What is this?

[Racerx88]

I just bought this home in June. Anyone enlighten me on what this is?
View media item 5521

 

[leftyz]

where do the wires go?

 

[jrsulo]

transfomer for the doorbell

 

[Stuart in MN]

transfomer for the doorbell

Yup, most likely.

 

[ForceFed70]

Or for a fire/alarm system, but most likely for the doorbell.

 

[Racerx88]

Thanks! aThe brown wire heads into the space above the garage.. I'll have to check. So, when I drywall.... what's my best course of action? Should the transformer be re-attached to the j-box somehow?

I'm a real n00b when it comes to electrical.

 

[jrsulo]

That box can't go behind the drywall....no splices can be "buried".

 

[Stuart in MN]

Yes, it should be attached to the junction box. There should probably be a ****** that fits into that hole in the junction box cover plate, and then you put a nut on the back to hold it in place. Remember that the junction box needs to be accessible after you put up the drywall; if you don't like where it's located now, it can probably be moved pretty easily.

 

[Racerx88]

Yes, it should be attached to the junction box. ... Remember that the junction box needs to be accessible after you put up the drywall.

Thanks!
Just to clarify: I can drywall around the junction box as long as I can remove the transformer and cover?

 

[Racerx88]

I think I got my answer right here

 

[OccupantRJ]

You got it. It has to be accessible for service work, to get to the wiring. The transformer was likely originally attached to the cover through the hole in the cover, and the attaching nut or setscrew backed off, letting the transformer dangle. The small wires coming off the other side(secondary) of the transformer should be low voltage, usually between 6 and 24 volts. Low voltage wiring falls under different rules than higher voltages.