Polar FT7 is making me mad!!!!!

tnkhart

I guess the battery keeps dying. I'm constantly getting a "check transmitter" message during my workouts. I now have a collection of 3 straps and 3 transmitters that I've gone through. I guess it's time to try something different, something that works!!

theresao68

I just bought a Polar FT4. I hope I don't start having the same problem. It is been good so far. My daughter and son in law have the Garmin. They love it.

TodayYesterday

I had the sam problem - I think mine is a FT7 too. Changed batteries, washed the strap regularly. Very frustrating. Stopped using it.

xxnellie146xx

It's not the battery. You need to shift/move/readjust the placement of the transmitter. It's not reading your heartrate and it's alerting you.

tnkhart

I've tried that and unfortunately it hasn't helped. It really was fantastic while it worked.

sarahg148

That would happen every once in a while with mine...don't know why. I noticed that when I moved the battery off to my side (against my ribs) the reading was off. Once I moved it back to the center of my chest the readings were once again accurate. I've had the Polar HRM for about 5 years now or so. When I got my latest one, I actually read the info that came with it. Turns out I killed my last one by letting the chest strap soak for too long and it killed the battery attachments on the strap and the watch wasn't receiving the info from the battery on the strap. I don't know if that's what you're doing or not...but now just rinse the strap and blow off the excess water in the battery holes and let it air dry.

tnkhart

I think we've pretty much just wipped ours down with a wet cloth and let dry. We may have done what you did Sarah. The H7 is their newest product and looks very interesting.

meshashesha2012

if you're sure the battery is fine then i also agree with checking the strap placement and tightness. i found the strap picks up reading best when it's very snug against my skin. the only problem is that the band stretches as i work out.

klbaierwalter

Oh no! I hope that doesn't happen to mine :-( I absolutely LOVE my FT7! I had issues the first two workouts because I tried to put my strap under my sports bra and my sports bra would shift, and the little transmitter would come unsnapped from the strap. Once I realized it, I didn't have any problems. So I'm sure that's not what happened to yours as you are a man and I highly doubt you are wearing a sports bra :-P

karint74

I have a Polar FT4, and my readings started getting screwy when the weather got cold and dry. The electrodes are having a hard time reading the signal because it's too cold and dry to get/stay sweaty enough, and static electricity also interferes with the signal. I bought a cream you can use to improve conductivity. Seriously, such a thing exists. Today was my third day using it, and it solved the problem--no more readings of 00, "check transmitter!" or 208+, or freezing on one number forever even when you up your pace. Wrote a blog post about it here:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/karint74/view/hrm-screwy-this-fixed-it-487932

Hope this helps!

<edited for typo>

azrrt76

I have a Polar FT4, and my readings started getting screwy when the weather got cold and dry. The electrodes are having a hard time reading the signal because it's too cold and dry to get/stay sweaty enough, and static electricity also interferes with the signal. I bought a cream you can use to improve conductivity. Seriously, such a thing exists. Today was my third day using it, and it solved the problem--no more readings of 00, "check transmitter!" or 208+, or freezing on one number forever even when you up your pace. Wrote a blog post about it here:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/karint74/view/hrm-screwy-this-fixed-it-487932

Hope this helps!

<edited for typo>

Thansk for that info! I'll have to try it. I have the FT4 and its driving me nutso. I keep getting the same messages. Its very distracting and for the money I paid, I want it to work!

alyssa92982

I'm going to also check out your blog I have the FT4 also and it reads 00 I've done all the trouble shooting too:( very frustrating

Mrc1974

Oh I hope this is not the sign of things to come, I have the FT7 and I love it! I don't put the strap under running water, I place water on my finger tips and wet the material that way )

Fingers crossed that your FT7 recovers from its miss behaviour and mine holds out!

JAT74

Make sure you've wet the strap enough and also make sure the bit that snaps onto the strap is on properly.

tnkhart

Very interesting Karin. Thank you for that information.

azrrt76

I ordered some of that "buh-bump" cream....I sure hope it fixes the problem!

semi75

One thing to add for those like me that didn't read the manual:

THE BATTERY WILL DIE OR NOT TRANSMIT CORRECTLY in a couple days if you do not unsnap the transmitter from the chest piece as soon as you are done. It took a lot or cursing and the third battery before I realized you have to do that. About every third day I would start loosing signal all the time and then I realized my mistake. OOps. It works fine for me now.

wellbert

are you wearing technical fabric? (wicking)
it's not compatible with the polar HRM because of the static charge it generates.

tnkhart

It's on bare skin. No shirt. I just ordered Spectra 360. It's supposed to help the connetions and is used by many hospitals for their equipment. We shall see!!!!

peterdt

buy another one... return the old one that is not working.

PennStan

Just bought an FT7 from Amazon Saturday and waiting for delivery. To do: 1. read instructions.