Traditional doorbells need to be wired to supply the electricity.

 

All wired doorbells require a transformer.

 

Most homes will already have a transformer installed somewhere in the home from when the first phone line was installed.

 

The transformer is often placed beside the main power supply in the home, but not always.

 

Sometimes, the easiest way to find the doorbell transformer in your home could be to follow the telephone wires.

 

Newly built homes may not have a doorbell transformer installed and this may be something that the new owner will need to do themselves if they wish to have a traditional wired doorbell.

 

The purpose of a doorbell transformer, or step-down transformer as it can sometimes be called, is to regulate the amount of electricity that reaches and powers the doorbell.

 

The electricity that runs around the wiring in the home is generally around 120V.

 

A doorbell only requires around 12V to 16V of electricity.

 

This is where the doorbell transformer is really needed. The doorbell transformer ‘transforms’ the amount of electricity being supplied through the wiring. The doorbell, instead of receiving 120V of electricity, will only receive the necessary 12V or 16V.

 

When a doorbell is broken and has stopped working it is usually either the doorbell switch that has broken or it is the doorbell transformer.

 

 

Tags: wired doorbell voltage transformer doorbells doorbell transformers