Nest Hello: UK Installation With No Chime into uPVC Door Frame (Smart Video Doorbell)

A while ago I made a quick video about the Nest Hello doorbell (affiliate link) from Google, criticising the fact that it was aimed solely at consumers who already had a wired doorbell at their front door because if you don’t have a wired doorbell, then the officially recommended route from Google is to pay for a pricey Pro installation. In the video, I said that they should either include an appropriate transformer in the box, or sell an official one separately.

The video certainly divided opinion with lots of… lively… discussion in the comments and I think it’s fair to say quite a few people missed the point I was making — yes, if you know what you’re doing (like I and many others do) it’s easy to wire up the right transformer but if you’re not confident with electronics then your only other option is to buy a 3rd party transformer from an unknown supplier and it’s quite reasonable (I think) to be cautious about that especially on a gadget that’s certainly not cheap. And that was my point — why not just make it easier for the average consumer to make use of this product via official routes without having to pay for expensive professional installation?

Since I made that video, Google have actually started selling a certified 3rd party power adapter for it in the USA, but there’s still no such official accessory in the UK. So in the video above, which is specifically aimed at the UK and Ireland but will be relevant to many people around the world I’m sure, I’ll be showing you two things; firstly, which transformer to buy and how to wire it up, and then how I fitted my Nest Hello doorbell to my uPVC door frame with the cable running through the inside of the frame itself, hiding all wires from sight for a really nice, neat job.

Follow the steps in this video/guide entirely at your own risk and only if you are experienced, knowledgeable and proficient in the relevant trades. If you are in any doubt, consult a certified professional. This video/guide is provided for information and entertainment purposes only and no responsibility can be taken for any damage, injury or warranty issues.

So my recommendation would be to purchase a generic Bell transformer like this one from Screwfix which costs under £9. The Hello requires a transformer which will provide between 12 and 24V of AC at 8VA of power, so this one is ideal.

Source: https://www.screwfix.com/p/british-general-8-24v-8va-bell-transformer-module/8707p

The transformer is a very simple device which has two non-polarised inputs for the positive and negative from your mains supply, and 4 outputs; 1 for ground and then a choice of 8, 12 or 24V as the outputs. The Nest Hello will happily run at either 12 or 24V, but if we choose to run it at the higher of those two voltages, 24V, then it won’t need to draw as much current so the choice of Bell cable will be less important.

So, to test it out and make sure it all worked I took an old power cable from my box of spares — a 2 core cable is all that’s needed, as there’s no earth connection going into the transformer. If they’re not already exposed, use a wire stripper to strip and twist a short length from each core and then do the same with a length of bell cable on each end.

You can pop these little included cable clips onto the cable if you like, although they’re not required, then we’ll connect the mains cable into the bottom of the transformer, making sure the wires are in fully with no exposed copper visible, and connect the bell wire into the top of the transformer at the 0 and 24V contacts.

Then it’s just a case of connecting the other end of the bell wire to the device itself. Again, the connections aren’t polarised so it makes no difference which you connect to which.

With that done, we can connect to the mains power and the Nest Hello boots up just fine. You can then skip through most of the setup process in the Nest app after you’ve scanned the QR code on the back, as it guides you through integrating into an existing hard-wired setup with a chime. But if there’s no chime, then there’s nothing to setup and it’s just a very simple wiring like you see here.

Now if you go down the proper Bell transformer route, then you’ll want to mount that transformer somewhere properly, especially as the connections going into it are live so little (and big!) fingers need to stay away. Depending on the location of your fusebox you might be able to mount it in there and feed straight from the mains, or if like me your consumer unit is miles away from the front door anyway, a little 1–2 way transformer enclosure like this is a great option as it can be securely wall mounted and kept out of the way and out of sight. Inside it has a short rail just big enough for the one transformer and the top screws in place keeping everything secure. Punch-out holes at the top and bottom allow you to thread the cables in and out of it and I mounted mine high up in the corner of the porch, and the black cable you see there was swapped out for a while cable which blends into the wall better, and runs down here to be hard-wired into the back of this plug socket. That way, it can’t be turned off accidentally — but obviously make sure you turn the power off before doing that, and only do so if you’re competent with electrics.

Fitting the Nest Hello Doorbell in a uPVC Door Frame

Now things started to get really complicated for me as I have a porch with a UPVC door frame and I wanted to mount the doorbell with the cables completely invisible from the outside to keep it looking as tidy as possible.

Now before anyone jumps on me in the comments for drilling into a uPVC frame, remember this is on the outside of a porch, with a second “outside” door before you get in the house, so any potential concerns about reducing its structural integrity aren’t going to negatively impact home security at all. And, the warranty on this frame is so far gone it’s but a spec in the distance…!

I started by removing the upper Door Keep to get a look inside the frame, which is obviously plastic on the outside but is metal on the inside. Poking this flexible curtain rail up I could get a feel for the inside of the frame and it confirmed that the top side was sealed. I couldn’t drill into the top without taking the roof off my porch so I opted to drill a small hole near the top, and was pleasantly surprised to find there was no metal on the internal side so after drilling that hole I could poke the cable right through and it appeared there. So that half of the cabling operation was easy!

For the wire’s route from inside the frame to the external side, I first marked out the location of the new doorbell, just below my old one, took a deep breath and drilled the first hole through the plastic. I then tried to thread a cable in and up… and to my disappointment but no surprise, confirmed that it was in a different internal chamber than the bits at the other side. So, it was time to switch to a metal drill bit and cross my fingers before continuing to tunnel through my door frame. In the end, I had to go through not 1 but 2 metal sections but after I’d done that I was able to poke the hook in and up and it appeared inside the chamber behind the Door Keep!

So, now that I had the hook poked all the way from the outside side, up and into the chamber inside the frame I was able to hook it over the cable and secure in place with some electrical tape, then I pulled it through to the outside. So the cable now runs in behind where the doorbell will go, through the two holes in the metal structure, up the inside and comes out right at the top on the inside. I sliced through the sealant (which can be easily resealed afterwards) with a Stanley knife so that I could drill another little hole to tuck the cable through ready to run back along the top of the wall to the transformer.

Then all that’s left to do is connect up the doorbell, and we’re done!

So there we have it, a Nest Hello smart wireless video doorbell connected to a UK home with no previous hard-wired connection or chime, and fitted to a UPVC front door running the cables internally inside the door frame to look as neat as possible.