Please help me solve a minor mystery

[Lily left the valley]

When I first took some pictures of the Baker Bungalow (1935 build), there was one "undressed" bit in the wall I could not identify in the dining room. There seemed to be no related switch or button anywhere near it, and we couldn't find anything else that seemed to go nowhere until our second viewing.

Later, when we went back, we found that the doorbell (the button itself seems period) does not ring when the button is pushed. Then we realized we could not find a standard chime box up on the walls anywhere. We thought perhaps the button might be related to the bit that could not be identified. (Something I completely forgot to ask our Home Inspector to ID, despite it being on my list. )

So now I turn to the District pool of wisdom. Does anyone know what is being pictured below, and if there is some way it might be an updated version of the doorbell? It's at about the right height for a chime. We also thought it might be a more recent intercom speaker possibly, though we didn't see another bit that might have been the speaking into part anywhere. Our realtor wondered if maybe it was some sort of older smoke detector.

[phil]

the doorbell needs power. the transformer is often hidden away. to wire it in the connections are sometimes done in an electrical box , with the transformer attached to the side or the back of the box. of course you;d need doorbell wire to run to the front and back door and to the bell or buzzer or chime. You aren't supposed to install electrical apparatus inside an electrical box so they are made to attach outside the electrical box.

I found my original doorbell transformer downstairs betwen the joist. it was tied into the knob and tube and the connections were not done in a box. it was just nailed to a joist. When I rewired I put it near the freakishly loud bell in the kitchen and a new transformer attached to an electrical box to conform with electrical code. mine is so loud I might move it downstairs as it makes everyone jump out of their seat.

you could look around the box or just remove it and see what kind of wire leads to it, if it's bell wire it might be the location of the transformer, or you could see phone or network cable. It looks like a plastic box which means it isn't old. you can see by the painting mess that they didnt' remove it to paint and painted a color or two around it so it's been there a while.
maybe a previous owner liked the sound of the 70's chime and took it with them ? maybe someone deaf lived there and they had a light in the box?

in normal operation the transformer is on all the time. it sends power to the bell and the wires to the door complete the circuit when the button is pressed. the newer ones often have a neon bulb which draws such a tiny amount of power that it can be lit without really completing the circuit. they work in a weird way. bell circuits are low voltage and probably something around 12 to 24V AC.

if you can access the wires to the button you could check if there is any power between them either with a meter or you might be able to install a newer style button temporarily. If you find power there then you could switch off breakers to identify which breaker the transformer is on and that may give you a clue as to the area it is installed in. if you touch the two wires to the bell together it should ring the bell. if the bell won't ring you could tie them together temporarily while you check at the bell if there is any power at the bell. if there is power at the bell and it isn't ringing the bell is dead. its likely the contacts on the outdoor bell button switches are just a bit corroded and need cleaning up.

mine actually was working except the contact points on the bell had corroded and stuck together. I cleaned up the contacts and then it worked fine.

I'd open it and have a look but be careful what you touch. the doorbell wire should be low voltage and not scary to touch when live but there could be 110 V for the transformer. the box looks like it has louvers on it so I think its some sort of buzzer or bell, maybe from around the 70's? If you found a microphone or speaker it could be remnants of an intercom.

[Lily left the valley]

Thanks, Phil. This has been bugging me since I first saw it.

So you do think the two are connected? That's great news. I suspected as much, since the placement of that mystery bit is in the best location to be heard in most of the home. Interesting idea of the light, with a possible deaf family member. I hadn't thought of that.

Since closing is set for January, this isn't going to be a fun project in the short term, but as the current front door is almost all glass with no good place for a knocker, I want the doorbell working rather than folks rapping on the old wavy glass.

We might still have one of those wireless doorbells in a box somewhere from an old apartment where the button has a battery and the chime plugs in. If I can find that, it will probably be installed temporarily so I can wait until warmer weather to do the permanent fix. That way I won't be tempted to rush things in the cold.

[phil]

yes a wireless one will work for now, easy solution for the time being.
I wouldn't loose sleep over it or anything. My house is so dead for sound I cant' hear the door and as a result I need to fix a broken pane in the glass. it has little windows about 3 inches square and someone probably tapped too hard with their keys.

I have a roll of stuff, its contact mat. I guess it was maybe used for those old supermarket doors. they used to have rubber mats. the stuff i have is like a plastic sheet full of wires that will come into contact when its stepped on I thin it was used under the rubber matt for doors like that. nowadays they all use optical sensors

I keep thinking of slipping that under my doormat and hooking that to a bell so if someone just sets foot on the porch it rings one bell and maybe keep the other bell as is. That way I'd know someone is at the door even if they don't ring the bell. sometimes i order pizza and come to find a frustrated driver that's been knocking and didn't' notice the bell button.

I thought I could install a bigger button with a plaque that says "ring bell" or something but mine looks original so why do I have to replace it? I also thought I could install a notepad holder so people can leave notes throuugh the mail slot if they want to.

because I am addicted to old radios I came across a neat intercom system. it has a base station and some desk stations. each looks like a radio. I also have radios that used the same Bakelite case. The base stations have a toggle button so you push to talk and the base station has extra switches that will allow the " secretary" to switch to communicate with the different base stations.

I thought of putting a base stationm outside the door .. Oh it might confuse people . I dont' know if they would try to steal the base station if it were outside the door but it would be neat to find use for the system. Its quite rare.. I attached a pic of a base station and a radio. The master station looks similar it just has some extra switches.

these aren't mine but i do have the same ones. the green one is a radio , and the brown one is a base station. the master station looks similar.

.. I know its a weird addiction .... lol