No, not bees, but the razor socket in my bathroom. It buzzes away to itself like a deranged power station. Percussive maintenance shuts it up briefly, but it soon resumes its merry little hum.
Unplugging the electric toothbrush shuts it up, but does nothing for my dental health. It's not the toothbrush, per se, because plugging anything at all into it makes it hum - including just the lead from my razor, so it isn't current being drawn.
Can anyone suggest a means by which I can shut it up?
Replace it. Probably the transformer inside is drying out causing the mains frequency hum.
You could try taking it off the wall (after isolating it elsewhere of course) and then if you can see the transformer, give it a wack with a blunt object (Like a large screwdriver handle) this can shut them up...
The reason it buzzes is, the widnings are vibrating, giving it a wack can close the gaps that are allowing it to vibrate.
...and the reason it only does it when somthing is plugged in (including just the shaver cord) is because there is a switch that only activates when somthing is plugged in by the sound of it!
If this does not solve it, then replacement will eb the next easiest thing!
Toby...
I was thinking of a squirt of silicone sealer...
That might stop the transformer dissipating heap properly, so I wouldn't personally!
Toby...
The transformer primary is switched on by a switch which detects a plug being inserted. This is to stop it running all the time, although if you're using it as a charger, you probably are running it all the time.
By the way, if you are using it as only a charger, I would suggest using the 120V output. This is because the regulation of these devices is very poor, and off load (or miniscule charging load), they are allowed to go up to 270V output.
I know lots of people now use them for 24x7 chargers, but that wasn't what they were really designed for.
Probably something loose in the back. Worth taking it off to see if there's anything obvious. If the transformer core or windings are not well vacuum varnished to prevent vibration, there's probably nothing you can do to repair that.
You could try a small amount of hotmelt glue or epoxy on the windings if you can find which bit is vibrating.
I did major works on the bathroom last year and changed the 20 odd year old white plastic MK unit to a chrome one from TLC - can't remember the make. The hum remained the same... It is mounted in plasterboard which probably makes things worse.
There is often an internal switch that energizes the transformer when something is plugged in.
If it's due to a few laminations gradually working loose, some people have had success with a very thin hard-setting varnish or even superglue. Probably shouldn't coat the whole thing too heavily, though, or it may overheat.
There is a switch - operated by the plug being inserted.
Superglue seems the best idea as it is thin and will penetrate.
Yes, take it off the wall and dismantle it until you just have the transformer in your hot little hand.
Tie a piece of string to the transformer.
Open a can of varnish (the stuff with high VOCs, not water-based) and immerse the transformer in the varnish for a few minutes.
Drip dry for a few days in a warm place.
Clean varnish off terminals with a penknife and refit.
Put it back on the wall.
Transformer laminations buzzing. Traditional fixes are the varnish dip dave says, or the whack it with a chisel and clubhammer method. For the latter you must remove it from plastic housing first!
When putting it back, its a good idea to mount it using rubber somehow, that will quieten it a fair bit further. Between the 2 you should get silence.
NT
Shellac (french polish) works well too. Was the original transformer sealant.
Be aware some at least of the recent Braun toothbrushes specify 230v rather than the dual voltage (110v-230v) of previous models - something I only discovered in New York last autumn. (It did just about keep its charge over 4 weeks around the States but the flashing blue light weren't its usual happy self.)
You missed one way.
Dunno how many are old enough to remember Top of the Pops when all sang live backed by Johnny Pearson's orchestra. Those with keen eyes might have noticed the valve bass guitar amp with a G-Clamp on the mains transformer.
That would probably work, it would bend the edges of the lams over where it ground them. Yet another use for these handy beasts.
NT
Depends on how annoying it really is but one sure way would be to replace the transformer with a toroidal one. Never known those to buzz. But you might well have problems finding a small enough mains isolation one.
Not entirely Part P compliant, however.
:o)
Seems to me the OP answered his own question in the original post. The way to stop it buzzing is to unplug the appliance. Charging a toothbrush for a ew hours once or trwice a week at times when you won't be around/near and charging the shaver for half an hour once or twice a week (that's all my Modern Phillishave needs) solves the problem nicely.
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