Disable beep in electric fireplace (Round II)

Thread Starter

kraut1971

Joined Dec 13, 2016
2
I realize I'm bringing up a subject that was discussed at least 7 years ago, but I'm having the same issue with a new Muskoka fireplace that I just bought my wife. We love the fireplace as it looks great and warms the room up nicely. However, my dog goes INSANE whenever we use it because the pitch of the beep from the circuit board within the fireplace is identical to the one on his invisible fence. Whenever we turn the fireplace on (or off), or adjust any of its settings, BEEP! and my dog starts freaking out. . .

I found this near-identical discussion on the forum, but it's 7 years old so I thought it'd be best to start a new thread:
http://forum.allaboutcircuits.com/threads/disable-beep-in-electric-fireplace.30680/

Referencing the attached thread:
  • Per beenthere's recommendation, I added a drop of superglue (twice) to the speaker but my dog's ears are keen enough to pick up the muffled sound. I need to just turn the sound completely off.
  • I'm now leaning towards SgtWookie's approach [and I quote, "I put a sheet metal screw in it, then removed it - silence is golden."] but was thinking a 1/8" drill bit might reduce the risk of me inadvertently cracking the circuit board (compared to driving a sheet metal screw through the speaker).
My main concern is that I don't know enough about circuit boards to be totally confident that I won't be at risk of electric shock (I'd rather look like a fool asking the question here than find out the hard way that I should have asked the question!). I obviously will have the unit unplugged, but are there any capacitors that I should steer clear of before performing this home surgery on the piezo speaker?
  • Or, should I follow mik3's suggestion: An easier way to disable the buzzer is to cut the lead of one of the two resistors at the right of the buzzer.
I just want the unit to be quiet (i.e., not to BEEP) - any other recommendations or clarifications would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for your time & expertise!

Mike



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drc_567

Joined Dec 29, 2008
1,156
... In order to change the frequency at which the speaker vibrates, you have to increase the 'mass' of the part that vibrates. Try placing a few pieces of electrical tape on the speaker surface.
 

Dodgydave

Joined Jun 22, 2012
11,284
If you can see the buzzer or get hold of it, cut it off, or pierce it with a screwdriver and lift it off.

Or fill it with araldite or other hard setting compound.
 

GopherT

Joined Nov 23, 2012
8,009
@kraut1971
How barbaric. I'm disappointed that someone didn't suggest converting the tone to a seasonal chime. A nice rendition of "76 trombones" for July 4 would have been nice. Why waste a perfectly good speaker?
 
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