# Old Doorbell Voltage



## elementx440 (Jan 24, 2007)

can you post a pic of the internals?


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## jwhite (Mar 12, 2006)

by vague ring, do you mean one ding as in the clapper pulled in then did not pull out?

Odds are good that this bell is AC not DC. probably 6, 12, or 18 volt.


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## Sammy (Mar 11, 2007)

Trine used to make alot of those bells and I think they are now owned by Desa International. Has to be a transformer somewhere that may be the issue. Those bells use up some power. Pic's would be good to see what you have.


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## karatehero (Mar 26, 2007)

Sorry it took a while to get this up. I have this setup at my work and I couldn't get a picture setup.

Anyway, I have it set at 24 VDC right now and the ringer just basically vibrates. I have 24VAC power supplies, but am afraid that might be too much.


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## Sammy (Mar 11, 2007)

Thats it! 


I dont think its an antique.. Take a look at www.trineonline.com under products and then door bells. Trine 272 looks like what you have. 

Note the amps of 1.5 [which is alot for a modern chime] and compare to your power supply. Most of these work best around 8-16Volts. 

I noticed your clapper arm is bent right against the bell also. 

I remember my Father replacing the bell on one of these with a 10 inch pie plate. Man would that thing ring!

If your power supply checks out and the bell is the issue, I think Homey carries those.


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## karatehero (Mar 26, 2007)

I appreaciate your help! I had no idea what this thing was. It was a general concensus though, it looks pretty old. Definately been around the bush.

I found a 9 VAC transformer at 1 AMP and it works OK. I would imagine it could be louder.

I might order a new transformer. I'm debating between 12 and 16 Volts. Any suggestions?

Thanks again for all your help!


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## Sammy (Mar 11, 2007)

Either voltage would work but its the amps or volt/amps that will make it ring a little louder. 

Maybe a 10 inch pie plate in place of the bell will work.... 

Try bending your clapper arm a little so there is some space between it and the bell when its in the "at rest position".. There needs to be a little room for the arm to move to get the sound.


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## bobo (May 17, 2005)

*hello,*
*one coil pushes, one pulls. basic chatter box/bell. home depot has em, about $15...bob*


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## spudguntechie (Sep 11, 2010)

*How to solve two coil doorbell troubles*

I know this is an old thread, but I was just looking for this information today, installing one of these at my house that was sitting around in my Grandpa's house before he sold in.

The problem was for me (and I presume was for you judging by the picture posted), that what appear to be the two leads where you would attach a power source are not actually the correct points. Basically, you and I attached wires in the wrong places.

One of the wires is screwed into the correct hole, namely the one to the left in the picture, and farther away from the bell, so don't change anything there.

The other wire (the one currently attached closer to the bell), is NOT in fact in the correct spot, although that seems like the obvious place for it.

In order for the ringer to oscillate, you need to move that wire. It needs to be connected to the hole that in the picture is slightly above and to the left of the hole it is currently attached to. Basically, it's attaching to the frame, like a ground wire normally would.

It makes sense if you follow the circuit all of the way through, but at first glance, it is counter-intuitive. I used a 9v DC source to power it since I was implementing the bell in a temporary setup and wanted to use just one battery, but I did get it to work at as low as 3v DC. Ideally, I would run it between 4v DC and 9v DC. Mine actually still had the box, and the box says "6-10 VOLTS A.C. (TRANSFORMER) 3-6 VOLTS D.C. (BATTERY)"

I assume its to late for you, since its been a few years since this post went up, but maybe the next seeker will find what he's looking for now.

@bobo You are partially correct, in that it is just a basic bell, but, I don't believe that different coils do pushing and pulling. Energizing the coils attracts the ringer to them, striking the bell, but that disengages the little copper switch attached to the ringer, and the ringer springs back to a neutral position, re-closing the circuit, and completing the cycle.


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## AllanJ (Nov 24, 2007)

I think the bell unit needs some physical adjustments. Also I think it works best using DC and may have originally been powerd by four large 1-1/2 volt batteries (about 3 times the height and also diameter of D battery cells). (It might work off of a transformer. It will probably not work with D or smaller batteries.)

Carefully bend the clapper bar so the end rests about 1/16" away from the bell.

