I has to bash a hole in our chimney in order to get the wire for the fire through. It is a cavity behind the hole, so have a feeling that if I just walloped a load of foam/fillet in it would keep falling through…

Any tips?

Feed a bit of cardboard folded with a string knotted through it into hole, pull the string so the cardboard pulls flat against the hole. Fill hole which now has a back, cut string flush when filler is dry.

could you not have bashed the hole behind the skirting board and run the wire up inside the chimney?

there’s probably all sorts of regs about passing wires through walls now regarding using a duct and so on and you’ll still have a big wire hanging out half way up the wall?

Have you lost your drill ! ?

😉

Bonding.( and a bit of filler to tidy up when the bonding is dry).

Cheers.

The hole is exactly the same height as the top of the TV stand which will be next to the chimney breast…I figured it would be easier to conceal the wire this way…

This is the TV stand – if the wire was any lower I would see it (and I couldn’t have put it against the floor as that would have meant bashing out loads more fireplace!

Have you lost your drill ! ?

🙂

My drill has got a small bit! Chisel much more satisfying!

My drill has got a small bit!

How big a drill bit did you think you needed for a length of cable ?

Presume you must have access to the back of the hole, in which case I would bond a bit of hardboard or thin ply to it, and fill with standard filler.

There was a plug thing on the end of it…

No access to the back anymore, it’s been plastered in. It’s a fire like this:

I’ll try the cardboard thing…

I like the cardboard trick. In 20 years I’ve never used that one however I do have a drill.
Most importantly though, have you informed building control?

Make sure it’s fairly stiff cardboard, the corrugated stuff from banana boxes is perfect. I saved my security deposit at Uni when I had a geological hammer/wall interface using this method.

ive done the cardboard trick…..

only it was a bit of plaster board with a screw in it – which i used to hold it while i plastered over.

House builds are crap aren’t they, minor issues like this involve lots of grief knocking holes in things and then having to do some kind of bodge repair. My vision is some kind of easily accessible/removable wall panelling and proper cable conduits behind.

Take my TV aerial wire, crappy coax which I’d like to replace with some screened cable. The existing coax seems to have been secured behind the plasterboard to various purlins and to remove/replace would not make sense. I’d have to run fresh cable from the aerial, outside the house and then drill holes in masonry/plasterboard to get it to where required. If the cable ran through a conduit then things would be must simpler.

A lot more expensive though 🙂

I have looked on the BC website…is there anything in particular? It’s a plug in appliance with a wire going through a wall….

wrightysons being funny i think….

how ever in all seriousness are you allowed to run a standard appliance powercord plastered into a wall….making it a fixed appliance – different rules apply dont they ?

my spark had a fit at what my previous owner had done WRT plastering flex into the wall with a 13amp plug on the end for some wall mounted lights.

(FWIW and what your doing it wouldnt bother me in the slightest but just be aware about childrens faces , baby robins and all the other shite that some folk come out with on here)

I wondered that, but the fire is sold as an ‘inset’ appliance – the instructions tell you to make sure it’s earthed and with sufficient ventilation.

There was a plug thing on the end of it…

I think I might have removed the plug and passed the cable through a hole drilled to the correct size

i reckon it was a moulded plug(stupid things) and he didnt want to cut it ?

trail_rat – Member
i reckon it was a moulded plug(stupid things) and he didnt want to cut it ?

man up, cut it off

Yep. It will look fine once I have sorted it….

Stuff it with a ball of silver foil or similar then skim over the top with filler.

get a very small drill, get some matches (or similar thin things, I’ve seen chicken mesh used), drill holes into plaster (*side on if you see what I mean) and then bridge holes with matches etc 1st filler very lightly then crack on

or get a bit or card etc and rake out around hole so it is stepped, put card on step, lightly cover over and run

Looks about hamster sized to me.

Himley looks a bit cold

A piece of wood just small enough to fit behind the hole but long enough to have around an inch either side, put a screw in the centre long enough to hold on to, now place the wood behind the hole and now put 2 screws in the overlapping inch whilst holding the long screw in the middle, one you have secured the piece of wood you can remove the long screw now you have a secure backing to use whatever filling you want to use…..

If it was mine ,I’d take a spur off the socket on the other side of the wall, fit a back box to the wall this side and wire in a proper wall mounted plug socket.

Anything else really is a bodge but each to their own.