Drilling Into Studs for Electrical Wiring | Tool Lab | Ask This Old House
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- Опубліковано 7 лип 2024
- In this video, This Old House master electrician Heath Eastman explains how pros drill through studs for running wires through wood-framed walls.
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Master electrician, Heath Eastman shows us the trade tricks for drilling holes through studs. Heath shows us the frequently used tools, including his drills, attachments, and drill bits that make drilling accurate and code-compliant holes a breeze.
Drilling a Hole Isn’t Always as Easy as It Seems
It might sound very easy to drill holes through wood, but it can be a challenge when that wood is vertical and tightly spaced. And, with codes dictating where those holes can be, there’s more to it than simply drilling.
Drill Bits and Attachments
The most common drill bits used for drilling through studs are auger bits and spade bits. Auger bits look like large twist bits but typically have self-feeding tips and large, heavy-duty flutes that can handle a nail or two. Spade bits have wide, flat tips that remove a lot of material quickly, but are a bit less durable.
Drill Choices
While there are a few different drills that can potentially handle the job, most electricians can get by with two: a standard drill and a right-angle drill. Standard drills are great when they fit, but right-angle drills provide a lot of power and leverage, and their heads fit in tighter spaces than most standard drills.
Where to Drill
Note that the holes through which electricians run wires have a specific location requirement. They cannot be within 1 ¼-inch from either edge of the stud. This leaves about 1 inch of space in the dead center of a 2x4. To avoid accidentally drilling too close to the edge, use a ¾-inch spade bit. With 2x6s, it’s less of a concern as there is plenty of clearance.
Corners are Tricky
Drilling into corner stud assemblies can be difficult depending on the position of the other studs on either side of the corner. The best method for these applications is to use a bit extension and drill from the outside of another stud, or use a right-angle attachment to drill through the assembly.
Pulling the Wire is the Easy Part
If you’ve drilled accurately and evenly, pulling the wire is the easy part. They should pull right through the studs with a little guidance. For the corners, it may be necessary to push the wire against the wall and create a slight curve in the end. Then, simply pull the wire back slightly to align the tip with the hole and finish snaking it through.
Use Nail Plates Where Spacing is a Challenge
It’s not always possible to drill perfectly in the center of a stud, and the wires may be too close to the edge. Nail plates are ideal for these situations, as they sit on the edge of the stud underneath the sheetrock and prevent someone from driving a nail or screw through the stud and into the wire.
Where to find it?
Heath explains what tools he uses and how he uses them when replacing an electrical receptacle. He shows the right way to use wire strippers to strip back the insulation jacket on wires. Then he uses needle-nose pliers to “hook” the end of the wire in order to wrap it around the terminal screw. Heath then uses a special torquing screwdriver to tighten the screw to the correct tension.
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Drilling Into Studs for Electrical Wiring | Tool Lab | Ask This Old House
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I’m an electrical contractor as well and the most important thing Heath said was to have the right tool. That makes the job so much easier! Great video 😊
I am 20 year journeyman electrician, I dont have 90% of those tools. Who is the target audience?
@@3mtech really? there were two power tools on that table, one being a basic drill.
@@Nick_Lavigne Really.
Does the word power exist in my comment?
This was an awesome session by Heath. I love when he's able to focus on a subject and give walk-throughs and tips.
Pretty cool. Always enjoy watching how the pros like heath do it.
Lots of great tips! As a fan of knowing the right tool and right technique for a job, I know I learned a lot in this video! Thanks!
Tricks and tips always make the job go easier.
Thank you. Always good information. I love this show I watch it all day . Thank you Ask This Old House.
Great information! That was very useful.
Thanks Heath, great tips ! Blessings 🙏
Great video, love these tool lab spots.
Great Video!
ATOH and TOH are the only DIY shows that actually show you HOW to do something but also explain WHY when it comes to projects! All the other DIY shows are nothing but fluff, quick takes of before and after or just pushing the end design. Hats off to these men and women who keep it real for the rest of us!
Nice video Keith.
Nice work !!
Fantastic video 🎉
That was very cool. 👍 👍
Excellent working
Nicely done
Nice, thanks again.
I like that nail plate trick the best
Interesting topic
This is a great video I'm going to show apprentices on the way to the jobsite. Running wire sounds so easy until you mess it up lol
Some great advice for those amateurs, DIYERS out there.
Amen for the right tool
Good afternoon!! This is an incredible video! Thank you very much!!
Blessings from Chicago!❤️💯👍
Looks easier than conduit right I as well work around the Chicago area
Strike plates are code and should be installed anyway . The last time an electrician drilled holes through sonne side at a house i was working at board every single cripple above a doorway using ng big hole auger with a long bit. O was was the one doing the drywall behind the electrician, i wanted to strangle him and so did the home owner. I fixed his mistakes and needless to say he never returned , i wonder why. Maybe he should have watched this video. Lol good video. 👍🏼
Strikes plates are only code if you aren't meeting the required clearance from the edge of the stud. But I agree that it's good practice. In reality though most electricians are not going to do them if they aren't required because they need to manage costs (and labor time).
