# Smart doorbell wiring



## newbie44 (Jan 21, 2012)

I have to wire up a google nest doorbell to a home with an existing button doorbell. Normally I would expect thermostat type wiring but these guys ran like 24 gauge telephone wire. I know that if I use this thin wire, the battery will probably not charge but I noticed that there are unused 24 gauge wires in the cable. Does it make sense to double up on the wiring? so 2 wires per screw, Im thinking maybe this will help with the voltage drop.


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## A Little Short (Nov 11, 2010)

It depends on how far the transformer is from the Nest. I wired a Ring system a few weeks ago and there was no doorbell existing. I placed a transformer and resistor (have to use one if no present chime/bell) and I used Cat5E and used a pair for each terminal. The Cat5 cable is 24 AWG so doubling it will work fine. Plus, you have an additional 2 pairs for spares!


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## splatz (May 23, 2015)

Yes, doubling up works fine, doubling up will basically cut the voltage drop in half. The voltage drop in a single pair of 24awg is probably less than 10% with a low power device like that, and might be within what the device will tolerate, but it's safer to double up. 

If you want to make it nice, you can strip and crimp two pairs / four wires of 24awg in a single red sta-kon. So put say orange and green in one sta-kon and brown and blue in another. That will perform almost exactly like an 18/2 wire.


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## wcord (Jan 23, 2011)

splatz said:


> Yes, doubling up works fine, doubling up will basically cut the voltage drop in half. The voltage drop in a single pair of 24awg is probably less than 10% with a low power device like that, and might be within what the device will tolerate, but it's safer to double up.
> 
> If you want to make it nice, you can strip and crimp two pairs / four wires of 24awg in a single red sta-kon. So put say orange and green in one sta-kon and brown and blue in another. That will perform almost exactly like an 18/2 wire.


24 awg cross sectional area .205
18 awg cross sectional area .823
Can't get any closer in size than that lol


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## paolosuffridge7 (11 mo ago)

it seems to me there is no point in this, a double wire will not strengthen its work


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## jbc6619 (5 mo ago)

Doubling wire, especially twisted pair like Cat5 is not a good idea. Because of the twist and shielding of the wires their lengths are different and so is there resistance. If you see a transformer for an alarm panel and it is dark brown and looks burned, this is why. Doubling up wires of different resistances causes stress on the transformer and will burn it up eventually. And will also cause the end device like a Ring doorbell to overheat.


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