Wiring in a Basment Soffit


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Old 02-11-15, 06:41 PM
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Wiring in a Basment Soffit

This project is in Shawnee, Kansas which is a part of Johnson County.

Just planning the wiring for my basement finish. I have an area with HVAC, plumbing and an I-beam that will be framed with a typical soffit. It will run almost right through the center of the 500 Sq ft area I will be finishing. I plan to drywall the ceiling.

Is it okay to use that soffit as a wire chase? I will be framing it with 2x4's running horizontally below the obstacles. The way I envision it the wires would lay flat across the top of the 2x4s providing 1.5 in of space between them and anything used to fasten the drywall to the ceiling.

To further clarify, the way I have been told this works is that I would not have to fasten the electric cables to the soffit. They would just run through it, sit on top of the 2x4's until I reach the unfinished area. At this point I would run them to the electric box (likely through holes in the joists).

Again, does this sound okay, or am I the recipient of some poor advice?
 
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Old 02-11-15, 06:57 PM
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Cables that are fished do not need to be secured. Since it sounds like you will have access to the framing you will need to secure the cables at the required intervals. For NM cables this would be no more than every 4.5'.
 
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Old 02-11-15, 07:08 PM
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Thanks. All else sounds okay (using the soffits as the wire chase)?
 
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Old 02-11-15, 07:16 PM
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As long as the required 1.25" from the surface is maintained it sounds good.

I have glued 2x's in the web of the beam to secure the cable to. You could also use something like a 3M Stak-it to secure the cables.
 
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Old 02-12-15, 08:04 AM
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NM-B cable can be attached directly to the beam with these clips.

Cable Snap Clip

OR.....the NM-B cables can be secured with Colorado Jim supports fastened to the soffit framing.

http://www.erico.com/category.asp?category=R962
 

Last edited by ray2047; 02-12-15 at 08:12 AM. Reason: Fix link.
 

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