I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I can
now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.

At the moment I am not fit enough to do any streching to try relocating it
or trying to mechanically isolate it. I am wondering it an electronic
voltage reduction device is available that could be smaller and not liable
to vibrate.
The door bell - is a load buzzer.

--

DerbyBorn

In article 6,
DerbyBorn writes:
I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I can
now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.

At the moment I am not fit enough to do any streching to try relocating it
or trying to mechanically isolate it. I am wondering it an electronic
voltage reduction device is available that could be smaller and not liable
to vibrate.
The door bell - is a load buzzer.

They are just a small regular transformer in a DIN-rail mounting case.

I made a switched mode one by transplaning a switched mode PSU from
a wall wart to a DIN-rail case, but this was because I needed a
regulated power supply.

You can buy DIN-rail mounting switched mode power supplies, but the
price is through the roof.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

DerbyBorn used his keyboard to write :
I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I can
now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.

At the moment I am not fit enough to do any streching to try relocating it
or trying to mechanically isolate it. I am wondering it an electronic
voltage reduction device is available that could be smaller and not liable
to vibrate.
The door bell - is a load buzzer.

Most everyone moved over to modern wireless versions long ago, but best
to get a good one Freidland EVO are a good and reliable one.

Just isolate the input to the transformer, likely its core will have
worked loose.

--
Regards,
Harry (M1BYT) (L)
http://www.ukradioamateur.co.uk

"DerbyBorn" wrote in message
2.236...
I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I can
now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.

At the moment I am not fit enough to do any streching to try relocating it
or trying to mechanically isolate it. I am wondering it an electronic
voltage reduction device is available that could be smaller and not liable
to vibrate.
The door bell - is a load buzzer.


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is on the
button.

harryagain presented the following explanation :
The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is on the
button.

If you meant the wireless type, the bell unit uses a constant amount of
current to keep its receiver working. The bell push only uses the
battery when the button is pressed and it transmits.

An old and chattering transformer will use more current than one in
good condition.

--
Regards,
Harry (M1BYT) (L)
http://www.ukradioamateur.co.uk

Dunno but transformers buzz as do ballasts etc running at 50 hz, so if you
know the voltage and current needed for the device I'm sure a suitable
switch mode module will be available, but don't then moan if all the radios
in the house are prone to interference.
Brian

--
From the Sofa of Brian Gaff Reply address is active
"DerbyBorn" wrote in message
2.236...
I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I can
now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.

At the moment I am not fit enough to do any streching to try relocating it
or trying to mechanically isolate it. I am wondering it an electronic
voltage reduction device is available that could be smaller and not liable
to vibrate.
The door bell - is a load buzzer.

--

DerbyBorn

"harryagain" wrote in
:


"DerbyBorn" wrote in message
2.236...
I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen
work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I
can now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.

At the moment I am not fit enough to do any streching to try
relocating it or trying to mechanically isolate it. I am wondering it
an electronic voltage reduction device is available that could be
smaller and not liable to vibrate.
The door bell - is a load buzzer.


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is
on the button.




I wish I had stopped the electrician before he started rewiring it as
part of a kitchen extension!


--

DerbyBorn

Harry Bloomfield wrote:

DerbyBorn used his keyboard to write :

I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I can
now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.

I have a Friedland DIN mounted one in my CU, and it doesn't make a noise
(I tend to notice stray buzzes/hums/whines more than most people).

Most everyone moved over to modern wireless versions long ago

Which is why you wait outside those people's front-door like a muppet,
never sure if they simply haven't heard you, or if the AAA battery in
the wireless transmitter is flat ... again.

DerbyBorn wrote:
"harryagain" wrote in
:


"DerbyBorn" wrote in message
2.236...
I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen
work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I
can now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.

At the moment I am not fit enough to do any streching to try
relocating it or trying to mechanically isolate it. I am wondering it
an electronic voltage reduction device is available that could be
smaller and not liable to vibrate.
The door bell - is a load buzzer.


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is
on the button.




I wish I had stopped the electrician before he started rewiring it as
part of a kitchen extension!



Until a couple of years ago, our doorbell was still being powered by a
couple of orange HP2's! Can't complain about battery life. ;-)

Tim

harryagain wrote:


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is on the
button.


