Fix door bell

Q: Our doorbell went quiet a few weeks ago. We enjoyed the silence and reduced soliciting efforts, but our friends complain of sore knuckles from trying to get our attention. So we’d like to get this fixed.
I’m not terrible handy with electrical projects around the house but I suspect this should be relatively simple fix.

A: Doorbells are pretty simple, consisting of a transformer to give 12-16 volts AC, a switch, and the doorbell, with low voltage wire connecting the different components. The circuit looks like transformer->switch->doorbell->transformer. If the transformer doesn’t have power, neither will the doorbell, so make sure you don’t have a tripped breaker in your panel.
Any of the components can go bad, including (but hopefully not) the wiring.

Doorbell switch:Check the voltage to the doorbell switch. You should see voltage if you measure between the two terminals on the button when the button is not pressed. It’s low voltage, so should read about 12-16 volts. If you have voltage there, verify that the voltage goes to zero when you close the switch (by pushing on the button).
If you don’t have voltage at the switch, time to go check the transformer. If you do have voltage at the switch and the button works, time to check the doorbell.

Transformer:Probably in your garage somewhere, on the wall or ceiling. Looks like a small metal block with phone wires going to it. The only exposed terminals on it are low voltage. Check that you have voltage at these. If you don’t, the transformer may be bad. You still want to make sure the transformer itself is getting power. Find the breaker in your breaker panel for the doorbell. Hopefully it’s labeled. If not, carefully (!!!) remove the transformer from the wall and measure the voltage at its input terminals. These are high voltage (120V). If you don’t see 120V, then your problem is hopefully a tripped breaker. If you do see 120V, find the breaker that supplies it and kill the power. With power off, disconnect the transformer and go buy a new one just like it. Note how the wires are connected.

Doorbell:The doorbell usually consists of an electromagnet that moves a rod that strikes the chime. Check that you have voltage to between the two terminals of the doorbell when someone pushes the button. If you do, but you get no chime, replace the doorbell. If you don’t get voltage, check the wiring and connections.