Finally figured out how to run coax through a finished wall without patching drywall

Had a job last Tuesday in an old house in the historic district. Customer wanted a cable line from the basement to the second floor bedroom. No drop ceiling, no crawl space, just plaster and lathe. I was about to cut a bunch of holes when an old timer I work with sometimes told me about using a glow rod and a magnet. Basically taped a small rare earth magnet to the end of the rod, used another magnet on the outside to guide it around fire blocks. Worked on the first try. Took maybe 20 minutes total. Has anyone else tried this method for tricky wall runs?

3 comments

3 Comments

angelamurphy2d ago

Ha, sounds easier than my usual method of swearing at the wall for an hour.

-1

rowanw912d ago

The swearing method has a 100 percent success rate at making me feel better, even if the shelf is still crooked. It's the only part of the process I'm actually good at. So I'll keep at it.

joseph482d ago

Oh man, "swearing at the wall for an hour" really hits home... that's basically my default approach for anything that involves a hammer and a stubborn nail. But yeah, once you figure out the trick to getting the wall plug to actually stay put instead of spinning around, it cuts out like 80 percent of the frustration. I guess the swearing part is still a good warm up though... gets the blood flowing for the real work.