Wallpapering/fabric behind surface mounted switch pattress boxes?

[dave163]

Hi not sure if this is an electrical question or a decorating question. We are in the process of decorating and trying to recreate an "arts and crafts" style room with fabric pasted onto the wall (specifically hessian or burlap, rather than wallpaper). All the sockets and light switches in the room protrude from the wall in surface mounted boxes so for each one there is just a small hole in the plasterboard where the wires come out.

My question is should we remove the switches and pattress boxes, make a small hole in the hessian, paste the hessian to the wall behind the switch, feed the wire through the hole and reconnect the switches and boxes? Or would the presence of fabric behind the switch be a problem (for the building inspector, or a potential fire hazard)? I thought it was normal procedure in the case of surface mounted boxes to remove them and wallpaper behind them, and presumably wallpaper and fabric would both have similar fire properties? The difficulty with the alternative approach, namely cutting a cross in the wall covering and folding back around the switch as opposed to behind it, is that being fabric it will tear easily. The back of the pattress box is metal, which is what would be pressing against the fabric/wallpaper/paint/whatever finish of the wall.

This is the effect we are trying to get to:

For the avoidance of any doubt I will be turning the electrics off at the mains before I remove and rewire any switch! Any advice most appreciated.

 

[chivers67]

Can you not Get an electrician to sink the boxes in the finish will be much better. You can purchase switches plates that allow you to put matching wall paper inside them so they don't show as much too.

 

[Iggifer]

If they’re on plasterboard you just need some dry lining boxes and a padsaw and you can sink them yourself if you’re confident.

 

[mwatsonxx]

If they’re on plasterboard you just need some dry lining boxes and a padsaw and you can sink them yourself if you’re confident.

Can you not Get an electrician to sink the boxes in the finish will be much better. You can purchase switches plates that allow you to put matching wall paper inside them so they don't show as much too.

Thats the way to do it.

 

[dave163]

Thanks but chasing flush into wall isn't an option here. We have wooden antique style switches throughout the house that are mounted on pattresses so it would wreck consistency with other rooms. Besides I like the surface mounted boxes and paid good money for them as they are very stylish not the bog standard plastic industrial stuff you can get anywhere.

Also I'd like to start putting on the fabric today and dont want to waste time digging holes into my wall! So back to the original question - can I mount the boxes onto the fabric surface or must it be cut around them upto the edges?

 

[EFLImpudence]

Yes you can mount them on the fabric.

 

[sparkwright]

I think there may be some confusion.

By 'pattress' do you mean the wooden 'plinth' of the re-pro antique switches?

I believe the modern re-pro antique switches do fit over flushed in boxes, yet still appear to be surface mounted.

Pictures may help.

 

[dave163]

Thanks Sparkwright that's exactly it. Repro swirch plate mounted onto a slimline wooden box that looks a bit like a very basic picture frame so the switch plate is about an inch off the wall. The wooden frame contains a metal box which is what the gubbins behind the switch face that would otherwise sit inside the wall fits into. Is it OK to mount that on top of fabric covering the wall is my question, hopefully yes.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Yes you can mount them on the fabric.

 

[sparkwright]

x2

 

[sparkwright]

There should be a quote above this. Quote function gone up the wall.

 

[SUNRAY]

There should be a quote above this. Quote function gone up the wall.

You can't automatically quote a quote any more, it has to be done as a multiquote:

Yes you can mount them on the fabric.

X2

 

[ban-all-sheds]

You can't automatically quote a quote any more, it has to be done as a multiquote:

Indeed.

This is deemed to be an improvement, and a helpful feature of benefit to all forum users, by the clowns that chose the new forum package. And, of course, was regarded as something desirable to be done by the cretins who deliberately wrote the software to behave like that in the first place.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

My question is should we remove the switches and pattress boxes, make a small hole in the hessian, paste the hessian to the wall behind the switch, feed the wire through the hole and reconnect the switches and boxes?

Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever paint or paper around a socket or switch etc, be it flush or surface mounted.

Always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always remove the accessory completely, paint/paper the wall, and later replace it.

 

[JohnW2]

<around 230 words, and almost as many commas, when the one word "Yes" would have been adequate!>