So how much does 1kWh cost if you get it from AA cells?

Bill

On 24/02/2014 21:14, Bill Wright wrote:
harryagain wrote:


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is
on the button.

So how much does 1kWh cost if you get it from AA cells?

Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5? Given there are
8,700 hours a year that equates to 43.5kWHrs, which at 10p per unit
would be roughly £4.35

That pays for quite a few alkaline batteries at Poundland. Plus
batteries don't "buzz" in the bedroom above.

In article ,
Fredxxx writes:
On 24/02/2014 21:14, Bill Wright wrote:
harryagain wrote:


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is
on the button.

So how much does 1kWh cost if you get it from AA cells?

Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5? Given there are

1W would be nearer the mark for that size.

8,700 hours a year that equates to 43.5kWHrs, which at 10p per unit
would be roughly £4.35

Ball park figu 1W continuous is approx £1 per year.

That pays for quite a few alkaline batteries at Poundland. Plus
batteries don't "buzz" in the bedroom above.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

Fredxxx wrote in :

On 24/02/2014 21:14, Bill Wright wrote:
harryagain wrote:


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is
on the button.

So how much does 1kWh cost if you get it from AA cells?

Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5? Given there are
8,700 hours a year that equates to 43.5kWHrs, which at 10p per unit
would be roughly £4.35

That pays for quite a few alkaline batteries at Poundland. Plus
batteries don't "buzz" in the bedroom above.

When we bought the house we wanted a Buzzer (AC) and an illuminated
button. The house already had a transformer.

It is the replacement DIN rail that is the problem. I guess that a
wireless one would be my choice now.

--

DerbyBorn

In article ,
Fredxxx wrote:
Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5?

Where did that figure come from?

Given there are
8,700 hours a year that equates to 43.5kWHrs, which at 10p per unit
would be roughly £4.35

That pays for quite a few alkaline batteries at Poundland. Plus
batteries don't "buzz" in the bedroom above.

Batteries go flat. Usually at the most inconvenient time.

--
*I used to have an open mind but my brains kept falling out *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

In article 6,
DerbyBorn wrote:
When we bought the house we wanted a Buzzer (AC) and an illuminated
button. The house already had a transformer.

It is the replacement DIN rail that is the problem. I guess that a
wireless one would be my choice now.

You could use a toroidal transformer. They don't buzz.

--
*Microsoft broke Volkswagen's record: They only made 21.4 million bugs.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 19:35:38 +0000, Andy Burns
wrote:

Harry Bloomfield wrote:

DerbyBorn used his keyboard to write :

I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I can
now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.

I have a Friedland DIN mounted one in my CU, and it doesn't make a noise
(I tend to notice stray buzzes/hums/whines more than most people).

Most everyone moved over to modern wireless versions long ago

Which is why you wait outside those people's front-door like a muppet,
never sure if they simply haven't heard you, or if the AAA battery in
the wireless transmitter is flat ... again.


Wireless bells are for the lazy and feckless ;-)

At least with a good old-fashioned bell push fitted with a festoon
bulb, even if the caller can't hear the bell, he/she knows that the
laws of physics dictate that the few watts that were illuminating it
before the button was pressed, must be now dissipated somewhere else.

My wired bell push is a big round convex brass thing with a ceramic
button that says PRESS. It's been on my house for 35 years but I
reckon it's not far off 100 years old.

In message , "Dave Plowman (News)"
writes
In article ,
Fredxxx wrote:
Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5?

Where did that figure come from?

Given there are
8,700 hours a year that equates to 43.5kWHrs, which at 10p per unit
would be roughly £4.35

That pays for quite a few alkaline batteries at Poundland. Plus
batteries don't "buzz" in the bedroom above.

Batteries go flat. Usually at the most inconvenient time.

As this is a DiY group, how about having 2 batteries, main and standby,
with an auto change over circuit that gives an indication when it has
operated so that you have a couple of years warning that you need to
change the flat battery?


--
Bill

On Tue, 25 Feb 2014 00:19:15 +0000, Bill
wrote:

In message , "Dave Plowman (News)"
writes
In article ,
Fredxxx wrote:
Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5?

Where did that figure come from?

