BC268 Lee Electric Two-Family Lighted Doorbell Button Station with Name Plates

BC268 Lee Electric Two-Family Lighted Doorbell Button Station in Gold or Silver

The Lee Electric BC268 is a two-family doorbell button for a shared front door: two white lighted buttons and two name plate windows on one plate about 5⅜ inches tall. Each button has its own contact and its own screw terminals, so each one rings its own chime, and the glow makes both buttons easy to find after dark. Choose the finish from the drop-down: BC268LG in gold or BC268LS in silver. Three mounting screws come in the package.

Lee rates it for chimes, bells, and buzzers up to 16 volts, the standard doorbell transformer in most homes.

How the BC268 Works

Behind each button is a separate momentary contact with two screw terminals. Pressing a button closes that contact and completes the low-voltage circuit from the transformer to that unit's chime. The light in each button is a small lamp across the same two terminals. Between presses, a trickle of current flows through the lamp and the chime's coil, enough to glow the button but not enough to ring the chime. Press the button and the chime sounds.

Because of that trickle current, lighted buttons belong on mechanical chimes, the type with tone bars and a plunger. Most electronic chimes do not tolerate it and may hum or fail to ring. If either unit has an electronic chime, the unlighted BC203 two-family button is the safer pick.

Wiring Two Units

• Two chimes, one transformer: run one leg of the transformer to one terminal on each button, each button's second terminal to its own chime, and the chimes back to the transformer. A 16V transformer with some headroom, such as the T1615 16V 15VA, handles two lighted buttons and two mechanical chimes.
• Two transformers: if each unit already has its own chime and transformer, each button simply goes in series with its own circuit. The two sides of the plate are not connected to each other.
• Replacing an old two-button plate: move each pair of wires to the matching button, mount with the three screws, and slide name cards into the windows.

Turn off the doorbell circuits before you move wires, and tag each pair so the buttons end up matching the units. If a button does not light or its chime stays quiet, check that unit's transformer and chime first. Our doorbell transformer guide shows how.

Gold or Silver

Both finishes share the same layout, screw spacing, and window size. The silver plate is a little deeper:

• BC268LG, gold: bright gold-tone plate, about 5⅜" tall x 1½" wide x 1" deep. Three mounting holes, the outer two about 4¾" apart.
• BC268LS, silver: mirror silver plate, about 5⅜" tall x 1½" wide x 1¼" deep. Three mounting holes, the outer two about 4¾" apart.

The name plate windows are clear lenses with a white card behind each, held from the back by a snap-in carrier, so the cards cannot fall out. The mounting screws go through the plate itself: one at the top, one between the two sections, one at the bottom.

What Makes It Different

The BC268 is the lighted, two-name-plate version of Lee's two-family plate. Compared with the BC203, which has black unlighted buttons on a brass plate, you get white lighted buttons and lens-covered name windows. It is also the two-button sibling of the single BC267LG lighted button with name plate. For three units, see the BC208 three-family station.

• Two independent lighted buttons, each with its own terminals
• Two name plate windows with white card inserts under clear lenses
• Gold or silver finish to match the entrance hardware
• Three mounting screws included, no special wiring
• 16-volt rating from the manufacturer

What's in the Package

• 1 x BC268 two-button lighted plate in the finish you choose, with two name plate windows
• 2 x white name card inserts, fitted in the windows
• 3 x wood screws for mounting
• Lee instruction card

BC268 Specifications

• Brand: Lee Electric (West New York, NJ)
• Models: BC268LG gold, BC268LS silver
• Type: Wired, lighted, two-family push button station with name plates
• Buttons: 2 white lighted domes, each with its own two-terminal contact
• Name plates: 2 clear windows with white card inserts, snap-in rear carriers
• Plate size: about 5⅜" tall x 1½" wide; 1" deep (gold) or 1¼" deep (silver)
• Mounting: Flush mount with three wood screws (included); outer holes about 4¾" apart
• Voltage: Up to 16V AC; Lee does not recommend lighted buttons above 16 volts
• Works with: Transformer-powered mechanical chimes, bells, and buzzers
• Not for: Battery-powered chimes, wireless doorbells, or most electronic chimes
• UPC: 721667268304 (BC268LG), 721667268403 (BC268LS)
• Made in China for Lee Electric Inc.

Where the BC268 Fits

Duplexes and two-flats with one street door are the main use. It also suits a house with a basement or in-law apartment, a storefront with one apartment upstairs, and a small office with two tenants off one entry. Anywhere visitors arrive after dark and need to pick the right bell, the lighted buttons and the labeled windows do the work.

For a full walk-through of choosing and wiring a shared-entrance button, read our guide to doorbell buttons for duplexes and multi-unit entrances.

Starting from scratch? See our doorbell transformers and wire, pick mechanical chimes from wired doorbells, and check the push button measurement guide if you are matching an existing opening. More two-family and single options are in wired doorbell buttons.

The Lee Electric BC268 gives two households one lighted, labeled doorbell at the door. Pick gold or silver and order it here with the screws and name cards included.