My dentist plays the same music when he starts drilling in my mouth 3:15
I've just completely abandoned the right angle drill and just use spade bits. With nice bits and a strong drill, it moves like butter
Butta ya lobstah
Use Irwin 4 inch "speedbor" bits
Every time that I rewired an o!d house I would purchase a quality nail eater 12 or 18" long auger bit made by Greenlee. They have no problem cutting thru nails. For basements used a 18" extension to drill tons of holes entire length of basements. Probably could buy a new car if I had a dollar for every hole I drilled to pull wire. Had one big house with 80 circuit breakers that think I drilled 18 holes in each basement joust.
I love Heath but I just wish he would have used a shorter screw (think drywall 1-1/4"). I get the point still comes across, but even with the standard 1-1/4" set-back where code comes in, that screw would have still hit the NM-B. Again, I get it, it was a generic showing of what might happen.
Still a great video as always!
Can I / should I run 6 AWG wire on its own through a stud?
Tried using an angle adapter with a self driving auger bit for same application but it kept trying to rip my arm off. How did you use the self-driving but so smoothly without it catching a stop in the drill and jerking around? I’ve had to telescope in and out just to get through. Quite tedious
I found that using those bits with an impact driver made all the difference. No more dislocated wrists!
The top half of my house still has knob and tube. So, from light, to light switch, and to the basement. I'm going to pull all the electrical wire in my own house and let a electrician wire the electrical panel. I like to use 12/2, but I know 14/2 is sufficient. Part of the rewiring is in the kitchen. There's no insulation in my house and I can't insulate my house, until I deactivate the knob and tube, by pulling new Romex wire first. The current wire is Solid Romex Simpull CU NM-B W/G Wire.
that's going to be a great project and save you money and worry in the long run, good luck bro.
Is there any benefit to *not* lining up holes in order to promote more structural integrity in a load bearing wall? Or is keeping the holes to 3/4" sufficient that this extra step would not be necessary? Thank you!
Well when you consider that up to 3" PVC pipe is run through a number of studs, a 3/4" hole isn't going to affect them much. Most of the load on a stud is compression pushing straight down, so the load can go around a hole, like an arch.
I love watching electricians use Impact s to drill through studs and wonder why their impacts won't last
👍
It's very different when you have drywall on both sides and you don't want to rip down your walls. Unfortunately, there's just no way around taking down one side or other of a wall, or at very least a large hole.
I've found it to be easier to run outlet wires inside the floor before concrete etc. and lighting/ switches inside the ceiling, that way you don't have to drill every stud. I don't know is that the code in US but it's common here.
I wonder if there's some metal inserts (like hose braces) into those stud holes, so when I drill through studs for hanging something heavy, the drilling halts hitting metal before drilling through electricity line causing bigger issues.
You can always add a metal plate right below the drywall on the stud with the hole too close to the edge.
I have thought of his very idea because strike plates lift the wall sheeting off of the stud, making ever so slightly unplumb walls. With a metal insert, you can increase the hole diameter, maintain structual integrity, prevent accidental wire punctures, surpass current code when its required, and not need the concern for a required hole being centered. My thought was pieces of metal conduit with a rounded over lip to prevent wire chafing and provide a depth stop against the stud, using two 'halves' long enough to mate in the middle of the stud so that each side is protecting the wire against chafing. IMO, it seems a whole lot better than strike plates.
Yes there are grommets that you can use specifically for this purpose
ua-cam.com/video/HTrsF20jA80/v-deo.html
@@baxt1412 can you please link one or provide a good search term my search history wont confuse it?
Very smart. There are a couple new houses being built down the road from me. When I’m on my lunch brake I’ll walk down and make sure they have seen this video.
@@Kevin-mp5of drum can hold more food
Jesus, my spade bits absolutely suck. I’m going to toss the right now. Great info!
Don’t throw out your old shoes before you have new ones
You can whet 'em
@@Engineer9736 I agree but I had to throw mine a year ago because they wore through and tiny animals were infesting them.
Now I haven't managed to buy new shoes yet & I've been using my brother's sandals.
Dewalt and Milwaukee tools why hidden the brand ?
Nicest sparky I ever met!
When a spade bit breaks thru, it can wreck the gearing in your drill. Ask me how I know.
impact baby
👍🏻
👍🤘🤙
You mean we’re not supposed to notch out huge chunks off the studs? How away
At 1:52, yes, a 2x4 isn't a 2x4. People in Europe, please educate my fellow Americans.
A cordless drill drives a screw through that nail plate without any problem
Where's Scott?????????😭
In today's prices, that's like $509 in lumber they just wasted
I don't understand why alleged professionals never make, use, and or reccomend a *TEMPLATE* to make the through holes?! WTH gives? I'm a DIYer and know something this simple in idea and function, yet veteran electricians with decades under their experienced belt never rven consider it? You get a scap piece of stud, make your centered hole in it, put it against the to be drilled wall stud, drill through template. Done. Centered every time, and I don't even do this for a living. It really shines when you want to drill every hole aligned to each other, as you can run a chalk line to mark the height and use a template with a line on its edge to get all your holes at the same height and depth. Professional tips? IDK...
My OCD requires me to measure each hole from the floor up so they are exactly the same height. 😆😆😆
Under the assumption the floor is leveled.
Lasers my friend
Ads are so annoying!
Hmmm, not rocket science
Show more proper circuit wiring
Can you please explain how the real pros do it now that this garbage homeowner video is over?
@@Kevin-mp5of sounds to me like you're talking about drywallers