[ectoplasm]

A mate of mine's looking to chase speaker cables into his walls that are brick with just a coat of plaster and paint.

What's the best way of doing this without causing half the wall to crumble away?

.

[Mr_Wistles]

I just did the last week. I used a grinder for the outline and then a bolster to take it down to the desired depth.

[ectoplasm]

Care to elaborate, possibly with links to equipment? Neither of us have done anything like this before so need as much info as possible.

Thanks in advance

[clockworks]

As the previous post says, use a stone-cutting disk on an angle grinder to cut 2 slots in the wall, an inch or so apart (to suit the size of the trunking/conduit/cover strip). Use a narrow bolster or cold-chisel to remove the material between the 2 slots.

Make sure to wear heavy gloves and eye protection - a shattered cutting disk can blind you.

Any DIY superstore will have all the equipment you need, shouldn't cost more that £50. If you are unsure what to buy, ask for some help in the store.

[Johnny Thunder]

Remwmber to scan the wall for cables/pipes first.

[Jeffers01]

Prepare for dust when you use the grinder......then prepare again. Finally, prepare for more dust!

[ectoplasm]

Thanks for all the tips, much appreciated

Is knocking the channel out with a bolster a long job? Is the brick easily persuaded out or does it require prolonged bashing?

We'll have to coincide our free time to do the work so it would be good to know roughly how long it's likely to take.

[clockworks]

Originally Posted by ectoplasm

Thanks for all the tips, much appreciated

Is knocking the channel out with a bolster a long job? Is the brick easily persuaded out or does it require prolonged bashing?

We'll have to coincide our free time to do the work so it would be good to know roughly how long it's likely to take.

It depends on what the "bricks" are made of.

Normal modern house bricks are easy to break. Older house bricks (and modern engineering bricks) are a lot harder to break.

Modern concrete bocks are also easier to work with than the older ones.

Whatever the walls are made of, the chiselling should be quicker than the grinding.

[Mr_Wistles]

I chased out about 4 metres. The grinding took about three minutes and chiseling back took me about 3-4 hours.

The amount of dust was ridiculous. We spent most of Sunday cleaning and I am still finding it everywhere.

[AMc]

I have read good reports on using chase cutters but I'm not brave enough to try it so the speaker wire dangles off the wall.

http://www.hss.com/g/8311/Diamond_Ch...ine_Bosch.html

http://www.speedyhire.co.uk/technica...em=333&fPage=1

You seriously can't imagine the dust - you MUST wear a mask

Cover EVERYTHING in the room

Seriously...... the dust....... trust me.

[rodster]

I would suggest you try your local hire centre, as you can hire a wall chaser with dust extraction system for under £100.

The dust extraction works a treat and will stop the majority of dust.

Also I cannot stress how important it is to confirm there are no electrical cables or pipes within the wall.

[DarkEntity]

Last time we took out a plaster wall ther was dust everywhere, so a tip that we used was to get an old knackered hoover and switch it on with a pipe where the bag would usually be it then sucks the dust out the pipe to where ever you want.

ou wouldnt beleive the difference it made

[CG_Gordon]

Im also about to undertake this same task, how do you go about scanning the wall for pipes etc. I have a gas fire near the area Im going to be chasing cables and I certainly dont want to hit any pipes for it.

[clockworks]

Originally Posted by CG_Gordon

Im also about to undertake this same task, how do you go about scanning the wall for pipes etc. I have a gas fire near the area Im going to be chasing cables and I certainly dont want to hit any pipes for it.

Get a "stud & pipe" detector from B&Q, Homebase, etc. This is a small battery powered device that beeps when it detects metal pipes/cables, or woodwork. There's normally a switch that selects whether the device responds to wood or metal.

You just set the sensitivity against a pice of wood or metal that you can see, then "wipe" the device back and forth in the area you want to scan.

Gas pipes shouldn't be running along walls, they normally go under the floor. Better safe than sorry, though!.