Given there are
8,700 hours a year that equates to 43.5kWHrs, which at 10p per unit
would be roughly £4.35

That pays for quite a few alkaline batteries at Poundland. Plus
batteries don't "buzz" in the bedroom above.

Batteries go flat. Usually at the most inconvenient time.

As this is a DiY group, how about having 2 batteries, main and standby,
with an auto change over circuit that gives an indication when it has
operated so that you have a couple of years warning that you need to
change the flat battery?


Many years ago, after we moved into the current dwelling, I fitted a
GPO trembler bell ('perk of the job' item) and used a couple of 8 x AA
cell holders to make up a 24v battery pack hooked onto a screw in the
door frame immediately below where the bell had been fitted using a
spare oblong door bell push just the other side.

This worked just fine for about a decade or so before the alkaline
cells started to leak, ruining the battery holder. Rather than waste
time trying to clean up the battery holder and spend a small fortune
on another 16 AA cells, I simply bought a pack of 3 Carbon Zinc PP3s
from a local Pound Shop and soldered straps to turn the pack of PP3s
into a 27v battery (nothing was wasted!) which I hung on the screw
head used by the previous bulky "battery". The result looked a lot
neater than the previous arrangement.

A few years ago, prior to the PP3 battery pack job, I'd bought myself
one of those wireless door bells so that I could still be alerted when
I had my upstairs office door closed and noisy equipment running/
music playing.

I mounted the wirless sender to the inside of the door frame and
connected it to the existing wired door bell using a blocking diode
and a zenner 'dropper' so that its internal 12v battery only got used
whenever it was pressed to test the 'Office Bell'[1] (callers
operating the wired bell push caused the 24v (now 27v) to power the
sender as well as the bell).

I did the 27v PP3 battery replacement about a year or so back and
it'll probably be good for another 2 or 3 years before I need to spend
a pound on another 3x PP3 pack. I spend more on the 3 AA cells used by
the wireless bell unit which seems to need a fresh set every 12 months
or so (again, a set of four alkalines can be had in most pound shops).

The door bell case is the classic example of disposable battery power
being an effective alternative to mains power (no PSU failure to worry
about and the cost of battery replacement is on a par with or better
than the cost of the parasitic load of a bell PSU).

Being primary cells, I get ample warning of imminent battery failure
without the need for any fancy voltage monitoring circuitry.

[1] My office door bell enjoys (endures?) frequent testing by SWMBI
whenever she comes back with a load of shopping.
--
Regards, J B Good

On 24/02/2014 22:03, Andrew Gabriel wrote:
In article ,
Fredxxx writes:
On 24/02/2014 21:14, Bill Wright wrote:
harryagain wrote:


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is
on the button.

So how much does 1kWh cost if you get it from AA cells?

Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5? Given there are

1W would be nearer the mark for that size.

Most I have seen run rather warm, so must be more than 1 W?

Bill Wright wrote:
harryagain wrote:


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is
on the button.

So how much does 1kWh cost if you get it from AA cells?

Bill

No-one seems inclined or able to answer this, so I will.

A decent quality alkaline AA battery will produce 2.75 watts for one hour.

1kWh of mains power costs about 10p. So 1 watt/hour of mains costs
0.01p. So 2.75 watt/hours of mains power costs 0.0275p.

If an AA battery of reasonable quality can be had for 10p, that makes
the power from it 363 times the price of mains power.

So so it doesn't matter how you obfuscate it, anyone using batteries
without very good reason is daft.

Having said that, I have a confession. In my house there is a doorbell
sounder powered by four AA cells. It is activated by an external IR
beam. It is not powered from the mains because that would involve me in
5 minutes' work once every 40 years, whereas I seem happier doing the
two minutes' work changing the batteries every verse end.

It was ever thus. The indolence of the so-called working classes is such
a problem to respectable society.

Bill

Graham. wrote:
Wireless bells are for the lazy and feckless ;-)

And gardeners. :-)

--
Mike Barnes
Cheshire, England

Bill Wright wrote:
Bill Wright wrote:
harryagain wrote:

The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is on the button.

So how much does 1kWh cost if you get it from AA cells?
Bill

No-one seems inclined or able to answer this,

Mostly because other factors come into play rather than just price of
electricity.


