I finally talked to a senior installer who changed how I run cable through attics

Last week I was on a job with this older guy named Dave who's been doing installs since the 90s. He watched me spend 20 minutes threading coax through a tight attic space and just shook his head. He told me I was fighting the house instead of working with it, and showed me how to use the roof pitch and joist direction to plan my path before even climbing up. It hit me hard because I've been doing this for 3 years and never once thought about reading the structure first. I always just went in and started pulling until something worked. Now I'm wondering if there are other basic tricks I'm missing that could save an hour on every job. Has anyone else got tips from a veteran that made you feel like you learned the hard way?

2 comments

2 Comments

fionamurphy5d ago

That bit about fighting the house is spot on.

milalewis5d ago

Walked into my place the other day and realized I'd hung a mirror directly across from the front door, which according to fionamurphy is apparently asking for all my luck to bounce right back outside lmao. Now I'm stressing about every little thing I've done in this apartment, like I put my bed facing east and my mom said that's great for energy but my friend swears it's a disaster.

-1