Which tool to chase walls for wiring (Ed.)
- Thread starter jcaan
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In an empty house, use a wall chaser or an angle grinder. But the dust created will be horrendous.
You’ll blunt a multi tool blade after you’ve gone 6 inches.
If it’s only one chase, get a wide blade mortar chisel like this and get hammering!
You’ll blunt a multi tool blade after you’ve gone 6 inches.
If it’s only one chase, get a wide blade mortar chisel like this and get hammering!
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If you have an SDS drill with a hammer feature then these are great
Yes, they're great. I found one (plus a couple of other chisels) in a set of 'large' SDS drills I bought a while ago and didn't initially realise/understand what it was for - but since I found/worked out, I've been very pleased! - and the whole 'set'cost me less than Screwfix are selling that one chisel for!
Kind Regards, John
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So THe tv will go on the breast.
Baring in mind there's a carpet there now...
What will be the best method to get a double socket behind the TV . Side of the breast ins a switched fused box.
also behind where the fireplace used to be seems hard and not hollow when I knock on it. It might be filled with brick at the back.
I would suggest you drill a hole where you want the socket and see if it goes through into the chimney then do the same from the side and drop a weighted string.
You could remove the vent and use a light and mirror to have a look.
You could remove the vent and use a light and mirror to have a look.
Definitely not (make as much mess as the grinder).
In terms of mess, there's probably not much to choose between the 'scooper' and manual chiselling - but the former will be much easier/quicker. Both produce primarily 'small bits' of plaster, and just a little dust and even the dust is relatively 'coarse' so will essentially 'fall' (onto dust sheets over your new carpet, one hopes!). On the other hand, a grinder will fill the entire room, and quite possibly much of the house,with clouds of fine dust,which will take for ever to totally get rid of!
Kind Regards, John
The big questions IMO are:
1. how thick is your plaster
2. how deep do you need the chase to be.
3. How solid are your bricks.
My experiance is my SDS+ with chisel bit (though I only tried the straight chisel, I didn't try the scoop) will go through plaster almost effortlessly, on the other hand the rock hard bricks that they seem to build houses from round here are an absoloute nightmare. With enough effort the SDS+ will break bits off, but it requires a lot more pressure and is a lot harder to control.
Mind you i've resorted to drilling plugging and screwing to fix cable clips, because the nails that come with the clips won't make a scratch in the rock hard brick, and fall out immediately from the sand like mortar.
1. how thick is your plaster
2. how deep do you need the chase to be.
3. How solid are your bricks.
My experiance is my SDS+ with chisel bit (though I only tried the straight chisel, I didn't try the scoop) will go through plaster almost effortlessly, on the other hand the rock hard bricks that they seem to build houses from round here are an absoloute nightmare. With enough effort the SDS+ will break bits off, but it requires a lot more pressure and is a lot harder to control.
Mind you i've resorted to drilling plugging and screwing to fix cable clips, because the nails that come with the clips won't make a scratch in the rock hard brick, and fall out immediately from the sand like mortar.
I have the same issue with the plaster itself in my (mainly Victorian) house. The plaster is generally very thick, but comes in two different types -some is like sand, and some is like very hard concrete - neither of which is suitable to nail clips into
Hi Thanks for your suggestion. I'm not sure what you mean by dropping a weighted string.
The holes you are referring to .. are they 1 front of the breast where the socket will go. Second one on the side of the breast , same side of the switched fused box ?
Thanks for that. Deffo made my mind up. Will use the scooper and sds drill.
Thanks for that ... I have posted the pics above of the chimney breast. If you don't mind can you show me how you'd go about doing it.socket will be behind the TV, if I chase down to the vent can I let some wire hang behind the vent without trunking ? And then chase below the vent and and add more trunking ??
Also by taking the vent off I possible can see how thick the plaster is ??
Lastly, should I then pull the carpet and let the cables go under the floor boards or can I take them horizontal ?
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Angle grinder in one hand, vacuum cleaner in the other. Same technique for an SDS drill, but easier with an assistant. Wall chase tools exist, with a hood that has a port onto which your dust extraction device can be attached. They're little more than a fancy angle grinder with multiple blades
You might want to consider a scutching chisel or an Sds scutching chisel and you can get combed scutches for them making it easier too.
NO to an angle grinder you will fill the house with dust and if you use a standard vac with it you will also kill the vac.
The TV should be fitted so the middle is just above eye height as you sit on the sofa, for me that means the bottom of the 55" TV is 2 foot off the floor.
So in your case that looks to be just above the air vent.
The easiest way is to drill a hole in the side facing the triple socket low down just above the skirting into the chimney space then take off the air vent cover and reach down through it and pass through the hole you just drilled an extension lead with the plug cut off leaving the trailing socket on the other end which will be left inside the chimney space, then drill a hole behind the TV and after cutting off the TV plug pass that wire through the hole and via the chimney space bring it out of the open vent hole where you can then work on re attaching the TV plug which then plugs into the trailing socket you just put in. The the whole thing is then left inside the chimney space.
Only 2 holes drilled and no chopping in needed.
Better yet - if your tv's power cable is an pluggable one then just get a longer one and do the same but without the extension cable.
The TV should be fitted so the middle is just above eye height as you sit on the sofa, for me that means the bottom of the 55" TV is 2 foot off the floor.
So in your case that looks to be just above the air vent.
The easiest way is to drill a hole in the side facing the triple socket low down just above the skirting into the chimney space then take off the air vent cover and reach down through it and pass through the hole you just drilled an extension lead with the plug cut off leaving the trailing socket on the other end which will be left inside the chimney space, then drill a hole behind the TV and after cutting off the TV plug pass that wire through the hole and via the chimney space bring it out of the open vent hole where you can then work on re attaching the TV plug which then plugs into the trailing socket you just put in. The the whole thing is then left inside the chimney space.
Only 2 holes drilled and no chopping in needed.
Better yet - if your tv's power cable is an pluggable one then just get a longer one and do the same but without the extension cable.
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One thing though the 3socket - where does that surface mounted trunking come from/ go to because by the looks of it its single trunking indicating that the 3 socket is perhaps already a spur so you cannot run an extra socket off it but you can use a flexible extension cable.
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