DIY Wire Tunnel

[dgatwood]

I'd thought about doing this a long time ago, but my new graphics card forced the issue. It's an NVidia 7800 GT (with a fan), sitting in my new PowerMac G5 quad. Everything else in the machine is quiet as a mouse. *sigh* The temptation to unplug the GPU fan is substantial, but I like my warranty....

Replacing the graphics card fan is probably next weekend's project. For this weekend, though... the DIY Wire Tunnel.

Project requirements:

1 x PVC Pipe, 2"
2 x Desk cable grommet, 2 1/2"
1 x phillips screwdriver
1 x roll of masking tape
1 x can of PVC glue
1 x hacksaw
1 x drill
1 x piece of coarse sandpaper
1 x board, 1/2"
1 x hole cutter, 2 1/2"

Steps:

1. Drill a hole through the wall. Try to line up the hole on the opposite side as much as possible.

2. Measure the distance from the outside of one wall to the outside of the other wall.

3. Subtract the inset distance for the inner part of the desk grommet. Subtract that inset distance a second time for the opposite end.

4. Cut the pipe to that length.

5. Take the phillips screwdriver and place it in the drill chuck. Using the drill, wind the masking tape around the handle of the screwdriver until the pipe just barely slips snugly over the resulting tape ball.

6. Using the board to apply pressure on the sandpaper, spin the pipe using the drill. Trim down the ends of the pipe until they will fit inside the desk grommet. (A sharp chisel may also be used.)

7. Insert the pipe into one grommet. Insert the center piece of the grommet and press until the pipe touches the center piece and the center piece is flush with the surface of the outer piece.

8. Insert this assembly into the hole and add the second grommet. Press this assembly together. (It helps to have a second person to push from the other side.)

9. Verify your measurements.

10. Push the pipe with one grommet out the other side, being careful not to change the angle of the pipe (assuming it isn't perfectly straight).

11. Trace a line around the pipe to align the grommet correctly.

12. Remove the grommet and apply PVC glue around the rim of the pipe.

13. Replace the grommet on the pipe, aligning it with the line you drew in step 11.

14. Wait for the glue to dry.

15. Reassemble things in the wall. Use clear tape to secure the pipe to the other desk crommet.

Congratulations. You now have a fairly nice looking wire tunnel.

[notbradsohner]

nice, are you soundproofing this wall? caulk around the edges of the pipe where it meets the wall might be a good idea.

Got any pics?

[frederic]

At first, I thought you were making a tunnel to go down the length of the wall.... say, a side wall from the front of your studio to the back, then I realized you're just going through the width of a wall.

The latter is much easier. To align the holes you use a long drill bit - the kind that looks like a giant screw. They have them in many sizes including 2". Just bore all the way through.

[dgatwood]

Originally Posted by notbradsohner

nice, are you soundproofing this wall? caulk around the edges of the pipe where it meets the wall might be a good idea.

It's not -that- loud. 61 dBA or so at 3 inches away, mostly wind rushing noise. The plain old wall does an adequate job of silencing it under normal use. Now when I ran the hardware test CD to check my new RAM... with all the fans spun up... no comment.

Originally Posted by notbradsohner

Got any pics?

Sure. Here ya go.

[elenore19]

Sorry, I'm a noob. But what was DIY stand for?

[SRR]

Do it yourself

[pdlstl]

If sound getting through this becomes a problem (ie: from tracking room to control room) stuff the hole with foam.