26
votes
Accepted
Wired to Wireless Doorbell
Don‘t tear the wires out
Some newer doorbells are going wireless. But this is not a universal trend. Better doorbells are actually wired, because they do things that take power. They are lighted (...
26
votes
Doorbell transformer is this it?
As indicated by Ecnerwal the picture you show is an old style telephone line hookup. When you go looking around for your doorbell transformer it may look like one of these:
Mounted on cover of an ...
- 64.1k
18
votes
Doorbell transformer is this it?
Nope. That's a phone line terminal block. Old school. May have rudimentary surge supression built in. The heavy black wire is drop cable (from the pole to your house)
It's not your doorbell ...
- 200k
16
votes
How should I reconnect door bell wiring for multiple flats?
Go to the neighbor who you get along well with, but whose doorbell doesn't work now.
Unscrew that doorbell from the wall and look at the wiring, but don't disconnect it. Duplicate that setup in your ...
- 43k
14
votes
In wiring a doorbell, what is an alternative to using a transformer?
The answer is NO. All wired doorbells must be low voltage by NEC. You can find chimes with the transformer in the chime box, or mounted in a jbox behind the chime box, and you run 120 vac to the ...
- 58.1k
14
votes
Need a peephole camera without modifying peephole
You've fallen into a wrong set of assumptions:
the only smartphone-like thing with a camera IS a smart phone
all smartphones must be 0-2 years old and costly
all smartphones need a costly cellular ...
13
votes
Is it safe to use a receptacle with wires broken off in the backstab connectors?
Play it safe. Replace the receptacle. What else can you get these days for 71 cents? $1.24 if you get tamper-resistant (which nobody likes but you're supposed to use in many places now) and $2.18 for ...
13
votes
Accepted
Is it safe to use a receptacle with wires broken off in the backstab connectors?
I don’t use back stabs and although code allows them this is by far the largest cause of failed wiring in my experience (worse than aluminum wiring).
Since I don’t see a release I would NOT reuse ...
- 102k
13
votes
Can I replace a 115 V doorbell transformer with a 120 V doorbell transformer?
There are 3 issues here. The one in the title is actually the least of the concerns:
115V to 120V
The US electric supply has gradually increased the standard voltage over the past century from 110V ...
13
votes
What’s the ampacity for 18 AWG wire, at 24 V AC
What’s the ampacity for 18 awg wire, at 24v AC
Safe ampacity does not depend on voltage. However, it does depend on ambient temperature, insulation temperature rating, wire material, and other ...
- 739
11
votes
How should I reconnect door bell wiring for multiple flats?
Chances are good that the two wires that were connected send power to the other "downstream" doorbells (your neighbors). The wire by itself would be the one that goes to your doorbell. ...
- 27.7k
10
votes
Wired to Wireless Doorbell
Those wires going to your doorbell button hook up to a transformer somewhere. Maybe it's behind your chime, or maybe its in the attic, but it's there somewhere. Find the transformer and completely ...
- 27.7k
10
votes
Accepted
Doorbell switch internals
The door bell units that I am familiar with operate on 24VAC. The wires to the push button switch will be excited with the 24VAC line on one wire and the other wire referenced to the 24VAC-RET return ...
- 64.1k
9
votes
Cover & sound-suppression for doorbell transformer in utility closet
The best way to eliminate transformer noise is to purchase a quality transformer.
The noise is because the laminated core is heavily loaded or overloaded and the plates are actually vibrating because ...
- 102k
9
votes
Mechanical doorbells (connected to NEST doorbell) won't stop moving
That's how the Nest doorbell powers itself when you don't bring 3 wires to the doorbell location. It leaks small amounts of current through the chime. Nest thermostats do the same when you don't ...
8
votes
Accepted
Replacing a doorbell transformer attached to power extension bar
Do not replace the junction box. It is a standard junction box and there is nothing wrong with it.
Backstab connections fail more often than transformers
Look at the receptacle. See how the ...
8
votes
exposed doorbell transformer inside a walk in closet
The worst hazard here is snagging your clothes. The transformer is low-voltage, so you can touch the wires and probably not feel anything. If your hand was wet, you might get a buzz, but it's not ...
- 27.7k
8
votes
Can I use old doorbell chime wiring to add a plug-in outlet?
If it would be only so easy.
Those wires are sized for low voltage (24 Volt max)
and for low power (like door bell or door bell with video camera.
Running 120 Volt and higher power consumption would ...
- 16.8k
7
votes
Double Doorbell?
You don't need a relay and you don't need two transformers. You do need a transformer powerful enough to operate both chimes, so you can't buy doorbell kits with transformer included. You'll need to ...
- 14.2k
7
votes
Accepted
What is this unit attached to my house, and what do I replace it with?
That's telephone. It's not a transformer. It's a terminal block.
Call up the phone company and ask them to have someone come out and show you where your point of demarcation is. That's where the ...
7
votes
How should I reconnect door bell wiring for multiple flats?
Surprised no one has yet said: Get an electrician, with a meter and all that, who can check voltages on those wires, and work it all out logically, without making things any worse.
If you are in ...
- 325
7
votes
Old doorbell transformer wired directly into electrical box, don’t know how to disconnect without cutting the wires?
The most common setup is a junction box with wire nuts. However, in your case the original installer did a mostly good thing by installing it on the panel. The only bad part, in my opinion, is that ...
6
votes
Accepted
Can a doorbell transformer sit loose inside main panel?
You won't want to install the transformer inside the panel. Instead you'll install it on the panel.
Remove the retaining nut from the threaded fitting on the other side of the transformer (the bit in ...
- 131k
6
votes
Accepted
Is it safe to "cap" a disconnected doorbell wire using electrical tape?
Doorbells in Europe use mains voltage. The far better way to do this is to disable the supply transformer or other voltage source, or disconnect the doorbell at the transformer if it shares the ...
6
votes
Accepted
Doorbell transformer: broken if low voltage reading on multimeter?
It's not a DC device. It's AC on both the primary and secondary windings. Doorbells operate on low voltage AC.
- 23.1k
6
votes
This is my doorbell transformer, right?
The first item is definitely a transformer. We can tell that by its core laminations and its appearance.
And it is almost certain that the transformer is a doorbell transformer. (It might be a furnace ...
- 618
6
votes
Why is my doorbell button very hot?
I reckon you need a new button, but your chime might be faulty as well.
If the button is heating up, it means 2 things are happening:
There's current flowing through it, and
It's got a noticeable ...
- 5,948
6
votes
Accepted
Modernizing an old doorbell chime box
What you have there on the bottom is a "ding dong" door bell, and on the top is the partial remains of a brrrrrrring!!!! one, missing at least the hammer and gong. These are about $20 and $...
- 34.2k
6
votes
What’s the ampacity for 18 AWG wire, at 24 V AC
To answer the question you asked:
Assuming you are under NEC, 310.15(B)(16) only lists 90°C for 18AWG insulation (presumably because they only expect to see it inside fixtures) at 14A for not more ...
- 200k
5
votes
In wiring a doorbell, what is an alternative to using a transformer?
In the UK, the vast majority of doorbells are battery-powered. On my old-school mechanical doorbell, two alkaline D-cells are lasting me around 3 years.
As for why there's an external transformer, ...
- 1,959
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