About a week ago my HRM started dropping about 30 minutes into a ride. I have a Garmin, which is supposed to last for something like a year with the installed battery. Mine is less than two months old. I bought some conductive gel with it and used that for the first time today. Same problem. Hate to rush out for a new battery if it is an interference issue. Any other suggestions?
See if you can pair it to something else like a cycling computer or the Garmin Connect app. If you can, make sure that something else is shut down before trying again with Zwift. If it’s paired via Bluetooth to another app, it probably won’t pair successfully with Zwift. If it’s paired via ANT+ to a cycling computer that should not prevent pairing it with another device.
Hmm, my laptop is the only device with bluetooth turned on. HRM connects right away when I start Zwift, it just drops later.
I looked at the Garmin link, thanks. I guess I can put the Garmin HRM on, link it to Garmin Connect on my iPad, and see if it drops.
Hi @William_Hosch, Thank you for using this space to let us know your concerns!
Fernanda here, part of the support specialist team at Zwift.
I can understand how frustrating it can be to drop the connection of your HRM during the rides, can I kindly suggest the following:
- Forgot the HRM from your device running the Zwift App, erase the Bluetooth cache, this will perform a fresh re-connection on your next ride.
- Close any other training apps (for example Garmin app) to run except by Zwift, because If a third-party app is running in the background, it may prevent Zwift from detecting your device at some point.
- If using an Apple Device, as the iPad, check that the “Health” app is off this runs in the background and steals the signal of the Heart rate monitor, and affects to broadcast of the information to Zwift.
- Last but not least, can you try to reset the game preferences following these steps and reconnect the HRM?
Please let me know how it goes for you!
I run Zwift on a Windows laptop. How do I clear the Bluetooth cache? Restart Windows?
My iPad doesn’t have Bluetooth turned on. Same with my android cellphone, which runs Zwift Companion app and connects through wifi during my rides.
BTW, my HRM has never been paired with anything but my laptop.
Nevermind, a Google search showed up instructions for clearing my Bluetooth cache.
I updated my Bluetooth drivers and will see how that works on my next ride.
Hi @William_Hosch! I’m Norman from Zwift, thanks for following the tips!
Additionally, I checked your generated logs in-game and found lots of Bluetooth disconnection errors, the source is a device named “HRM-Dual”.
This could be an indicator that the issue might be related to signal interference, I strongly recommend checking this article about Bluetooth Interference and how to reduce it. Know that if you’re not lucky with troubleshooting, you can always contact us if you’d like a hand.
Also, if your HRM worked well in the past, a possibility is that the device has a factory defect. You might be eligible for a warranty replacement, and it wouldn’t harm to get in touch Garmin Support about it.
Thanks, I will first see if updating my Bluetooth drivers fixed the disconnection issues. And yeah, my Wahoo trainer drops pretty often, though it always reconnects. My Garmin cadence sensor never drops and my Garmin HRM was fine until last week.
Zwift is still dropping my HRM at 30 minutes after updating my Bluetooth drivers. Next step, I will try pairing with my Garmin Edge.
Hi @William_Hosch welcome back! I’m Oscar working with Zwift support.
Thanks for following the instructions we sent, it means a lot to us.
I’d like to let you know that took a look at your recent activity on your account and I was able to see once again BLE disconnections, in this case, since you went ahead and updated the Bluetooth and this persists, please contact us and we’ll take a deeper look and provide an one-on-one support
Take care,
Updating my Bluetooth driver did seem to stop my Wahoo Snap On disconnects.
I paired the HRM with my Garmin Edge 25 while I watched a tv show. The Edge will no longer pair with Garmin Connect for some reason. In any case, the Edge shows an average heart rate of 72, which probably means it lost connection, too.
Any suggestions for my HRM dropping?
BTW, tried the chat link. It sent me in a circle back to the start.
Also, I tried Garmin support. No hit when I typed in my issue. And got a message when I tried to use their chat that “Sorry, our online chat is only available for certain devices at the current time.”
Oh, I thought I should mention that I only bought the HRM for Zwift races, and even though the HRM signal dropped on my last race after 30 minutes, I was not disqualified. So, I guess if it works at the start I am ok, lol.
After reading more reviews and looking at some youtube videos, I decided to order a Polar chest strap for my Garmin module. Will arrive tomorrow, and I will try it on my long Saturday ride.
No drops!! Nearly 2 hours trouble free. (Ignore cadence and power bouncing from saddle squirming, lol.)
My Garmin HRM-Dual worked perfectly with a Polar chest strap. Issue solved.