, so I will
A decent quality alkaline AA battery will produce 2.75 watts for one hour.

1kWh of mains power costs about 10p. So 1 watt/hour of mains costs 0.01p.
So 2.75 watt/hours of mains power costs 0.0275p.

If an AA battery of reasonable quality can be had for 10p, that makes the
power from it 363 times the price of mains power.

So so it doesn't matter how you obfuscate it, anyone using batteries
without very good reason is daft.

Well, not completely. It would cost me a *lot* of time, trouble and money
to get mains supply to my front door bell. As has been mentioned, a
transformer is using power all the time and if you can do without an
illuminated bell push, that's power that you don't need to waste.

Lastly, as I mentioned before, our doorbell was powered by a couple of HP2
batteries that I reckon must have been at least 20 years old. That seems
like a reasonable battery life to me.

Tim

Fredxxx wrote:
On 24/02/2014 22:03, Andrew Gabriel wrote:
In article ,
Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5?

1W would be nearer the mark for that size.

Most I have seen run rather warm, so must be more than 1 W?

The bell at our main entrance has what I'd regard as a fairly normal
bell transformer and I've just metered it at 3W. At the other door is a
battery-operated bell which needs two D cells about every ten years. So
obviously batteries win on cost grounds but I regard the illumination of
the main door bell push, and the reassurance it offers when pressed, to
be worth the small amount I pay.

The battery-operated bell is a rather old-fashioned brrrrrring! type
rather than a xylophone or a bleeper. This has the advantage that
declining batteries are obvious every time it rings and they can be
replaced in good time.

Whenever I approach a door and see an obviously cordless bell push, I
treat it with the greatest suspicion.

--
Mike Barnes
Cheshire, England

"Bill Wright" wrote in message
...
Bill Wright wrote:
harryagain wrote:


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time.
Whereas a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is on
the button.

So how much does 1kWh cost if you get it from AA cells?

Bill

No-one seems inclined or able to answer this, so I will.

A decent quality alkaline AA battery will produce 2.75 watts for one hour.

1kWh of mains power costs about 10p. So 1 watt/hour of mains costs 0.01p.
So 2.75 watt/hours of mains power costs 0.0275p.

If an AA battery of reasonable quality can be had for 10p, that makes the
power from it 363 times the price of mains power.

So so it doesn't matter how you obfuscate it, anyone using batteries
without very good reason is daft.

Having said that, I have a confession. In my house there is a doorbell
sounder powered by four AA cells. It is activated by an external IR beam.
It is not powered from the mains because that would involve me in 5
minutes' work once every 40 years, whereas I seem happier doing the two
minutes' work changing the batteries every verse end.

It was ever thus. The indolence of the so-called working classes is such a
problem to respectable society.

The point is that a battery only has current significant drawn for a couple
of minutes total every year.
Whereas there is a significant constant "standby loss" with a transformer.

On Tue, 25 Feb 2014 07:24:54 +0000, Mike Barnes
wrote:

Graham. wrote:
Wireless bells are for the lazy and feckless ;-)

And gardeners. :-)


No, that's a legitimate use, I should have said bell-pushes not bells.

In article , Bill Wright
wrote:
harryagain wrote:


The other good news is that they use electricity all the time. Whereas
a battery operated doorbell only uses power when a finger is on the
button.


So how much does 1kWh cost if you get it from AA cells?

around 100 times what it cost to get it out of a wall socket.

--
From KT24

Using a RISC OS computer running v5.18

In article ,
Mike Barnes wrote:
Fredxxx wrote:
On 24/02/2014 22:03, Andrew Gabriel wrote:
In article ,
Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5?

1W would be nearer the mark for that size.

Most I have seen run rather warm, so must be more than 1 W?

The bell at our main entrance has what I'd regard as a fairly normal
bell transformer and I've just metered it at 3W. At the other door is a
battery-operated bell which needs two D cells about every ten years. So
obviously batteries win on cost grounds but I regard the illumination of
the main door bell push, and the reassurance it offers when pressed, to
be worth the small amount I pay.

The battery-operated bell is a rather old-fashioned brrrrrring! type
rather than a xylophone or a bleeper. This has the advantage that
declining batteries are obvious every time it rings and they can be
replaced in good time.

