Not enough power to Nest doorbell?

[Gwava_oz]

I have a nest doorbell. I installed it at my previous house and worked fine. I took it with me to my new (old construction house). It worked the first night and then died. I figure it was just running off old battery juice.

I decided to upgrade my transformer. I have a multimeter and tested it. 20V at transformer as well as at doorbell. When I press the doorbell the voltage drops below 16V.

My doorbell does not seem to be getting consistent power. The blue ring light at the bottom comes on sporadically then turns off. I also occasionally see the green light at the top, but for the most part both are not coming on, despite the 20V.

I’m not an electrician, but experienced DIYer and am having a lot of difficulty figuring this out.

When connected to the chime, voltage drops when doorbell pushed. I have also tried bypassing the chime but still lights not coming on.

Because I have the consistent 20V when not in use makes me think it isn’t a wiring issue.

Any support would be appreciated. Close to calling my electrician (who is $$$). Thanks.

[mejiacruz]

Hi @Gwava_oz,

I understand that you're experiencing an issue with your Nest Doorbell going offline when the button is pressed. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Based on the troubleshooting you have performed I'll need to ask you to do a test to confim what the issue could be. To try this please temporarily disable the indoor chime. This can help us to determine the issue and get additional information about  your doorbell's performance.

To turn off the indoor chime:

1. Open the Google Nest app.
2. Select your Nest Doorbell.
3. Look for the "Indoor Chime" setting and turn it off.

Please try this solution and let us know if something changes. If the problem persists, please let me know so we can assist you further.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Regards, 
Josh

[Gwava_oz]

Hi, that's not the problem I was having. The unit lights would only come on briefly than turn off. After hours or reading all the forums, updating my doorbell transformer, readjusting the wiring, testing the voltage at all the connection points, I came to the conclusion that the doorbell unit itself was no longer working.  

I used the unit for 1-2 years and then moved and took it with me. I didn't use it/install it for about a year. My guess is the battery died or internal wiring became faulty and it wouldn't work any more. I decided it was garbage and begrudging bought a newer model.