Next gently press the clapper bar down by the coils until the clapper end touches the bell. You should see a thin metal strip near the coil closer to the bell move away from the screw (with wire) closer to the bell leaving a very small gap. Let go of the clapper and the very small gap near the screw should disappear.

If you don't see this tiny gap at first, you can try applying power, about 6 volts DC. The bell should ring continuously and you should see a tiny spark between the clapper bar near the coil closer to the bell and the screw (with wire) closer to the bell. You can try increasing the voltage for best sound.

If the bell gives just one loud short ring when you apply power and then goes silent or gives a very weak continuous ring, you can try bending it some more so the end is 1/8 inch from the bell. If the clapper vibrates vigorously without ringing the bell then the end is too far away from the bell.


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## johnnyboy (Oct 8, 2007)

I used to run one of those off a lantern battery, which is what, 6vdc? was pretty loud... with adjustments mentioned above.


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## spudguntechie (Sep 11, 2010)

AllanJ said:


> I think the bell unit needs some physical adjustments. Also I think it works best using DC and may have originally been powerd by four large 1-1/2 volt batteries (about 3 times the height and also diameter of D battery cells). (It might work off of a transformer. It will probably not work with D or smaller batteries.)
> 
> Carefully bend the clapper bar so the end rests about 1/16" away from the bell.
> 
> ...


Did you even read what I wrote? I'm telling you, the wires are attached in the wrong place! I had EXACTLY this problem.


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## AllanJ (Nov 24, 2007)

spudguntechie said:


> Did you even read what I wrote? I'm telling you, the wires are attached in the wrong place! I had EXACTLY this problem.


Psst! The wires looked to be on the correct screws (two cardboard padded screws), but I'll look again. (Or was the picture changed since I last saw it?)

By the way, there was or should be a squarish metal cover for the coils but the bell unit will work without that.

If the bell doesn't work and you manage to find the gap where the metal flap pulls away from the screws at the same time the clapper end hits the bell, you might insert a piece of ultra fine sandpaper (or crocus cloth) into the gap first one way and then the other to clean the contact at that place.

Because there are two cardboard padded terminals I doubt that you should connect one wire to the bell frame. It is possible that if the frame is live that is due to a fault that causes internal sparking followed by damage to the coils. There is one possible exception, the screw closer to the bell plus frame is for the front door (continuous ring) and the screw further from the bell plus frame is for the back door (single ring).


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## spudguntechie (Sep 11, 2010)

My point is that the two terminals are not the correct places to put the wires. Read my post this time.:whistling2:


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## bobelectric (Mar 3, 2007)

Now let me get this straight. Someone Copped your copper clapper?


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## mpruss (Oct 20, 2010)

*old doorbell*

Tattoo machines use the EXACT mechanism as these doorbells. If you are having any problem at all I would suggest having a look at one of them on google as a reference for parts and wiring. also, there are thousands of inexpensive power supplies available for coil based tattoo machines that I am sure would work just as well for this doorbell.


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## AllanJ (Nov 24, 2007)

Why do I have the gut feeling that tattoo machines and accessories cost far more than a new doorbell of the same kind and a transformer even though they may be the same physically?


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## mpruss (Oct 20, 2010)

*Tattoo machines*

Like most mechanical applications, with tattoo machines you can find anything from cheap mass produced chinese products to very expensive one-of-a-kind handmade equipment. For this application I would assume the mass produced variety is going to be the way to go. Also, these machines are made to run constantly for hours, far more work than any doorbell would ever be required to do. Unless you have ALOT of guests. I digress, check with the Chinese stuff. It's relatively cheap and far more resilient than anything made for doorbells. Also, I believe part of the concern was the wiring and if it was connected properly. I also feel like the tattoo machine guts would certainly ring the hell out of that bell. I am pretty sure you can find the cheaper machines for about 25.00 dollars. I would never use something like that for applying a tattoo but I do think they would make great doorbells. Hope any of this helps. Take care.

Morgan.


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## chargewrangler (Oct 20, 2010)

*old doorbell voltage*

Reading through the last few replies, is it possible that the two terminals are for different ring tones?

Seems like the positions of the two coils would produce a different mechanical resonance depending upon which coil you energized.

Like a unique front door/rear door ring tone.


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