Whenever I approach a door and see an obviously cordless bell push, I
treat it with the greatest suspicion.

We have a cordless push which rings 3 separate "bells". This means the
sound can be heard throughout teh house and, if necesary, the garden.

--
From KT24

Using a RISC OS computer running v5.18

charles wrote in
:

In article ,
Mike Barnes wrote:
Fredxxx wrote:
On 24/02/2014 22:03, Andrew Gabriel wrote:
In article ,
Most small transformers consume a few watts, say 5?

1W would be nearer the mark for that size.

Most I have seen run rather warm, so must be more than 1 W?

The bell at our main entrance has what I'd regard as a fairly normal
bell transformer and I've just metered it at 3W. At the other door is
a battery-operated bell which needs two D cells about every ten
years. So obviously batteries win on cost grounds but I regard the
illumination of the main door bell push, and the reassurance it
offers when pressed, to be worth the small amount I pay.

The battery-operated bell is a rather old-fashioned brrrrrring! type
rather than a xylophone or a bleeper. This has the advantage that
declining batteries are obvious every time it rings and they can be
replaced in good time.

Whenever I approach a door and see an obviously cordless bell push, I
treat it with the greatest suspicion.

We have a cordless push which rings 3 separate "bells". This means the
sound can be heard throughout teh house and, if necesary, the garden.


But usually the naffness of the sounds is not know until it is
installed. We like our AC Buzzer.

--

DerbyBorn

Graham. was thinking very hard :
On Tue, 25 Feb 2014 07:24:54 +0000, Mike Barnes
wrote:

Graham. wrote:
Wireless bells are for the lazy and feckless ;-)

And gardeners. :-)


No, that's a legitimate use, I should have said bell-pushes not bells.

Talking of which, try carrying your wired doorbell to the far end of
the back garden and have work - mine does lol

--
Regards,
Harry (M1BYT) (L)
http://www.ukradioamateur.co.uk

In article ,
Harry Bloomfield wrote:
Graham. was thinking very hard :
On Tue, 25 Feb 2014 07:24:54 +0000, Mike Barnes
wrote:

Graham. wrote:
Wireless bells are for the lazy and feckless ;-)

And gardeners. :-)


No, that's a legitimate use, I should have said bell-pushes not bells.

Talking of which, try carrying your wired doorbell to the far end of
the back garden and have work - mine does lol

in my case its about 90m. Yes, the wireless one works.

--
From KT24

Using a RISC OS computer running v5.18

"charles" wrote in message
...

In article ,
Harry Bloomfield wrote:
Graham. was thinking very hard :
On Tue, 25 Feb 2014 07:24:54 +0000, Mike Barnes
wrote:

Graham. wrote:
Wireless bells are for the lazy and feckless ;-)

And gardeners. :-)


No, that's a legitimate use, I should have said bell-pushes not bells.

Talking of which, try carrying your wired doorbell to the far end of
the back garden and have work - mine does lol

in my case its about 90m. Yes, the wireless one works.


You used to be able to get 'wind up' bells, single hole fixing through
centre of the door. To wind up you grasped the bell itself and rotated. They
had the advantage of 'memory' in that if some one had rung the bell while
you were out, and you made the habit of winding it as you left the house,
you were aware as it was slightly 'unwound'.

Low energy, easy to fit, nice sound, no wires - lots of advantages

Andrew

In article
,
Tim+ wrote:
Well, not completely. It would cost me a *lot* of time, trouble and money
to get mains supply to my front door bell. As has been mentioned, a
transformer is using power all the time and if you can do without an
illuminated bell push, that's power that you don't need to waste.

The real answer of course is you install the wiring and transformer when
the house is built - or re-wired.

And if you really are worried about the amount of electricity a decent
transformer uses when quiescent I hope you unplug every single bit of
equipment in the house too. The clock in the oven must use quite a bit too.

--
*It's a thankless job, but I've got a lot of Karma to burn off

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

In article ,
Mike Barnes wrote:
The bell at our main entrance has what I'd regard as a fairly normal
bell transformer and I've just metered it at 3W. At the other door is a
battery-operated bell which needs two D cells about every ten years. So
obviously batteries win on cost grounds but I regard the illumination of
the main door bell push, and the reassurance it offers when pressed, to
be worth the small amount I pay.

