I have seen the 5 or 6 foot drill bits use for drilling wall plates between floors. But what if the the data/voice jack opening is 2-3 feet off the ground on the first floor, and a stiff drill of the length I just discribed cannot flex from the 90 degree angle to the 0 degree angle though the hole and up into the first floors base plate without bending? I know what some of you may say is drill down from the attics wall plate down but what if the wall is a outside wall where the roof rafter is nailed to that wall? that leave no room to drill strait down.

Secondly, how do you keep the drill center in the wall plate of the second floor so it does not drill off at a angle though the sheet rock?

They have a handle that is supposed to allow you to bend the shaft with one hand while holding the drill in the other. That said, my experience is to forget that thing and cut the sheetrock because it will cause enough damage so that you will have to patch anyway. You are right- how do you keep the bit in the center when you can't even see it.

I have one in the truck and the only time it get's used is when I can drill straight down from the attic and look through the top hole with a flashlight to see where I am. Even then it's almost not worth it.

-Hal

It's not too hard to center the bit if the wall is hollow, but, it there is an insulation, that's abit tough. If drilling trough too plate, for me it was obvious because it was visible where it was hammered to the wall studs and it was also between the joists of the attic. I had to drill through top plate of the wall that is perpendicular to the outside wall in a place about 2 feet away from the corner, space was tight to work in but I was able to fit the drill and 6 in 3/8 bit I believe it was , the fit of the drill with bit was tight as well.

I love using those big bits makes for nice clean job. I just bought a fiber optic camera so you can see into the wall through the small hole you just drilled , its always a good idea to see where your drilling....
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Like Hal said cut the sheetrock. It is much easier to patch then to mess around with those long bits. I once had a job like you mentioned where you need to drill in from the attic under the low edge of roof. I used a bunch of those 1' extensions and kept adding them on until I got threw the floor. Its not worth the hassle.

I remember the first time I used my flexibit. The place had vinyl siding....can anyone guess where this is going?

Carl

as long as it was not through the back of a dishwasher like the first and last time I used mine.

I was interesting explaining to the insurance company how it happened

Ohh this thread is getting interesting.

What if the owner is a picky bastard and does not want ANY holes other then the access hole where the jack plate is to be installed?

I only bring this up because some one in telebroker mentioned it. I am not a expert sheet rock tech, so may have to find some one with 5-10 references on what the cost would be to repair what I just drilled into.

Now, as to drilling through insulation, that would be a interesting problem. I was thinking of some kind of centering devise that would have two spring loaded ears and a center bearing that would keep the drill centered.

So what are the drill types that drill down from the attic and are super flextible, or come in pieces? I would like to try on and see how well it works. We have a large screen tv on the wall and would like to feed some cat 5 but it is a outside wall.

What if the owner is a picky bastard and does not want ANY holes other then the access hole where the jack plate is to be installed?

And sometimes because of the finish on the wall that's what you are faced with too. Only you know what's possible and sometimes you just have to walk away if an alternative (like another location) can't be agreed to.

-Hal

You can't get there from here :-) A flexibit has to come from below into the attic on an outside wall, the slope of the roof doesnt' give you enough room to do it from above.

I bought the TEK-4 inspection camera to replace the inexpensive one I own. It only gives me about 3 feet and I don't think I can get extensions, but it's enough.

When you use the flexibit, and the guide, you just have to make sure the point scores the sill plate before you start pushing too hard. I like the bit with the screw point like this from Klein https://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wc...ooglebase%2d%5f%2dD27X%2d%5f%2d100662414 It seems to seat better than some of the others.

Hire a residential alarm installer to run the cable in the wall for you...its cheaper than fixing the booboos you are going to make if you try to do it yourself.

I like to think we are just as good as they are. What they are good at is patching and matching the finish. Makes them look like magicians.

-Hal

Whats the exterior siding if its vinyl then you can remove it and go through the wall from outside. Again I agree with Hal that some jobs are best to walk away from.

This is what I was talking about to go from above you can keep adding them together but make sure they lock good or you will lose them.

metalcom,

Do you have a url reference for that extension?

We don't touch this kind of stuff ..... the average telecom tech has little to no experience running wires in a residential environment. We dabbled in it a few times years ago and it seemed like there was always some sort of problem or issue to deal with.

I have come to the conclusion that if a job takes us outside of our comfort zone it often turns out poorly ..... and i have seen that most customers appreciate the honest answer that they are better off with someone else.

They are made by Irwin I get them at Aubuchon Hardware but most hardware stores carry them.

I think I also saw them in Lowe's

I've used extensions in the past which had set screws to keep everything together. I don't know where to buy them, but I would recommend looking for something like that. Otherwise there's a good chance you will lose something in the wall.

I'm definitely on the "don't do residential" side of the fence though. Residential cabling requires additional tools and skills that you don't need for commercial cabling. If you don't plan on doing a lot of residential, it's not worth doing any in my opinion.

Something tells me this picky client won't be happy no matter what you do. He won't be happy if you damage the wall, but he probably won't like the bill he gets after you spend 4 hours trying to pull the cable without cutting into the wall. And what if you spend lots of extra time trying to do it his way and then you still end up needing to patch the wall?

Use caution with this one.

I don't recommend that you keep this person as a customer. BUT, pry back the baseboard. Take a coat hanger, cut a straight length, and chuck it in your drill. Cut the end to a 45-degree angle, and use it as a thin drill bit to drill into the basement or crawl space. Leave the hanger in there while you crawl under, find it, and measure over 2" and drill UP from the underneath. Drill two holes, and you can shine your light in one and look up through the other. If there are no obstructions, you can safely go back up, cut out the hole for the box, and send your wire UP from the crawl space. Remove the hanger, replace the base board, and be done.

Clinton,

Read in Sundance that some one came across a picky owner. But personally, I have never done residential.

There was this house monitoring alarm company that was offering a percentage of the installs of there equipment.

Other then that, I have always enjoyed doing commercial work. Beldon trainers are coming to town for training and certification. I was told that getting citified would allow me to bid on some contracts.