Sometimes, your Alexa routines may not work.
As such, you need to do a reset.
Unfortunately, there is no reset button to refresh Alexa’s memory.
What you need to do is to troubleshoot.
Today, we will show you several problems or causes why Alexa is not listening to you or not performing your routines.
We will also show you how to edit and delete your existing routines and create a new one.
How do I delete a routine?
To delete an Alexa routine, follow the steps below:
- Look for the routine
- Tap on EDIT
- Select the () button, which is on the top-right corner of the interface
- Choose DELETE ROUTINE
Take note that once you delete a routine, you must create a new one if you want the same type of routine.
The deleted routine can no longer be activated.
In addition, you can find the DELETE ROUTINE at the bottom of the interface.
How can I edit my routine?
Follow the same route as you would with deleting, but do not delete the routine.
Instead, go to the specific command inside the routine and edit that.
In addition, you can also tap the plus icon in line with ADD ACTION.
Doing so will allow you to add more activities.
Why are my Alexa routines not working?
There are two primary reasons why your routines are not working.
The first one is that the routine is not enabled.
The second one is that the Echo is not connected to the system.
To troubleshoot, make sure that your routine is enabled.
It is likely that you disabled this in the past, or you accidentally disabled it.
To enable it again, just go to the routines list and then find that specific routine.
Tap the Alexa app, go to the MORE icon and press it.
Tap on ROUTINES. Once you have the list, tap the specific routine that is not working.
Then, check if the routine is enabled or disabled.
For the second reason, we will answer that in the next section.
Another problem that can cause the routine not to work is the command.
Make sure that the thing you are saying matches the trigger phrase that you set in the app.
For example, if you keep on saying “play music,” but the routine trigger phrase is “play my top five music,” it will not work.
To find out, go to the routine list.
From here, you will see the routine that is not working and edit it.
Once you tap the routine’s name, you will see a section that says WHEN.
Underneath that is the trigger phrase.
If your words and your trigger phrase do not match, the routine will not work.
Change the trigger phrase if you want to.
Why did my Alexa stop listening to me?
It is likely that the Echo device you are talking to is not connected to the Alexa system.
You must also connect the Echo device to the specific routine that you want to work.
First of all, make sure that the device is not muted.
If the device is one but muted, it cannot hear you.
To check, just take a look at the light indicator. If it is red, then it is muted.
Here is how to connect the Echo to the routine:
- Launch the Alexa app
- Go to ROUTINES
- Choose the specific routine
- At the bottom, there is a FROM section
- Tap that
From here, you can add or delete devices that will perform this routine.
There is an option that says, “the device you speak to.”
If you choose this, any Echo device that you speak to will perform the routine.
What if they do not work?
If all else does not work, the solution is to delete the routine and create a new one.
In addition, you can check the smart devices and find out if they are still functional.
How do you do this? If you command Alexa to perform a routine, and then this routine works for some appliances but not for one, then that one appliance is no longer working properly.
What you can do is test it independently and see if the smart application still works.
If it does, you must go back to the manual to find out how to enable it with Alexa.
How do you test a routine?
At best, you must test the routines and not assume that they will automatically work. So, to do this, follow the steps below:
- Go to your Alexa app
- Tap MORE and go to ROUTINES
- Tap on the PLAY icon on the routine
If it works, then the issue can be on the trigger phrase, which we discussed earlier. If not, then the other issue can be the Echo device.
Another method you can use is the power off technique.
Sometimes, you need to shut down the Echo device to perform what is called a hard reset.
Just shut it down, wait a few seconds, and then turn it on.
The last thing you can do is unplug the Alexa device from a wall adapter.
Give it around one minute. Then, plug it in again. What this does is that Echo will attempt to reconnect to your WiFi.
Once this is established, the Alexa routines should work again.
After doing all these and they fail, you must do a factory reset on the Echo device, not the Alexa app. Consult Amazon’s manual for this.
Conclusion
Alexa is a complicated system, and it is not unusual for it not to work.
However, this rarely happens, and if it does, the first thing you need to check is the settings and ensure that the device you expect to listen in is connected to your smart appliances.
If all else does not work, you can always delete your routines and replace them with new ones.
It is why we recommend that you do not make a single routine.
The ideal situation is to create several routines for different things you want to do.