Daily Archives: May 3, 2017

Door Bell Enclosure

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The old doorbell ringer was replaced with a Raspberry Pi processor that plays a mp3 tune when the front door bell button is pressed. See Zeek’s Raspberry Pi Doorbell post for the details of the electronics and code. Here is the completed upstairs enclosure made from redwood, pine, and mahogany scraps. The redwood came from siding retrieved from Grandpa Jake’s old house on the ranch.

This shelf was installed in the space occupied by the original door chime. The wires coming from the 24 volt a/c transformer and the line which runs to the outside door bell switch were located here. The transformer was just three foot above the original hole in the wall in the attic. Since I had just a 3 foot run to the outlet powering the transformer, I elected to run an AC line from the attic to the shelf to power the raspberry Pi and the Speakers. The other option was to buy a 24 vac to 5 vdc converter. They can be found on Amazon for about $12.

Here is the shelf with all the bits and pieces in place. Note the french cleat fastened to the top of the shelf back that is screwed to the wall. The enclosure will mate with it to hang on the wall. The raspberry Pi was also mounted to the back with two small screws that run through empty holes in the processor board.

After building a hollow box of redwood to cover the electronic components, I added pine strips along the inside of the face to act as a stop for the grill which would be placed against it from the inside.

I cut dodos in the face frame pieces using a pull saw and a square to keep the kerfs square. The waste was removed with a chisel.

Horizontal grill accents were inserted into the dados and glued in place. The dados were cut before assembly.

Vertical grill accents made from mahagony were glued into the dodos cut in the vertical pieces. They stand proud about 3/8 inch for a 3D effect.

The inside of the enclosure with the grill in place. I used a scrap of pegboard to wrap the fabric around. Fabric is glued. Note the two friction fit slats on either side of the grill that hold it in place.

The downstairs speaker for the Raspberry Pi doorbell project is supported by a simple platform make from a 5mm plywood back, two triangular side pieces that have dado for a 5mm base and a french cleat installed at the top of the back. The hole in the back is for the speaker wire. The platform is attached to the wall with drywall anchors.

The cover for the speaker was made from a simple box assembled with glue and nails. additional facade pieces were glued around the inside perimeter of the opening, and you can see the horizontal grill pieces being glued in space here.

Here the vertical grill pieces are added. They are wider than the horizontal pieces and set up proud of the face.

This is a view from the back side of the enclosure after inserting a face made from 5mm plywood and covered with a piece of fabric glued to the back side of the faceplate. You can also see the mating french cleat for the cover.

The cover was finished with Watco natural oil and simply slipped over the platform. The french cleats hold the two pieces together with no fasteners required.

Hall Organizer for Bekah

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The area next to the front door can be chaotic, especially with young kids. Here is Bekah’s solution.

I started by gluing up 8 foot sections of white fir. The boards were too long for my 4 inch jointer, so I hand planed the edges with my Bailey #7.

Three 2x8s were joined with 3/8 inch dowels and clamped. The 8 foot length was later cut in half for the bottom and top of the bench.

It’s tough to find perfectly flat 2×8 construction lumber. So after the glue dried overnight, a bit of flatening was required. The glue-up was too wide for my planer, so my Bailey #5 did the trick. I used an 18 inch steel rule on edge to gauge flatness. The final thickness was 1-1/8 inches.

Dados were cut into the sides and horizontal sections to hold dividers. The tenons were adjusted with a rabbet plane for a good fit. Here the pieces are being dry-fit before glue-up. Shoulder tenons were used on the horizontal pieces to hide any joinery errors.

Here is the actual glue-up of the sides. Notice the clamping cauls and the pipe clamp extensions . Diagonal measurements were made to ensure squareness. Because of the number of joints, the glue-up was done in two stages.

Here is the second glue-up where the top is attached. The dados in the top were cut the full length. You can see the small pieces glued into the front portion of the data where the top overhangs the base. The screw clamps are holding a 2-1/2 board that closes off the empty area under the bottom section of cubbies. This is so mom doesn’t have to search for errant articles underneath the bench.

The upper section of the piece was made much the same as the bench below. It’s purpose is to provide hooks for coats and backpacks, as well as baskets for hats and gloves.

The back pieces were tongue and grooved to allow for across the grain wood movement. They also provide the structure for the hooks, and for hanging the piece on the wall. The tongue and groove boards reside in a rabbet cut into the sides.

Levi hanging out on the bench. Dimensions are 17 inches tall, 48 wide and 16 deep.