2.5mm under carpet isn't smart.
You ask for help and you have been given cheap practical advice you then choose to attack that advice.
lets look at this another way.
removing the power to the bell and does it fire up, if it fires up then its probably okay. if its faulty ie no sound or a pathetic sound, then replace the entire unit.
How long you test it for is up to you, if its definitely kaput it will within seconds of firing be immediate obvious with no or little sound, or strange low volume sound. No ladders needed or test equipment. If you had a tester that measured the charge held in the battery, then you would be able to do some calculations on how long it will last if it fails, remember it wont be as loud on the battery and you would need to know how much power the unit consumes when running off the battery.
given its age its probably looking a little rough anyway depending what was actually installed and how its been looked after so probably want to replace it with a new unit at 17 years old.
So why you don't try this first and see if ifs definitely gone or possibly worth saving?
is it worth testing the battery in the bell box, given its age the unit probably looks tatty, I would consider replacing the whole thing anyway and the new unit would have a warranty.
You should also test it via a bell test on the panel to make sure the normal trigger works.
remember the back up battery in the bell box, goes if theres no power from the panel, the panel has mains power and a back up battery of its own. The bell if on scb mode takes most of its power from the bells back up battery rather than the panel if theres power at the panel.(not getting into specifics as each bell is slightly different).
modern grade 3 bells can monitor power faults.
You ask for help and you have been given cheap practical advice you then choose to attack that advice.
lets look at this another way.
removing the power to the bell and does it fire up, if it fires up then its probably okay. if its faulty ie no sound or a pathetic sound, then replace the entire unit.
How long you test it for is up to you, if its definitely kaput it will within seconds of firing be immediate obvious with no or little sound, or strange low volume sound. No ladders needed or test equipment. If you had a tester that measured the charge held in the battery, then you would be able to do some calculations on how long it will last if it fails, remember it wont be as loud on the battery and you would need to know how much power the unit consumes when running off the battery.
given its age its probably looking a little rough anyway depending what was actually installed and how its been looked after so probably want to replace it with a new unit at 17 years old.
So why you don't try this first and see if ifs definitely gone or possibly worth saving?
is it worth testing the battery in the bell box, given its age the unit probably looks tatty, I would consider replacing the whole thing anyway and the new unit would have a warranty.
You should also test it via a bell test on the panel to make sure the normal trigger works.
remember the back up battery in the bell box, goes if theres no power from the panel, the panel has mains power and a back up battery of its own. The bell if on scb mode takes most of its power from the bells back up battery rather than the panel if theres power at the panel.(not getting into specifics as each bell is slightly different).
modern grade 3 bells can monitor power faults.