Err, compare like for like. If you used your illuminated bell push with
the batteries they'd be flat in short order. Similarly that 3W would be
drastically reduced without an illuminated push.

--
*A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well*

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Monday, February 24, 2014 4:45:03 PM UTC, DerbyBorn wrote:
I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I can
now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.
At the moment I am not fit enough to do any streching to try relocating it
or trying to mechanically isolate it. I am wondering it an electronic
voltage reduction device is available that could be smaller and not liable
to vibrate.
The door bell - is a load buzzer.

Old copper & iron transformers are by far the most reliable, and seldom buzz. Buzz can often be cured by hammering on the edges of the laminations, or pouring a thin varnish/resin into the slight gaps between laminations. Your best bet new is another of the same type.


NT

"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote:
In article
,
Tim+ wrote:
Well, not completely. It would cost me a *lot* of time, trouble and money
to get mains supply to my front door bell. As has been mentioned, a
transformer is using power all the time and if you can do without an
illuminated bell push, that's power that you don't need to waste.

The real answer of course is you install the wiring and transformer when
the house is built - or re-wired.

And if you really are worried about the amount of electricity a decent
transformer uses when quiescent I hope you unplug every single bit of
equipment in the house too. The clock in the oven must use quite a bit too.


No, I don't worry about it. I'm just pointing out why mains power for a
doorbell isn't always cheaper.

Tim

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
Mike Barnes wrote:
The bell at our main entrance has what I'd regard as a fairly normal
bell transformer and I've just metered it at 3W. At the other door is a
battery-operated bell which needs two D cells about every ten years. So
obviously batteries win on cost grounds but I regard the illumination of
the main door bell push, and the reassurance it offers when pressed, to
be worth the small amount I pay.

Err, compare like for like.

I was actually *contrasting* them.

If you used your illuminated bell push with
the batteries they'd be flat in short order. Similarly that 3W would be
drastically reduced without an illuminated push.

Obviously.

--
Mike Barnes
Cheshire, England

On 24/02/2014 16:45, DerbyBorn wrote:
I used to have a separate doorbell transformer. During some kitchen work
the electrician fitted a new transformer inside the consumer unit. I can
now hear a (50Hz)buzz in the bedroom above.


Probably the laminated core of the transformer rattling.

A drop of varnish on the laminated core often stops the
rattling/buzzing. Even nail varnish or a bit of blu-tack may do the same
job.


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On 25/02/2014 09:21, Mike Barnes wrote:
This has the advantage that
declining batteries are obvious every time it rings and they can be
replaced in good time.


My wireless door chime has an additional loud beep-beep when the bell
push battery is getting low. (Friedland Libra range)


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On Tue, 25 Feb 2014 16:03:06 -0000, "Andrew Mawson"
wrote:

"charles" wrote in message
. ..

In article ,
Harry Bloomfield wrote:
Graham. was thinking very hard :
On Tue, 25 Feb 2014 07:24:54 +0000, Mike Barnes
wrote:

Graham. wrote:
Wireless bells are for the lazy and feckless ;-)

And gardeners. :-)


No, that's a legitimate use, I should have said bell-pushes not bells.

Talking of which, try carrying your wired doorbell to the far end of
the back garden and have work - mine does lol

in my case its about 90m. Yes, the wireless one works.


You used to be able to get 'wind up' bells, single hole fixing through
centre of the door. To wind up you grasped the bell itself and rotated. They
had the advantage of 'memory' in that if some one had rung the bell while
you were out, and you made the habit of winding it as you left the house,
you were aware as it was slightly 'unwound'.

Low energy, easy to fit, nice sound, no wires - lots of advantages

Andrew

They are still made, but at that price my callers can knock.

http://www.handystores.co.uk/index.p...hite-dome.html

Tim+ wrote:

So so it doesn't matter how you obfuscate it, anyone using batteries
without very good reason is daft.

Well, not completely. It would cost me a *lot* of time, trouble and money
to get mains supply to my front door bell.

Well that's yer very good reason you daft bugger!

Bill