floors, case ref.

In October you replaced the fitbit.

Last week I contacted you again to explain that my new fitbit is doing the same. You checked the previous case ref and told me it was reported as the display not working. I told you that this was wrong, as my comments on the fitbit forum “Charge 4 is tracking too many floors” on 31st August last year show.  Your representative on that channel Lizzyfitbit, said I should overwrite the activity. Her message was:

“Before anything else let me explain that your Charge 4 has an altimeter which is a sensor that calculates altitude based on atmospheric pressure to track your floors. However, it may give you credit for extra floors while doing everyday tasks such as opening doors, driving, AC, or riding elevators or escalators, or from abrupt weather and atmospheric pressure changes. Exposure to excess moisture can also result in extra floors.

 While there isn't an option to remove those floors, my best suggestion is to manually log a driving activityy to negate those details. Additionally, you can restart your charge 4 to refresh its performance, wear it snug on your wrist and monitor its behavior”

Many people on that chat forum told her this didn’t work, and was a flaw, and she stopped commenting.

So last week I reset my fitbit, and last Thursday it counted 45 floors, when I was at work all day, and my daily average is 12.

This seems like a flaw with the Charge 4. Please will you fix mine, or replace it with something that is NOT the charge 4?

Thanks

The fitbit chat desk said:

I appreciate the information that you provided. I’ll be glad to assist with your Fitbit Charge 4 that has a floor counts issue.  I appreciate you performing the troubleshooting steps prior to contacting us. With this, may I confirm if the restart that you have followed is the same steps as the steps on this article: help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/1186

I confirmed that i had done this....

They said - Thank you so much for waiting. With this, I'd like to let you know that I will be reaching out to our higher level of support and check on this, once I get an update I will be contacting you back through email.By the way, you will be receiving a customer satisfaction survey after this chat. I will appreciate any feedback to improve my service.

I said - that's what your colleague said last week and I haven't heard anything yet.

Riza Jean typed - 

• No worries, I'll make sure that I'll be contacting our team for a follow up about this, and rest assured that I'll get back to you via email within the day.
• For your reference, kindly save this case number.
• By the way, you will be receiving a customer satisfaction survey after this chat. I will appreciate any feedback to improve my service.
• In the meantime, will there be anything else I can help you with today?
  
  I will update this thread

Moderator Edit: Merged replies and personal info removed