Surge won't hold a charge

[Marrianne79]

I misplaced my surge when my son was born so it wasn't used for a few months. Now I am trying to charge it & it wont hold a charge. It shows the little lightning bolt next to the battery, but even after being plugged in all night the battery doesn't fill up. When I unplug it, it turns off because its dead. I also tried getting it to connect to my phone while plugged in & that isn't working either. I'm using the same charger that used to work & already did everything suggested in the fitbit article. It's recognizing that its plugged in & is getting power, just not charging the battery. Has anyone else had this problem? is it fixable? Theres no way in hell I'm buying another one, they're too expensive & the band started shredding off after only a few months, I've worn through a few of those decorative covers trying to keep it together.

Also the fitbit online chat is a joke, can't get it to work even though they're supposed to be available right now.

[WendyB]

Sometimes not using for a while can kill the battery depending on how old it is

Please clean the contacts
http://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/My-tracker-s-battery-isn-t-charging/?q=not+chargi...

Then Do a Restart
http://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/1186/?q=restart&l=en_US&fs=Search&pn=1

Also See this thread for charging best practices. If you are not charging it correctly you could be damaging the battery
https://community.fitbit.com/t5/Charge/Fitbit-charge-battery-problems/m-p/1323307#M53291

http://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/1799

If it doesn't help Contact Support
http://help.fitbit.com/?cu=1

[Marrianne79]

I had already tried those suggestions 😞 I contacted customer support this weekend & after a LOOOOONG hold & trying to explain to the rep that no, I can't try re-pairing to my phone because the battery is dead. I even finally followed his instructions to re-install the app on my phone even though it was already up to date, but what my phone has to do with the fitbit not charging I have no idea. He offered me a coupon to buy another. Pfft! No. I loved being able to track my day & sleep, but not going to spend $200 on a watch every year.

[YojanaFitbit]

Hi @Marrianne79, welcome to the Forums! Thanks @WendyB for the suggestions! 

Sorry for the inconvenience that you're having while we're in the way to our main purpose that is to deliver a product that users will find productive and useful. Once again thanks for being part of our family and provide rich feedback to us. Your voice is being heard . We're actively reviewing your responses and providing feedback to our product development team.

Thanks for sharing! 

[BethKoeppen]

Mine won't hold a charge either and it was $250, can't replace the batteries, sucks, I'm never buying another , I'll go with a different brand

[YojanaFitbit · Accepted solution]

Nice to see that you're digging into the Forums @BethKoeppen, let me give you a warm welcome to our Community.

Sorry to hear about the issues you're having with your Fitbit. Have you tried to clean the contacts of your tracker and charger? Clean the charging contacts on the back of your Surge. These contacts can become obstructed by microscopic dirt or debris that prevents them from making a good connection to the charger. Use a toothpick or toothbrush to clean the charging contacts; do not scrape them with anything metal because this may damage the plating and result in corrosion. 

These tips can help you to conserve the battery life of your Fitbit too. If not let me know so I can check your options with our support team.

I'll be waiting for your reply.

[Andi1967]

Hi, this problem is affecting my Surge as well. I decided to resurrect my surge ,needing to get back into my exercising. 

I plug in the charger , it registers that is charging ,  i leave it two hours, come back, within a minute the battery that indicated full is empty ! Is it because i've left it alone for a long time? . I've cleaned the points on the back ,removed any fluff with a few cocktail sticks, it allegedly charges but goes flat rapidly .

[Carole2311]

Same thing is happening with my surge, it turns off as soon as I unplug it, and when plugged it won't even sync with my phone app which is up to date by the way. I also tried to update its software, that won't work either. I think it's dead and I'm not ready to pay for another one to watch it break oneday.

[Hgeyer]

Buy your Fitbit at Costco if you have a membership. They take it back without question for a full refund if you have a problem. Given fitbits long history of charging / band breaking/ syncing issues, this is the route I have gone. I would go Garmin, but I like the friend challenges.

[ltewsjr1]

Mines is doing the exact same thing....  I haven't used mine in about a year.. It fully charges, then dies in 5 minutes... These watches cost too much to not last...

[BethKoeppen]

Exactly, I'm very disappointed, mine was $250!!

[Rocket.Brans]

Sadly Yojana you're saying the same thing over and over.  What are the solutions for battery changes with the Surge?   Does Fitbit expect users to replace the watch every couple of years as consumables and wrist bands wear out?  Surely not!!

[bitbyte]

Amen, Rocket.Brans.

Yojana, here's my error (attached)*.

My Fitbit Surge won't hold its battery charge.

I've been charging it, and my the iPhone FitBit app says it's full, too, after I synch'd it.

The guys at iFixIt/Bad Apple told me that they don't think a new battery would help. They think it's a hardware (chip) problem, but I think it's gotta be a battery problem.

Help!

*Oh, well, you can't actually attach a picture to this post, even though the icon says we should be able to.

Anyway, the error I get is a large outline of a batter, with an exclamation point (!) inside of it.

[LZeeW]

Hello @bitbyte.  You added on to a fairly old thread.  All Li-ion polymer batteries have a lifespan.  The Surge was discontinued in 2017 or so when the Ionic was released.   if your Surge has its original battery, then it might be a battery problem.  That being said, Fitbit put the Surge on its list of Legacy Devices in 2020.  I'm not sure you will ever get it to come back to life.

[bitbyte]

Thank you very much for your time and for your knowledge. That makes sense.
I'll buy a new model.