# upgrade 16vac door bell with 24vac transformer?



## telsa (May 22, 2015)

cdoublejj said:


> it's simple doorbell nothing fancy, i'm wondering if upgrading to a 24vac transformer would cook it good or if it wouldn't really care at all?


The typical door bell transformer is MULTI-TAP.

Stay at 16 volts.


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## cdoublejj (Oct 23, 2017)

i don't know what multi tap means. anyways the new upgrade is advertised at 16 volts for the new ring Pro but, others are telling me it really needs 24v. long story short, i'm going to find out what happens at 24v, it either works or is going in the trash and getting replaced with compatible chime anyways.

at the heart of it, it's an electromagnet that is energized when the button is pressed. i have to wonder if the coil will really cares about voltage for the half second it's used?


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## cdoublejj (Oct 23, 2017)

as an addendum to that, rather to say i have little choice other than to find out. i do not see an edit button on these forums.


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## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

Most chimes operate at 16v. These transformers are readily available and easy to get in several sizes. Why on earth are you so hell bent on using a 24v transformer?


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## 99cents (Aug 20, 2012)

MDShunk said:


> Most chimes operate at 16v. These transformers are readily available and easy to get in several sizes. Why on earth are you so hell bent on using a 24v transformer?


He probably added a chime and now nothing works. An electrician would know how to fix it, easy stuff.


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## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

99cents said:


> He probably added a chime and now nothing works. An electrician would know how to fix it, easy stuff.


I'm reasonably certain that's what his issue is, and I tried to drop a clue in my response.


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## cdoublejj (Oct 23, 2017)

a doorbell addon security device called "ring" is advertised to run @ ...16v so all is good right... well no the device frequently disconnects and powers off. i found out form another user that 16v really isn't enough despite being advertised as a 16v device that works with ones doorbell. no, no you need 24v! looking at some review for 24vac transforms on amazon and filtering/searching for "ring pro" shows a slew of people reporting more more reliable performance after upgrading to a 30va or 40va _24 volt ac_ transformer.

it would seem they do not mean 16vac RMS, no they mean not 1 millivolt under 16v. unless there is some weird issue with my wires this would explain why the ring has never worked right. add on to that software updates and patches that likley tax the ring pros internal CPU etc etc you have even more unreliable performance as it's draw goes up.

and i knew this! _i know what to do!_ and bought a *50va* 16vac transformer AND get my ring pro RMAed for brand new unit ....annnnddd it's still huts off and disconnects further proving what this other user mentioned about needing 24 volts.

as far as i know most VAC reading tend to be RMS, almost sort of like an average or nominal. like a car battery 13 volts when the cars of and 11.5 volts when the engine is cranking ergo a 24vac transformer should net you something like 21-28 vac or thereabouts.

soooo the ring gets a 24vac transformer, only thing is the doorbell is hooked up to it. guess we gonna find out how it likes that. if it cooks i guess i'll be using the chintzy little wall wart speaker wifi jobber which kind of sucks if the wifi shuts off the doorbell doesn't ring inside the house.


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## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

WTF- you open a post about a doorbell then put the real story out. For what it's worth, I hate wasting my time on people who pull that crap.


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## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

There were some electronic doorbells that you had to put a couple of diodes in, essentially making a half-wave rectifier, to make them work reliably.

In this case, I'ld put in on the OEM of the "ring" device to sort this out before I put 50% more than nameplate voltage into a device that you're otherwise having no issues with.


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## cdoublejj (Oct 23, 2017)

sorry i didn't realize how irrelevant the question really was till after i posted. Maybe just delete the whole thread? i do apologize. 

i feel like someone who can't decide what to eat and asks a friend for a suggestion then gets the exact opposite.


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## Dennis Alwon (May 9, 2009)

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