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Running Wire to New Outlets


In an ideal world, electrical fixtures would all be installed before any plasterboard was screwed in. In reality, home offices and new lighting schemes can force people to rejigger their wiring after the house is occupied. Fortunately, this is an easier proposition than you might expect.

The main problem is finding a route that gets new wires or cables from the nearest existing receptacle to the site of a new circuit box (this process is known as "fishing" it through the walls). To determine that route, you first need to check for studs that can interfere with the cable's path. If they do, you'll have to break through the wall and chisel out a notch in the stud for the wiring to go through. Once you have created an unobstructed path for the cable, you'll need a 'fish tape,' which is a steel ribbon with a hook on the end that is rigid enough to push through spaces, but springy enough to make it around corners.

Two people are needed to "fish" the cable. One person attaches the new cable to the fish tape and passes it along the path you've planned while the second person snags the fish tape as it appears by the hole for the new electrical fixture.

 

 









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