You are correct, you have a closed circuit on the switch leg. The two wires
to the button are in contact with each other somewhere along their length
and you must find that connection and repair it or replace that piece of
wire



"Vince" wrote in message
...
Just today my doorbell started ringing by itself and/or buzzing instead of
chiming. This is a wired unit using a transformer (I
presume it is in my crawlspace somewhere).

I disconnected the one and only outdoor button and made sure that the 2
wires were not touching each other. Also, the insulation
looks good as far as I can see (which is not much).

The doorbell still rings by itself or buzzes.

I disconnected the 2 wires at the bell unit on the wall and measured 12.4
V AC across them. I also think that there is continuity,
as the I hear an intermittent beeping sound when I switch the meter to
continuity mode. I guess it beeps intermittently instead of
a solid sound because it is AC??

When I reconnect the 2 wires to the bell unit on the wall (outdoor wires
still disconnected and not touching), I can make the
doorbell ring. If I tighten the screws well, I get a constant buzz.

It seems that somehow I have a closed circuit. There has been no
tinkering with wires that might have caused this, unless I have
mice in the crawlspace.

Is this a bell unit, transformer or wire problem? Any suggestions about
what I should do next?

Thanks.

Vince